Description
There are no turns. Players play as quickly as possible, subject to certain constraints, until the game or phase is completed. Play is also interrupted by specific player actions, which are resolved before resuming the real-time action.
Discussion
Punctuated Real-Time is a variation in real-time (TRN-07) and the difference is subtle. In a Real-Time Game, the action stops when some condition is met—a timer going off, or a deck exhausting—whereas in a Punctuated Real-Time Game, the action may be stopped at any time, at the discretion of a player, or upon taking a valid stopping action. In Space Cadets: Dice Duel and Captain Sonar, players stop the action by shouting something (“Fire Torpedoes” or “Launch Mine”), and all players stop what they are doing to resolve the action. To a certain extent, this mechanism is also present in the early twentiethcentury game Pit, as players end the real-time trading portion by hitting a bell, after which the round is evaluated. Also dating back over a hundred years, baseball and American football are also exemplars of Punctuated RealTime, where teams can plan, organize, substitute, and catch their breath prior to initiating the next pitch or play. Punctuated Real-Time adds an additional layer of tension to the already tense mechanism of real-time. Players do not necessarily see the stoppage of play coming. In Pit, you don’t know how close the other players are to
winning the round. This mechanic also gives more flexibility to the designer on a number of levels. First, it allows for the inclusion of more complex mechanisms, as they can be resolved during the “stoppage time.” Firing a torpedo in Captain Sonar falls into this category, as the resolution can include complexity that would normally be beyond what is reasonable in a Real-Time Game. Second, Punctuated Real-Time allows the game to be longer, as the stoppage time gives players an opportunity to catch their breath or even get a snack or go to the restroom. In a fully Real-Time Game such as Escape: The Curse of the Temple, an action that continues more than 10–20 minutes or so risks exhausting and overwhelming the player. Punctuated Real-Time gives the designer a tool to create nonscheduled breaks to give the players a breather, allowing for a longer, more complex, and textured overall experience.
Sample Games
Captain Sonar (Fraga and Lemonier, 2016) Escape: The Curse of the Temple (Ostby, 2012) Merchants of Amsterdam (Knizia, 2000) Pit (Cayce, Gavitt, and Parker, 1903) Space Cadets: Dice Duel (Engelstein and Engelstein, 2013)
描述
没有回合。玩家在受到一定限制的情况下尽快玩耍，直到游戏或阶段完成（Real-Time Game）。但这种实时行动会被特定的玩家行动打断，这些行动会在恢复实时行动之前解决。
讨论
间断实时（Punctuated Real-Time）是实时（TRN-07）的一种变体，区别很微妙。在实时游戏中，当满足某些条件时动作停止——计时器响起，或者牌堆耗尽——而在间断实时游戏中，玩家可以酌情或在采取有效的停止动作时随时停止动作。在《Space Cadets: Dice Duel》和《Captain Sonar》中，玩家通过大喊（“发射鱼雷”或“放置水雷”）来停止动作，所有玩家停止他们正在做的事情来解决该动作。在某种程度上，这种机制也存在于20世纪初的游戏《Pit》中，因为玩家通过敲钟结束实时交易部分，之后评估这一轮。同样可以追溯到一百多年前，棒球和美式足球也是间断实时的典范，球队可以在发起下一次投球或比赛之前计划、组织、替换和喘息。间断实时为已经紧张的实时机制增加了一层额外的紧张感。玩家不一定能预见到比赛的中止。在《Pit》中，你不知道其他玩家离
赢得这一轮有多近。这种机制还在多个层面上给设计师提供了更大的灵活性。首先，它允许包含更复杂的机制，因为它们可以在“补时”期间解决。在《Captain Sonar》中发射鱼雷属于这一类，因为解决方案可以包含通常超出了实时游戏中合理范围的复杂性。其次，间断实时允许游戏时间更长，因为停止时间让玩家有机会喘口气，甚至吃点零食或去洗手间。在像《Escape: The Curse of the Temple》这样的完全实时游戏中，持续超过10-20分钟左右的动作可能会让玩家精疲力竭和不知所措。间断实时为设计师提供了一个工具来创建非计划的休息时间，让玩家喘口气，从而获得更长、更复杂和更有质感的整体体验。
游戏范例
Captain Sonar (Fraga and Lemonier, 2016) - 《Captain Sonar》 Escape: The Curse of the Temple (Ostby, 2012) - 《逃离神庙》 Merchants of Amsterdam (Knizia, 2000) - 《阿姆斯特丹商人》 Pit (Cayce, Gavitt, and Parker, 1903) - 《Pit》 Space Cadets: Dice Duel (Engelstein and Engelstein, 2013) - 《Space Cadets: Dice Duel》