FUNDAMENTALS OF GAME DESIGNGAME DESIGN COMPONENTS AND PROCESS

Sayed AhmedBSc. Eng. in CSc. & Eng. (BUET)

MSc. in CSc. (U of Manitoba)

http://sayed.JustEtc.net

http://www.JustETC.net

Presented at the University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

Just E.T.C for Business, Education, Technology, and Entertainment Solutions

Textbook References:Fundamentals of Game Design, 2nd Edition, Ernest Adams

TOPICS & LEARNING OBJECTIVES Game Design Process Player-centric approach to game design How

the core mechanics and the user interface

work together to create gameplay Explain

how gameplay modes and shell menus

make up the structure of a game Recognize

the three stages of game design and describe the design work in each stage

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TOPICS & LEARNING OBJECTIVES (CONT.) Kinds of jobs required on a design team Kinds of documents

that a game designer is likely to need and what they are for

Know the qualities required of a good game designer

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GAME DESIGN PROCESS

Imagine a Game Define the way it works Describe the elements that make up the

game Conceptual Functional Artistic And others

Transmit the game information to the Implementation team

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ART, ENGINEERING, OR CRAFT?

Game design is not purely an art nor an act of pure engineering

Game design is a craft It includes

both creative and functional elements It can be learned

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THE PLAYER-CENTRIC APPROACH

Player-centric game design is a philosophy of design

in which the designer envisions a representative player

Two duties in player-centric design: Entertain the representative player Empathize with the representative player

You are not the representative player You have to think like a representative player

You are not the player’s opponent

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OTHER MOTIVATIONS THAT INFLUENCE DESIGN

Market-driven games Appeal to the maximum number of people

regardless of implications for harmony

Designer-driven games Designer retains all creative control

Can be detrimental to the game sometimes

Games for a specific license Book or movie license Content must fit into an existing world Limits creativity

but often very lucrative7

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OTHER MOTIVATIONS THAT INFLUENCE DESIGN (CONT.)

Technology-driven games Games built to

show off the hardware running the game Crytek’s game Crysis

Show off Crytek’s 3D graphics engine

Art-driven games Games built to show off the artwork Games are visually innovative

but seldom good otherwise; comparatively rare Myst

Both great graphics and great gameplay

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INTEGRATING FOR ENTERTAINMENT

Integrating characteristics to entertain players requires designer to Have a specific vision Consider the audience’s preferences Understand licensing benefits

and exploit them to the game’s best advantage Understand the capabilities of the technology Consider aesthetic style

Think in light of player centric design

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KEY COMPONENTS OF VIDEO GAMESCORE MECHANICS

Core mechanics generate the gameplay Define the challenges Define the actions Define the player’s effect on the game world

Core mechanics determine how realistic the game world seems to

the player Realism is a continuum between abstract and

representational Pac man imaginary Grand Prix Legends – highly representational

Simulates the extra-ordinary danger of driving racing cars

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USER INTERFACE

Mediates between the core mechanics and the player Interprets player’s mouse clicks or button

presses Displays the result of the player’s input

Can also be called the presentation layer Presents the game world to the player Includes artwork and audio effects

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USER INTERFACE (CONT.)

Interaction model Identifies the way in which the player acts upon

the game world; common models include: Avatar-based—through a character in the world Multipresent—the player can act on many places at

once

Camera model Viewpoint of the virtual camera, and its behavior Simple models are called perspectives. First- and

third-person are common perspectives.

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THE STRUCTURE OF A VIDEO GAME

Structure is composed of Gameplay modes Shell menus

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GAMEPLAY MODES

Gameplay modes consist of the available gameplay and user interface at a specific time

Not all actions are available at all times Available user interface choices should be related to

the current actions

A game is in exactly one gameplay mode at a time. It can move to another mode as necessary

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THE GAMEPLAY MODE

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SHELL MENUS AND SCREENS

Shell menus are used when the player is NOT in a gameplay mode The player can’t affect the game world The player can save or load a game, adjust the

hardware, etc.

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FORMING THE STRUCTURE

Gameplay modes + shell menus = structure The game switches between gameplay

modes as required: In response to specific player requests In response to events in the game

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STAGES OF THE DESIGN PROCESS

Game Design Stages (not game development stages) Concept stage Elaboration stage Tuning stage

“Pre-production” and “production” are development stages that overlap the design stages

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CONCEPT STAGE

During the concept stage, you Define the fundamental game concept, including

the game’s genre Define an audience Determine the player’s role in the game Think about how to fulfill the player’s dream

Concept should not change after this stage

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ELABORATION STAGE

Define the primary game mode

Design the protagonist Define the game world Design the core

mechanics

Create additional modes

Create the first playable level

Write the story Build, test, and iterate

During this stage, you

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TUNING STAGE

Starts at the point when the entire design is locked and no more features may be added to the game

During the tuning stage, the design team makes small adjustments

to levels and core mechanics

Polishing is a subtractive process removing imperfections

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GAME DESIGN TEAMS

A game design team may include Lead Designer Game Designers Level Designers User Interface Designers Writers Art Director Audio Director

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DOCUMENTING THE DESIGN

Design documents are used To communicate your ideas clearly to other team

members As sales tools As design tools To record the decisions made

The process of writing a document can turn a vague idea into an explicit plan

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TYPES OF DESIGN DOCUMENTS

High concept document Tool to sell your game concept (2 to 4 pages)

Game treatment document Primarily a sales tool

with more detail than the high concept document Summary of the basic game design

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TYPES OF DESIGN DOCUMENTS (CONT.) Character design document

Design one character in the game Usually the Avatar

Include moveset Include concept art in different poses Include the character’s backstory

World design document General overview of the game world art Types and locations for sounds Include a map

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TYPES OF DESIGN DOCUMENTS (CONT.) Flowboard

Document the structure—links among gameplay modes and shell menus

List available menu items and player inputs Story and level progression document

Tell the story Record the player’s progression through the

game Game script document

Specifies rules and core mechanics in enough detail to play the game

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ANATOMY OF A GAME DESIGNER

Imagination Technical awareness Analytical competence Mathematical

competence Aesthetic competence

General knowledge and ability to research

Writing skills Drawing skills Ability to synthesize

Useful skills for professional game designers

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SUMMARY

You should now understand Game design process Player-centric approach to game design Structure of a game Stages of game design Documenting game design Roles and qualities of the design team members

Qualities of a Game Designer

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