Electronic Arts patented a Dynamic Difficulty System

You know, when you say to yourself, I'm going to play only one match for a short time, and then you lose that match and play another one and so on until you win - that you didn't play in vain? Electronic Arts seem to want to encourage players who play games on shorter occasions to stay with them longer - by dynamically increasing their level of challenge, that is, the difficulty of the game.

A few days ago, their patent was published for a system that automatically adjusts the weight of the game is very small measures, and most importantly - in the background, without the knowledge of the player. It’s not a new concept - similarly used and still used in a bunch of other games - one of the most famous examples of dynamic difficulty change is the cult Resident Evil 4. However, the goal of this system developed by Electronic Arts is not to make it harder or easier for a player to play depending on his skills, rather than the idea that by slightly increasing the difficulty of playing, players can stay in the game longer.

For example, if you have half an hour to play and the game gives you a challenge that you fail to solve in those half hours, there’s a chance you’ll play a few minutes longer so you don’t feel like you’ve wasted those half hours doing nothing. Electronic Arts seem to be aiming to take advantage of that chance of extended play.

Why does it even matter to them how long someone has been playing their games? As a rule, this item is extremely important because the longer a player is in the game, the greater the chances that something will be sold to him or the chances that he will become a loyal consumer of a franchise. After all, most players can only play one game at a time, and if you’re playing an Electronic Arts game, that means you’re not playing another company’s game, which is just as important to Electronic Arts when comparisons start with other companies in the market.

Of course, as usual - the system of automated difficulty change to prolong the game is only a patent for now. And that means it doesn't have to be materialized and used in a game, or more. The only question is - will Electronic Arts be transparent if the system is used one day.