| One of the most important but least discussed elements of a computer game is the gameplay that makes a game compelling and entertaining. Game Design: Theory & Practice focuses on this elusive topic and how you can ensure your title has the best gameplay possible. Richard Rouse discusses in detail key game design topics including game balancing, storytelling, non-linearity, player motivations, input/output, artificial intelligence, level design, and playtesting. This book delves into the entire breadth of interactive games, covering computer, console, and arcade titles, and spanning a variety of gaming genres including strategy, adventure, simulation, action, role-playing, sports, and wargames.
An intermediate to advanced level guide to computer game design and its many aspects. Topics covered include game balancing, storytelling, non-linearity, artificial intelligence. The CD-ROM contains more than a dozen software packages, links to various game design resources on the Internet, and more. Softcover. DLC: Computer games--Programming.
This book is about developing original computer games that will hopefully have the same mind-blowing effect on players that Space Invaders had on my young brain. This book deals with that development process from the point of view of the game designer. Many books have been written about the programming of computer games, but I can remember my frustration in being unable to find a book such as this one when I was an aspiring game designer. In some ways, I have written this book for myself, for the person I was a decade ago. I hope that other people interested in designing games will find this book informative. In my humble opinion, it is the game designer who has the most interesting role in the creation of a computer game. It is the game’s design that dictates the form and shape of the game’s gameplay, and this is the factor which differentiates our artistic medium from all others.
About the Author Richard Rouse III is a computer game designer, programmer, and writer at Surreal Software (www.surreal.com). Rouse has been designing games professionally for over seven years and has played a lead design role in the development of games for the PC, Macintosh, Sega Dreamcast, Sony PlayStation, and PlayStation 2. His credits include Centipede 3D, Odyssey: The Legend of Nemesis, and Damage Incorporated. At Surreal he currently spends all his waking hours working on a secret PlayStation 2 action/adventure project, while also contributing where he can to Drakan for PlayStation 2. Rouse has written about game design for publications including Game Developer, SIGGRAPH Computer Graphics, Gamasutra, and Inside Mac Games. |