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Dear Reader,

Thank you for choosing Game Design Essentials. This book is part of a family of premium-quality Sybex books, all of which are written by outstanding authors who combine practical experience with a gift for teaching.

Sybex was founded in 1976. More than 30 years later, we’re still committed to producing consistently exceptional books. With each of our titles, we’re working hard to set a new standard for the industry. From the paper we print on, to the authors we work with, our goal is to bring you the best books available.

I hope you see all that reflected in these pages. I’d be very interested to hear your comments and get your feedback on how we’re doing. Feel free to let me know what you think about this or any other Sybex book by sending me an email at nedde@wiley.com. If you think you’ve found a technical error in this book, please visit http://sybex.custhelp.com. Customer feedback is critical to our efforts at Sybex.

Best regards,

Neil Edde

Vice President and Publisher

Sybex, an Imprint of Wiley

for Richard and Adam

Acknowledgments

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the professional team at Sybex (an imprint of Wiley) for all their hard work. Writing a book is a huge undertaking, but I was not alone and had an amazing group of people who helped shepherd it to you.

Thank you to the terrific team who worked with me: Mariann Barsolo, Sara Barry, Pete Gaughan, Jim Haldy, Christine O’Connor, and Tiffany Taylor. Their professionalism and skills were instrumental in producing this book, and I’m grateful for their enthusiasm and support.

My partners in Star Mountain Studios, Richard and Adam (who truly lives in the secret cow level), are my friends and fellow game makers. They were a constant source of information and guidance with the research and writing of this book. I so enjoy making games with them, and I look forward to making many more. My friend Jack Keely, an amazing illustrator and author, has been a tremendous supporter of this endeavor as well, always there at the right time with the right comment or cartoon to keep things fun and focused.

A special thank you to my parents, Gerry and Steph—according to them, I can do no wrong.

About the Author

Briar Lee Mitchell, MA, runs Star Mountain Studios, www.starmountainstudios.com, a successful gaming company, with her partners, Richard Sternberg and Adam Ryan. They produced an online video game with Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Genie Joe and the Axeman, and Apparitions with Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson, the Ghost Hunters and founders of The Atlantic Paranormal Society (TAPS).

Briar is also on the faculty at the Art Institute, teaching game art, animation, and VFX techniques for TV, film, and games.

Briar began work as an illustrator in 1977 and has degrees from the University of Toledo (Ohio, BA in art) and the University of California, San Francisco (MA in medical and biological illustration).

She worked in conjunction with Lucasfilm on the very first interactive videodisc for the Smithsonian, titled The Life and Times of Albert Einstein. The videodisc and a portrait she painted of Albert Einstein are still at the Smithsonian.

Briar joined the Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles (SILA) in 1992 and served as president for two years. Through her association with SILA, she became a member of the Air Force Art Program; she traveled around the world with the Air Force to document its work in paintings that have been inducted into the National Archives in Washington, DC. Her travels have taken her to Asia, the South Pacific, New Zealand, and as far away as McMurdo Station at the South Pole along with noted director/producer James Cameron.

You can view Briar’s work for environments at www.paisleyshark.com and her medical/forensic work at www.medicalart-briarlee.com. You can contact Briar at briarlee@aol.com.

In the photo with Briar is Bardy, an amazing Labrador who is her partner in K9 Search and Rescue.

Introduction

We have played games for thousands of years, to learn how to improve military skills, increase math and business abilities, learn new talents, sharpen old ones, and just have fun. Games are an integral part of being human, and there seems to be a game to fit each of our many different interests. Games have evolved right along with humans, and their development has been influenced strongly by culture and technology.

The gaming experience changed remarkably with the introduction of video games in the 1960s and 1970s, when intrepid inventors built them and made them available for everyone to enjoy. As technology has bloomed and the Internet has radically changed everyone’s life, the growth of games, with their inventive use of this technology, continues to enthrall gamers in ever-increasing numbers.

Faster animation, more detailed graphics, and advanced sophistication in sound contribute to creating gameplay that is intriguing, compelling, and addictive. Consumers are spending more money and time on games, whether on a console, their home computer, or a mobile device or phone. There is no abatement in the desire to play, which means opportunities for those of us who love both playing and creating games.

Game makers have evolved to embrace the constantly improving technology to bring us more sophisticated and compelling games to play. Their efforts appear seamless to the gamer, but the work behind the scenes requires a huge array of skills and teamwork.

I hope this book will be an inspiration to those of you on the starting line of finding your way into the intriguing world of making games.

Who Should Read This Book

This book is for people who are interested in computer games and what goes into making them, folks who might want to segue into this field, and students in game art.

What You Will Learn

You’ll gain a great understanding of how games are made and the importance of gameplay style. You’ll get practical advice on creating characters, props, environments, and interfaces. The book also provides practice working with visuals, audio, navigation, and interfaces. Throughout, you’ll learn to keep gameplay at the forefront, which is what any successful game maker does.

In addition to learning about making games, you’ll learn a great deal about the industry. When you finish this book, you’ll know more about the roles and pipelines involved in the production of games and be able to refine your own ideas about what you want to do in the industry.

If you have an interest in making games or working in the industry and you just aren’t sure where to start, there is a lot of information here to help you understand how games are made, who does what during production, and methods for distributing and marketing games.

Reader Requirements

If you have an interest in computer games, enjoy playing them, and might like to make them, those are all the requirements you need.

What Is Covered in This Book

Game Design Essentials is written to help people who have an interest in creating games and may wish to segue into this field, and for students already in school. The book’s web page is located at www.sybex.com/go/gamedesignessentials, where you can download files mentioned in the book and additional documents.

Chapter 1: Game Design Origins In order to understand how games are designed and created today, you’ll examine their historical origins. This chapter includes a look at some of the earliest games known to man and how their design and gameplay are apparent in modern productions.

Chapter 2: Gameplay Styles This chapter examines what gameplay styles are and how important they are to a successful product. Too often, new game makers focus on the look of the game, when in fact the most important component of a successful game is gameplay. You’ll study elements that make up good gameplay and review the major categories of gameplay style.

Chapter 3: Core Game Design Concepts This chapter walks through the first steps of writing a game and takes you from concept to script to Game Design Document to pitch. You’ll learn how to prepare the synopsis, establish the goals, and write a logline. Chapter 3 covers essential information about describing the look and functionality of characters, props, and environments and about creating lore.

Chapter 4: Visual Design This chapter covers the basics of how to begin designing characters, props, environments, and interfaces from concept to finished art. Information provided includes methods for working on original work, how to find inspiration, and the impact gameplay style and demographics have on designing visuals for a game.

Chapter 5: Detailed Development of Visuals Chapter 4 discussed some of the initial visuals created for a game. This chapter provides more detailed descriptions for creating 3D models, color, texture, and lighting. In addition, the chapter provides an overview of design graphics.

Chapter 6: Navigation and Interfaces Navigation, when referencing game design, deals with how the player can move through a game. This includes adjusting visuals and sound, where to find interactive elements in the game, and how to move about the world being created. An interface is what allows a gamer to interact with the game. This chapter examines some of the types of interfaces typical to games, including diegetic and non-diegetic.

Chapter 7: Designing Levels and the Game Design Document The levels reviewed in this chapter have to do with where the player is in the game world, and what they experience while they are there. You’ll learn how to plot out a physical area for a game and then understand how game makers plan events. The Game Design Document (GDD) is a written tome that game makers create, which contains everything related to the game from initial log line to the full, finished list of assets that have been or need to be created for the project.

Chapter 8: Sound Sound for games helps to define the mood for the project and can telegraph changes in the gameplay. The chapter explains how musical scores are created and describes the methods audio designers use to create sound effects.

Chapter 9: Job Descriptions, Game Tracking, and Legal Issues This chapter reviews a variety of jobs and their duties, along with how they relate to large versus small productions. In addition, game pipelines and how they work with regard to tracking a production are discussed. The chapter also covers legal issues related to game production and game marketing, such as trademarks, copyright, and standards.

Chapter 10: Distribution and Marketing Game sales have increased tremendously over the past few years, surpassing even the feature film industry. As methods for playing games through the Internet, home computer systems, and so on have increased, so have the methods for marketing games. This chapter looks at some of those unique methods, such as in-game advertising and advergames.

Appendix A This appendix contains the answers to the review questions from each chapter.

Appendix B This appendix is about getting started in the field. It provides information on education, internships, entry-level positions, and a wealth of resources for networking and staying current. The appendix also provides detailed information about preparing a flatbook, a reel, and other materials you may need as you apply for jobs and internships.

Appendix C This appendix contains an excerpt from the Game Design Document (GDD) for Red Harvest from Bedlam Games. This excerpt shows you the kind of information and the level of detail found in a GDD.