In this 2017 GDC session, Immersyve's Scott Rigby explains why it's valuable for developers to have a nuanced understanding of player autonomy. 

Rigby discusses how autonomy is often misunderstood to mean "giving players freedom," which can lead to player frustration and disappointment rather than satisfaction.

He outlines an accurate blueprint of what autonomy actually means and shares best practices to avoid design pitfalls. 

It was an insightful talk that's definitely still worth watching, so developers shouldn't miss the opportunity to do so now that it's freely available on the official GDC YouTube channel!

About the GDC Vault

In addition to this presentation, the GDC Vault and its accompanying YouTube channel offers numerous other free videos, audio recordings, and slides from many of the recent Game Developers Conference events, and the service offers even more members-only content for GDC Vault subscribers.

Those who purchased All Access passes to recent events like GDC or VRDC already have full access to GDC Vault, and interested parties can apply for the individual subscription via a GDC Vault subscription page. Group subscriptions are also available: game-related schools and development studios who sign up for GDC Vault Studio Subscriptions can receive access for their entire office or company by contacting staff via the GDC Vault group subscription page. Finally, current subscribers with access issues can contact GDC Vault technical support.