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Librairie Eyrolles - Paris 5e
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Game design

The art & business of creating games

Bob Bates, André LaMotte

300 pages, parution le 01/08/2001

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Indisponible

Résumé

Have you ever wondered how best-selling video games went from an idea to the store shelf? Do you want an inside look into the game-development industry? Would you like to hear tips on how to break into the business? Well then, look no further. The Art & Business of Creating Games tells you how to make your dreams of designing a game into reality. Offering advice and insight on everything from how to get a foot in the door to what to do once inside, this is a true inside scoop on the industry. Find out how to license a game, settle contract issues, and demonstrate the game to prospective companies. For any serious game designers wanting to earn a living doing what they love, this is a complete resource to break into the business! Series editor André LaMothe has published numerous magazine articles and is an international best-selling author with over six game programming and 3D graphics titles to his credit. He has been active in the computing industry for more than twenty years, during which he created one of the world's first commercially available virtual reality games, CyberGate. André is also the founder and CEO of Xtreme Games LLC.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Part I: Design

Chapter 1: Getting to "Yes"

Concept Development
Genres

Adventure Games
Action Games
Role-Playing Games (RPGs)
Strategy Games
Simulations
Sports Games
Fighting Games
Casual Games
God Games
Educational Games
Puzzle Games
Online Games

Client Goals
The Game Proposal Document

High Concept
Gameplay
Features
Target Market
Target Hardware Platform
Estimated Schedule and Budget
Competitive Analysis
The Team
Risk Analysis
Summary

Chapter 2: Principles of game design
Player Empathy
Feedback
Grounding the Player
The Moment-to-Moment Experience
Immersion
Writing
Design Within Limits
Removing Impediments

Disc Swapping
Load Times
Game Interruptions
Saving the Game
Housekeeping
Bugs

Interface Design
The Start-up Screen
Customizable Controls
Cheat Codes
Tutorial or Practice Mode
Structure and Progression
Taking Care of the Player

Dead Man Walking
Protect Newbies
Play It Again, Sam
Give the Player the Information He Needs
Reduce Player Paranoia
Offer Levels of Difficulty

How to Design

Create an Integrated Whole
Economy of Design
Where Do You Get Your Ideas?

Chapter 3: Genre-specific Game Design Issues
Action

Point of View
Level Design
Weapons
Engine

RPGs

Character Growth
Statistics
Story
Combat

Adventure

Story
Puzzles
Interface
Linearity versus Nonlinearity
Exploration

Strategy

Resources
Teams
Units and Weapons
Realism versus Fun
Artificial Intelligence (Al)
Testing
Missions

Simulations

Wish Fulfillment
Hard-Core versus Casual
Interface
Keep It Fun

Sports

Know the Rules
The Meta-Game
Licenses
The Look
Features and Interface

Fighting Games
Casual
God Games
Educational Games
Puzzle Games
Online

Chapter 4: Storytelling
Plot: The Three-Act Structure

The Beginning
The Middle
The End

Setting
Character Development

Character Growth

Interactivity
The Tools of the Trade

Cut Scenes
Scripted Events
Dialog

The Hero's Journey

Chapter 5: Level Design
Concept Work
Building the Level
Gameplay

Goals
Structure and Progression
Flow Control
Degree of Difficulty
Balance
Puzzles
Other Design Tips

Evaluation

Chapter 6: Designing the Puzzle
Types of Puzzles

Ordinary Use of an Object
Unusual Use of an Object
"Building" Puzzles
Information Puzzles
Codes, Cryptograms, and Other"Word" Puzzles
Excluded Middle Puzzles
Preparing the Way
People Puzzles
Timing Puzzles
Sequence Puzzles
Logic Puzzles
Classic Game Puzzles
Riddles
Dialog Puzzles
Trial and Error Puzzles
Machinery Puzzles
Alternative Interfaces
Mazes
Gestalt Puzzles

What Make a Bad Puzzle?

Restore Puzzles
Arbitrary Puzzles
Designer Puzzles
Binary Puzzles
Hunt-the-Pixel Puzzles

What Makes a Good Puzzle?

Fairness
Appropriate to the Environment
Amplifying the Theme
The V-8 Response

Levels of Difficulty

Bread Crumbs
The Solution's Proximity to the Puzzle
Alternative Solutions
Red Herrings
Steering the Player

How to Design the Puzzle

Creating the Puzzle
The Villain
Player Empathy

Summary

Chapter 7: Franchises, Brands, and Licenses
Creating an Internal Franchise

Inside the Character
The Visual Look
Revealing Character
World-Based Franchises

Working with an External License

Acquiring the License
Working with the Licensor
Creating the Material

A Straight Adaptation of an Existing Work
A Summary Treatment of a Series
A New Game Based in an Existing Universe
A New Game in a Universe that Doesn't Exist Yet

Part II: Teams

Chapter 8: The Development Team
Vision
Production

The External Producer
The Internal Producer
The Assistant and Associate Producers

Design

The Game Designer
The Level Designer
The Writer

Programming

The Tech Lead
Programmers

Art

The Art Lead
Artists

Concept
Character Modeling
Animation
Background Modeling
Textures

Testing

The Test Lead
Testers

The Cabal Approach

Chapter 9: External Resources
Administrative Issues
Voice
Music
Sound Effects
Video
Motion Capture
Language Localization
The Manual
Legal Issues (Getting the Rights)

Part III: Development

Chapter 10: Project Lifecycle and Documents
Concept Development
The Project Proposal

The High Concept
The Features Summary
The Story
Gameplay Mechanics
The P&L (Profit and Loss) Statement
Risk Analysis

Preproduction (Proof of Concept)

The Game Design Document
The Art Bible
The Production Path
The Technical Design Document
The Project Plan
The Prototype

Development
Alpha
Beta
Code Freeze
RTM (Release to Manufacture)
Patches
Upgrades

Chapter 11: Managing Development
Design
Planning and Scheduling

Scope
External Pressures
Padding
Altered Requirements
Developer Optimism
The Unsolvable Problem

Selecting the Right Lifecycle Model

The Waterfall
The Modified Waterfall
Iterative Prototyping

Problems

Classic Mistakes

Recovery

Ineffective Strategies
The Back of the Wagon
Other Recovery Strategies

Management Style

Part IV: The Business

Chapter 12: The Business How Games Are Sold
The Publishing Team

Public Relations (PR)
Marketing
Sales

Chain Stores
Wholesalers
OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers)
Selling the Salesmen

Promotional Tools

Demos
Interviews
Screenshots
Sell Sheets
The Bottom Line

Business Development

Advances
Royalties
Reserve against Returns
Milestones and Deliverables
Rights
Proprietary Technology
Term
Termination
Confidentiality
Ancillary Revenues

Chapter 13: Breaking In
General Advice

Getting Ready
Your Demo
The Cover Letter and Resume
The Interview

Applying for Specific Positions

Programmers
Artists
Level Designers
Producers
Testers
Composers and Sound Effects Technicians
Game Designers

Finding Job Openings

Part V: Conclusion

Chapter 14: The Hero's Journey

Appendix: Resources

Game Design

Magazines
Web Sites

Storytelling
Software Management
Schools
Industry News
Conferences and Tradeshows

Glossary
Index

Introduction