Game Dev Basics
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Genres• Adventure – Quest/mission completion• Action – Fast-paced combat and movement• Action Adventure – Adventure games with action• Platformer – Character running and jumping in
scrolling field• Fighting – Fight using weapons or bare hand• First-Person Shooter – Action game with 1st person
view• Real-Time Strategy – Collect resources, build army,
etc• Turn-Based Strategy – RTS but turn based • Role-Playing Games – Play as a character in the
game• Sports – Racing, cricket, football, etc
I like ______ (fill in the blank)
• Art (Concept, Modelling, Texturing, Animation, Interface)
• Programming (Tools, Game engines, AI, Networking, Logic)
• Audio (Foley, fx, Composing themes)• Writing (Script, back story, dialogue)• Design (not just ideas, the big picture)• Management/Leadership
Tools of the tradeProgramming• MS Visual Studio Express Editions(C#, C+
+, etc ) – free• Open Source world (Linux, Eclipse,
Codeblocks, etc ) - free• Middleware (AI, Sound, Networking, Tree
rendering, etc )• Engines (full-blown, specialized, etc )
Sound• Audacity - free• Fruityloops – cheap
Tools of the tradeDesign• Freemind – Mindmapping software ( Open
source ) - free
Art• The GIMP(OS Photoshop clone ) - free• Blender(OS Modeling/Animation ) - free • XSI ModTool - free • Big boys : Photoshop, Painter, 3dsmax,
Maya, Zbrush, etc
ArtistsEnvironmentalist• A great perception of depth, scale and
perspective• Concept art and parallax background for
2D games• Define visual style and breathe
atmosphere into the scene
ArtistsCharacterist• Great precision and iteration to get the
perfect character• Give birth the most crazy creatures you’ve
ever seen
ArtistsPolygonalist• Work on complex 3D environment• Convert the concept art into 3D models
with animation
ArtistsTexturist• Add skin/texture to the 3D model• Work with a 2D unwrapped version of the
3D model• Keep in mind precise boundaries, bends
and folds
ArtistsVisualist• Create from a user’s perspective • A feel in colour palettes, i.e. ‘which’ colour
initiate ‘what’ feeling in ‘what’ context
Game Designing• What’s your favourite video game? (now,
ever)• What made/makes that game fun?• Does a game have to be fun? What is fun?• Can a video game be “art”?
People like (or find fun) games that have components that fall
into these categories (realms) :• Spatial Reasoning (Physical)• Pattern Recognition (Mental)• Social
Core Components of Game Designing
Goals• Multiple, clear and achievable• If it takes too long to achieve a goal, the
player may get bored, so, create many simultaneous goals
• Player always should have at least one clear objective
• One “unbeatable” boss, one “impossible” jump or goal can ruin a game
Core Components of Game Designing
Choice (or at least the illusion)• Players want to think that their decision
matters• Different choices or action sequences that
result in identical results will frustrate players
• Character customization, alternate endings, good vs evil dynamics play an important role
• “Game is a series of interesting choices” – Meier
Core Components of Game Designing
Rewards and Punishments• Value of an item (to an individual) closely
correlates with what it costs to acquire (money, time, effort)
• A player who has spent time and effort on completing a task, expects to be rewarded
• Likewise a player who has failed in an objective, expects to be punished
• If actions don’t have consequences, then game-play is meaningless
Core Components of Game Designing
Game Mechanics• Programming language• Programming libraries, engines, tools• Hardware required/available• Logical programming components• Storage/retrieval/initialization methods• Interfaces (software and hardware)
supported
Core Components of Game Designing
Game Dynamics• Domain of the game• Players in the game• Rules of the game• Objects in the game
Game Aesthetics• Colour Palette• Physical looks for all players• Lighting plots, schemes, etc
Game Designing• Grid paper, rulers, pencils, set squares,
protractors, scientific calculators are your best buddies
• Game elements are created and modified based on user data
• A player’s familiarity with a game will enable them to deal with far more information than a novice player
• Perception – Orientation, time and space location, etc
• Comprehension – Understanding relation in elements
• Projection – What do I do now, what next?• Understand how various game elements
impact difficulty• Linear increase in complexity tends to
create exponential increase in difficulty