Game Design Essentials

An easy-to-follow primer on the fundamentals of digital game design The quickly evolving mobile market is spurring digital game creation into the stratosphere, with revenue from games exceeding that of the film industry. With this guide to the basics, you’ll get in on the game of digital game design while you learn the skills required for storyboarding, character creation, environment creation, level design, programming, and testing. Teaches basic skill sets in the context of current systems, genres, and game-play styles Demonstrates how to design for different sectors within gaming including console, PC, handheld, and mobile Explores low-poly modeling for game play Addresses character and prop animation, lighting and rendering, and environment design Discusses the path from concept to product, including pre- and post-production Includes real-world scenarios and interviews with key studio and industry professionals With Game Design Essentials , you’ll benefit from a general-but-thorough overview of the core art and technology fundamentals of digital game design for the 21st century.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Game Design Origins
Chapter 2: Gameplay Styles
Chapter 3: Core Game Design Concepts
Chapter 4: Visual Design
Chapter 5: Detailed Development of Visuals
Chapter 6: Navigation and Interfaces
Chaper 7: Designing Levels and the Game Design Document
Chapter 8: Sound
Chapter 9: Job Descriptions, Game Tracking, and Legal Issues
Chapter 10: Distribution and Marketing
Appendix A: Answers to Review Questions
Appendix B: Education, Training, and Working in Games
Appendix C: Game Design Document