Introduction to Game Design

Introductionto Game Design{ JORGE PALACIOS, CHRISTIAN CHOMIAK }

ALL IMAGES ARE PROPERTY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE AUTHORS

Video games as a concept


What is a video game?


What is a video game?“Q: What is a game?A: An activity that:- requires at least one participant- has rules- has a victory condition”

“Q: What is a video game?A: A game played through a video screen”

-Scott Rogers (2010) on ”Level Up! The guide to great video game design”


What is a video game?

• System of rules with definedobjectives that involes theinteraction between players and software.


Games as a medium


Games DesignINTRODUCTION


People involved in the development

•Producer

•Designer

•Programmer

•2D/3D artist

•Sound artist

•QA

•Others…


Design is…

…the art of creating experiences


Boards games


Children’s parks


Amusement parks


What is game design?

• The study of games

• Requires to effectively communicatethe same vision of the Project to allthe members of the team

• It’s NOT directing, management nor“coming up with ideas”

• Being a gamer is not the same as being a game designer.


Game Design


Frameworks: MDA

• Defined by Robin Hunicke, Marc Le Blanc & Robert Zubek.• Games structured into three layers:

• Mechanics• Dynamics• Aesthetics

Designer Player


MDA: Mechanics

• Rules and algorithms that define and govern the actions that take place in the game.


MDA: Mechanics


MDA: Dynamics

• Behaviours that arise from plyers interactig with the mechanics.


MDA: Dynamics


MDA: Aesthetics

• Emotional responses to the game, by the player.


MDA: Aesthetics


MDA: Aesthetics


Frameworks: Elemental Tetrad

• Defined by Jesse Schell in his book: The Art of Game Design.

Aesthetics

Narrative

Technologies

Mechanics


Adventure games (’70s)


Adventure games (’90s)

Monkey Island 2


Mobile games


Game DesignTHEORY BEHIND IT


Playtest• Tests designed to find tech and design bugs.• Bugs found earlier can be corrected earlier in

development (when it’s cheaper).• Works best if:

• Testers give direct feedback (written or verbally).

• Testers are given as few initial information as posible (reduce biasing).

• Indirect feedback can be captured (involuntarily and automatic responses while playtesting).


Playtest: It’s all about iterations

Design

PrototypeEvaluate


Bottom-Up & Top-Down design

Concept

Context

Kernel(Characteristics and content)

Mechanics

Verbs

Bo

tto

m-u

p

Top

-do

wn


Angry Birds: mechanics


Angry Birds: narrative


Enter The Matrix


About Tutorials

• A good tutorial:1. Is not an exercise on reading a

screen.2. Works best if distributed through

the game.3. Should be as interesting as the rest

of the game.4. Must be reinforsed throughout the

game.5. Must not be neither intrusive nor

mandatory. It should be seamless.


Mario: A good tutorial


Mario: A good tutorial


Interest curve

• Experience shouldn’t be linear.

• People get used to external stimuliand require more to be as satisfiedas before.

• There must be alternationsbetween action and resting.


Conclusions


Thank you very much!Jorge Palacios – @pctroll – pctroll .net

Christ ian Chomiak – @cchomiakm – bonusdisc.com

@iovizna – iovizna.com


Any questions?
