Games need to be fun and engaging and active, but not always the same amount. I think it’s important for games to ramp up as you play them. Let me explain a few reasons why:

Learning Curve

Before you play a game you need to learn it. Even if you try and learn it as you play it, you need to learn it slow and steady. Having the game start off slow and steady helps with that. Not only does it give you time to learn the written rules, maybe make a few mistakes, but it also give you time to learn the basic strategy. Of course, you don’t want it to stay simple forever, so it’s important that the game eventually get more complex and interesting as the game goes on.

Forgiveness

While it’s important to let plays make mistakes in the early game for learning purposes, it’s also important to not let the game end right away because of something small. If you have a chance to end the game right at the beginning, then it’s not the beginning any more: it’s just a really short, unsatisfying game. You need to make sure anything that happens at the start of the game doesn’t just end the game. Don’t let a player fight something that can kill them in their first encounter. Start small and go from there.

Interest Curve

I come from a background of film, and really, all entertainment has something to do with each other. If you’ve ever seen one of those graphs that talks about rising action and the climax and denouement, then you’ll know what I’m talking about. Games, like movies, have stories to them. In the case of games, its bilt as the players play it. That story needs to follow that same curve. It needs to ratchet up tension as the game goes on, getting more and more exciting and interesting as things go on. This is what makes some games feel cinematic.

Stagnation

What is the alternative to things ramping up? One is that they ramp down, which I probably don’t need to tell you is bad. If the most exciting turn is the first one, then the rest can be a boring slog. Be especially wary of this in games with limited resources that don’t replenish, like troops in a war game. The other option is for things to just be the same. This happens a lot with party games, since they move fast enough that they don’t really have time to climb. However, if a game starts and stops at the same level of intensity, then if it’s high, that can be exhausting! Spending a whole game at the edge of your seat means your butt’s going to get soar! And keeping a medium level of intensity just gets boring. You just kind of get used to it and there’s nothing the game can do to make up for it. You’re just sort of waiting for the game to end. Honestly, a consistently low amount of engagement is probably the most preferable. Tons of people enjoy playing games while distracted or doing other stuff, or just having fun being with their friends. But even that is risky, and could mean your game is treated less like a game and more like a distraction. You’ll have to decide for yourself if you’re okay with that.

Conclusion

I think games are better when they get more exciting as they go on. Any game with upgrades or unlockables will do the trick, or even stuff like information being revealed. Honestly, it can be hard to not make a game that ratchets up, but it’s still important to be aware of it.