Elements of Game Design
- Length: 256 pages
- Edition: 1
- Language: English
- Publisher: The MIT Press
- Publication Date: 2020-08-18
- ISBN-10: 0262043912
- ISBN-13: 9780262043915
- Sales Rank: #587669 (See Top 100 Books)
An introduction to the basic concepts of game design, focusing on techniques used in commercial game production.
This textbook by a well-known game designer introduces the basics of game design, covering tools and techniques used by practitioners in commercial game production. It presents a model for analyzing game design in terms of three interconnected levels—mechanics and systems, gameplay, and player experience—and explains how novice game designers can use these three levels as a framework to guide their design process. The text is notable for emphasizing models and vocabulary used in industry practice and focusing on the design of games as dynamic systems of gameplay.
The book first introduces the core model and framework for analyzing and designing games. It then discusses the three levels in detail, explaining player experience and identifying design goals; introducing low-level structural analysis of gameplay in terms of basic mechanics; describing how mechanics build up into systems; and presenting concepts for understanding gameplay, defined as the dynamic behavior of players when they interact with mechanics and systems. Finally, the book offers students advice on creating game prototypes using an iterative, user-centered process. Each chapter offers a set of exercises for individuals and design challenges for groups.
Contents Acknowledgments Introduction Game Design and the Scope of This Text Classroom Use Note on Exercises Note on Style Note on Definitions 1. Elements Design Process Games as Machines Game Design Is User-Centered Motivating Example: Poker Model Description Designer’s Role Designer’s Process Player’s Experience Elements of Games Outside This Model The Practice of Game Design Game Design, Systems Design, Content Design Discipline Interactions Summary Further Reading Formal Tools MDA The Practice of Design Individual Exercises 2. Player Experience Experience Is Relative What Do You Enjoy? Building a Naive Taxonomy Player Theories Designer Theories The Bartle Model The Koster Model User Personas Empirical Models The Big Five Personality Model Yee’s Gamer Motivation Profiles Player Motivations and the Big Five Experience Design Questions to Guide Experience Design Experience Archetypes and Genres Summary Further Reading Player Psychology Designer Theories Individual Exercises 3. Mechanics Mechanics as Building Blocks Composition of Mechanics The Language Metaphor Example: Exploring Monopoly Games as State Spaces Game State State Spaces Action Spaces Perceived Action Spaces Explicit and Implicit Mechanics Examples of Families of Mechanics Control Mechanics Progression Mechanics Uncertainty Mechanics Resource Management Mechanics Beyond the Four Families Mechanics Design Design Heuristics Primary and Derived Mechanics Summary Further Reading History of Mechanics Taxonomies In-depth Explorations Individual Exercises Group Exercises 4. Systems Motivating Example: Diablo Game Systems Setting and Systems Layering Thinking in Systems Mechanic Chains and Loops Conversion Chains Calculating Exchange Rates Conversion Loops Feedback Loops Positive Feedback Negative Feedback Effects of Positive Feedback Effects of Negative Feedback Emergence and Chaos Emergent Behavior Chaotic Systems Systems Design From User Stories to Systems System Tuning Approaches The Role of Tuning in the Production Process Summary Further Reading Individual Exercises Group Exercises 5. Gameplay Motivating Example: The Sims Gameplay Loops Loop Frequencies Onion Diagrams The Core Loop Layering Loops and Systems Player Motivation Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Intrinsic Motivation: Flow and Learning Flow Theory Learning and Challenge Escalation Learning to Overcome Uncertainty Dominant Strategies and “Solving the Game” Loops and Challenges Extrinsic Motivation: Work and Rewards Progression and Rewards Reward Schedules Types of Schedules Game Examples Changing Workload Related Topic: Gamification Gameplay Loop Design Heuristics From User Stories to Gameplay Loops Playtesting Loops Summary Further Reading Gameplay Loops Motivation Individual Exercises Group Exercises 6. Macrostructure Motivating Example: The Witcher Game Fiction Fantasy Story Story and Agency Consistency Macrostructure and Content Arcs The Three-Act Model Story Arc and Episodes Three-Act Model and Non-story Games Narrative Patterns Linear Narrative Branching Choices Branch and Merge Branching with State Hub and Spokes Narrative Composition and Quests Open Worlds Open Worlds and Quest Design Simulated Worlds Pacing Metagame Mastery Metagame Social Metagame Game Modding Benefits of Metagame Summary Further Reading Individual Exercises Group Exercises 7. Prototyping and Playtesting Motivating Example: Project Highrise Production Stages Game Concept Understanding the Game Idea Understanding the Market Forming a Game Pitch From Concept to Prototyping: Kelly Guidelines Prototyping Playable Prototypes Iterative Process Playtesting Documenting Design Finishing Iteration Production and Beyond Ideas for Student Prototyping Shorter Production Cycle Scaling Prototyping Scope Supporting Portfolio Development Summary Further Reading Group Exercises Conclusion References Index
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