(Part 2) Top products from r/gamedesign
We found 28 product mentions on r/gamedesign. We ranked the 124 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
21. Quests: Design, Theory, and History in Games and Narratives
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 2
Used Book in Good Condition
24. Video Game Storytelling: What Every Developer Needs to Know about Narrative Techniques
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 2
Watson-Guptill Publications
25. Playing at the World: A History of Simulating Wars, People and Fantastic Adventures, from Chess to Role-Playing Games
Sentiment score: 2
Number of reviews: 2
26. The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 2
Used Book in Good Condition
27. The Art of Game Design: A Deck of Lenses, Second Edition
Sentiment score: 0
Number of reviews: 2
28. Lenovo Ideapad L340 Gaming Laptop, 15.6 Inch FHD (1920 X 1080) IPS Display, Intel Core i5-9300H Processor, 8GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB Nvme SSD, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650, Windows 10, 81LK00HDUS, Black
Sentiment score: -1
Number of reviews: 1
A new dimension of gaming performance awaits - with 9th-generation Intel Core i5 processors, the IdeaPad L340 gaming has the power you need to outshoot, outrun, and outsmart anyone. Includes 8GB DDR4 RAM and 512GB NVMe SSDTake it to the next level - With the latest NVIDIA GeForce Graphics behind you...
29. Fundamentals of Game Design (3rd Edition)
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 1
30. Free-to-Play: Making Money From Games You Give Away
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 1
31. Level Design for Games: Creating Compelling Game Experiences
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 1
32. Stein On Writing: A Master Editor of Some of the Most Successful Writers of Our Century Shares His Craft Techniques and Strategies
Sentiment score: 0
Number of reviews: 1
34. The Game Design Reader: A Rules of Play Anthology (The MIT Press)
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 1
36. Jung: A Very Short Introduction
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 1
Oxford University Press, USA
37. The Portable Jung (Portable Library)
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 1
Penguin Books
38. Human-Computer Interaction (3rd Edition)
Sentiment score: 1
Number of reviews: 1
NewMint ConditionDispatch same day for order received before 12 noonGuaranteed packagingNo quibbles returns
These books are more theoretical and about self growth as a well-rounded designer, if you want game theory others listed some great ones like Rules of Play and Book of Lenses. That said, here's my list:
It's more of a broad game design book since it talks about all the pipelines / processes of all departments coming together, with an emphasis on scripting / level design for crafting experiences. Portion of the book uses Unreal Engine 2 as a reference, but you can probably use UE4 or something else to follow along the actual game design lessons he's teaching and not have the take away be a technical tutorial.
I cannot describe how invaluable this book is, if you're only to get one from the list it'd be this one. While it does covers Pixar's history as a frame of reference for a lot of stuff, it's also more importantly about their ideology for fostering creativity, productivity and work/ life balance -- all of which are important and can be applied to Game Design.
I read this one after Gabe Newell recommended it one of his interviews and it was at a time in my career when I was working at a AAA studio struggling with the corporate forces that got in the way of creativity / productivity. It was one of those that changed me as a developer. It's more from a management point of view, but seriously applicable if you are collaborating with other people in game development, either on the same level as you or those who rely on your work to do theirs. Or if you are going to work at studio, AAA or indie, it's also an insightful book to evaluate whether the culture cultivated by management is in your best interest so that you have the tools to do your best work without burning out.
This one is like Peopleware but not as exhaustive, it's an easier read since it's a compilation and edit of blog posts the authors wrote on their old website 37signals. It's more or less about getting stuff done and filtering out noise, simplifying things to make results better -- this one is relatable for planning game project milestones. A lot of it will sound like common sense that a lot of people may say they already know, but it's surprising how many don't actually practice it.
Okay, here are 4 suggestions about theory. There are plenty more, but these are a few of my favourites.
Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals
Characteristics of Games
Game Mechanics: Advanced Game Design
Theory of Fun for Game Design
Good luck and happy reading.
Starting out is an awesome advantage; not yet set in your ways you can find your own style.
While it is true some complex styles can take a lot of time, pixel art can be super simple and often less is more - like lessmilks's games
Working from something is easier than all at once so keep iterating - i.e. start with your current squares and add just squash and stretch to anticipate motion, or eyes to indicate move direction.
Pedro Medeiros has some great pixel art tutorial gifs
An free browser based sprite editor
Using a dedicated program with layers, pallettes and lighting control makes it much easier - this list of pixel art programs might help (Asesprite is great)
At the other extreme if you need lots of animation use a pixel art shader for blender3D
Or use some of the multitude of Free and Open Source pixel art at OpenGameArt and mod it for your needs.
Submit your stuff to /r/pixelart and request constructive criticism.
The Animator's Survival Kit is a great book (& on youtube)on the art of making drawings come alive as is The illusion of life
Look at spritesheets to see how others break animation down into frames.
Jan Willem of Vlambeer has a great talk on tricks to 'juice up your games'
First off, read anything by Carl Jung. His theories on archetypes and the collective unconscious form the groundwork upon which not only games, but the entire modern entertainment industry are built.
Basically Jung argues that there is a collective set of symbols and ideas that all humans, regardless of culture or upbringing will respond to. Understanding these symbols, and building your game around them - either as mechanics or story - allows you to influence how the player will respond.
Jung: A Very Short Introduction is a pretty easy way to get started. After you read that I'd suggest getting into the meat of Jung's own words with The Portable Jung (coincidentally edited by Joseph Campbell)
And with that, you should also read The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell. He takes Jung's ideas, and shows the specific symbols used in the Hero's Journey - one of the most common story types. People talk about the Hero's Journey all the time - but it's a really important concept to understand if you're doing any sort of creative works. Here are two quick video primers on it:
A more serious one: Ted Ed: What Makes a Hero
A more awesome one: Glove and Boots: The Hero's Journey :)
If you want to go further on the narrative route I'd also suggest The Seven Basic Plots by Christopher Booker. He takes the Hero's Journey and shows how it is just one of several different plot archetypes, all of which have their own internal path, rules, and idiosyncrasies.
Now, in case you're thinking "Why are you sharing these books about narrative with me? Games are not stories!" remember that people have been responding to stories for all time - and good storytellers are masters at making people feel the desired emotion at the desired time.
Therefore I'd also direct you to Story By Robert McGee as well as Poetics by Aristotle. Both of these books look at story in a mechanical sense, and explain the precise methods storytellers (both ancient Greek ones and modern Hollywood ones) use to evoke emotions in the audience. These principles almost directly translate to game design.
After that I'd suggest looking at Chris Crawford's list of books all game designers should read. Unfortunately I can't find a copy of the list on the internet, but it's at the end of his book Chris Crawford on Game Design
> I don't think you can have quality emergent complexity (depth) without elegance. Elegance is a byproduct of a strong core mechanism, and without that you really have no chance.
Sorry, but that is just euro-gamer-snobbery. Emergent complexity is very strong in over-designed complex games like many oldschool roguelikes (Nethack etc) or Cataclysm: DDA or Dwarf Fortress. Nothing elegant about the designs, but just throwing in that amount of complexity creates an environment where interesting complex stories emerge all the time.
There is at least one equivalent in boardgames I have experience with: Advanced Squad Leader. Hundreds of pages of rules, but thanks to there being rules for everything and lots of different units moving on different terrain fun things happen all the time.
Of course almost any pen-and-paper role-playing game ever would probably be a good examples of this as well. Even when the rules are (unusually) short, the presence of a human game-master means that complexity is limitless.
This is something that comes up a lot in the book Playing at the World: Games where players can "try anything". Of course only real rpgs can really do that, but some roguelikes, computer-rpgs, and ameritrash-games (and a few wargames like ASL) also comes close. Allowing the player to attempt to do anything that would make sense in a situation, rather than restricting them to some small set of "elegant" rules, is a fantastic way to make interesting things emerge.
A good way to start is to pick a role-playing system you like, implement that, and expand - start with stats and skills, then build your non-player characters, scenarios, etc.
Prime example is the original Fallout - it was originally designed for the GURPS roleplaying system (http://www.sjgames.com/gurps/) and was then canned, so they developed the SPECIAL stat system and kept going.
A manual is going to give you some tips, but overall your best bet is to start building things and solicit feedback on the content that you create as early as possible. The more you can change early on, the better your future content will be.
That said, this is a great book about quests in traditional RPG's: http://www.amazon.com/Quests-Design-Theory-History-Narratives/dp/1568813473 A lot of it has some implementation stuff using Neverwinter's engine that will probably give you some ideas but ultimately not be very practical for someone with a software engineering background. Ultimately, you become a better game designer by making more games and learning how and when to incorporate feedback. Find some people whose opinions you trust and consult with them as often as possible until you have something that a stranger thinks is engaging, and then keep going.
Having a good art or design teacher can help tremendously, but you can get quite a bit out of those classes even if they are bad. It's not graphic design you necessarily want. I was speaking of design itself. You may laugh but, learning interior decorating is pretty important. Color theory from art courses. Eye travel/focal point theory can really help level design. Lighting & exposure theory from photography(used in rendering). Architecture/engineering(gotta build stuff somehow). Geology(so you can make pretty rocks right/better). Animation techniques(omg do this). Biology, cellular structures and how/why things such as leaves grow the way they do. Statistics(Loot tables, enemy spawn rates, hit rates). Graphic Design(UI & any other sign in a game).
I highly suggest reading books on design. The Design of Everyday Things](https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Donald-Norman/dp/1452654123) is a freakin manual for making stuff actually functional/look functional.
History can help too. For instance, the horse is basically the reason towns are as far apart as they are. It's the distance a rider on a horse can travel in a day. Its for a personal project by I just used that to decide distances between towns for an RPG setting(table top).
The courses themselves may be a sham, the teacher may suck, heck the book may be garbage too, but they should still help you build a foundation on which you can do more research into the subject. I remember a post about an electrical engineer that went into Dying Light and drunkenly posted about how the power transformers made no sense found the article. Now this is clearly a case of the artists wanting power lines, and just making them "look" like power lines, but with maybe a little research or understanding they could have made it just that much more believable.
You don't necessarily need to do any of this, but you can draw inspiration/knowledge from anywhere.
Sorry for the long post.
Keep at it, and good luck!
I think that's a great article, and definitely something I keep in mind when doing level design. Understandably it gets a bit trickier to do on a large scale for a 2D platformer.
I suppose another good general reference that's applicable to pretty much all design is Donald A. Norman's "The Design of Everyday Things". One of the big take-aways from this book is designing things with affordances that encourage the desired behavior. For example, if you want people to pull a door to open it, give them something to grab, and conversely, if you want people to push the door to open it, don't distract them with a handle to grab and make an obvious cue where they should push the door.
So perhaps for your 2D platformer, I would try to steer players by guiding them through paths by peppering the different paths with things that they would expect to find in the different regions, to clue them into what lies off screen. For example, imagine there's a city section that has lots of taxi cabs, and another that's got a school. You come to a branch where one path takes you to the taxi cab area, and another takes you to the school, place an add for a taxi service on a bench for one path, and the other a school crossing sign. Even having background characters like children walking to school or getting on a school bus, versus people waiting for cabs could help convey this information while at the same time helping to cement your environments as a living breathing worlds.
Subtle things like these can foreshadow the directions players should take without having a giant obnoxious arrow that feels like it's saying "HEY STUPID PLAYER - GO THIS WAY FOR CABS." This foreshadowing can also be emphasized with shifts in the color pallet and art scheme too.
Hi there, thanks for keeping it friendly in light of my rather harsh comments.
I think my main problem was that the article appears to present your UI as something new or innovative, even though it's clearly not (as the other commenter pointed out). Games have used tables and infographics to represent things and processes for decades.
There are whole genres of games that play like this - from turn-based strategy browser games, management simulations like Football Manager, Economy Simulations, War Games, etc. Some of these games focus around a central map, but many do not.
Picking on terminology was a crappy thing to do, sorry about that. I don't want to dump a list of books on you, but maybe as an introductory reading it would be good to familiarize yourself with the difference between Implementation Model (how the tool or simulation works under the hood), the Mental Model (what a User believes to be true about something, their personal understanding of a subject matter) and the Representation Model (how a digital tool presents the model/simulation to their Users via its interface). Maybe this guy here.
This is pretty much the domain of Human-Computer Interaction, or HCI. That's the Cognitive Psychology focused academic underpinning of the analysis and design (design as in crafting and shaping, not decorating ;) ) of digital tools. Any introductory HCI book would give a good foundation, I like the works of Alan Dix & co, and Jenny Preece & co.
The Aesthetic of Play:
Play takes place in the mind of the player. The book offers heuristics for analyzing the playfulness of a game. This allows you to create intrinsically engaging games – playful games.
Advanced Game Design: A Systems Approach:
Games are essentially systems – parts that interact with each other in complex ways that generate interesting gameplay. You will learn to observe systems, and start to see them everywhere. You will also learn to create them, harnessing complexity and emergence.
Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative-Thinking Techniques:
Not a game design book, but it greatly improved my ability to think creatively, come up with non-obvious solutions, and alter my daily life mindset towards ordinary things. Which is relevant to designing games.
I really enjoyed that book too, but I would say it's basically only about two subjects: state machines and path-finding. It covers them really well but you might want to get another broader book too. Maybe after reading this one.
If you want a broader view - I found this book to be pretty great: http://www.amazon.com/Artificial-Intelligence-Games-Ian-Millington/dp/0123747317/ref=pd_sim_b_4?ie=UTF8&refRID=09B2HPTBM3NA2CNG477Y
If anyone is interested, about the first half of this (huge, heavily researched) book covers the history of D&D starting with ancient chess and progressing through 18th-19th century wargames. There's a fair amount of discussion about the things Gygax used which video games subsequently adopted (XP, levels, hit points, polyhedron dice, etc.) It's a big book, and dense, but it is fascinating reading if that's your thing.
Playing at the World
This is a loaded question, and there are many factors that go into engaging the player. To make a linear game to be interesting, you need something to fuel the player. A good concept to focus on is that conflict drives the narrative, which in turn will drive the gameplay. Maybe read this one by Evan Skolnick: Video Game Storytelling http://www.amazon.com/Video-Game-Storytelling-Developer-Techniques/dp/0385345828
Alternatively, if you're interested, you could also give a listen to this podcast featuring Evan, the author of that book.
https://soundcloud.com/bigsushi-fm/ep-204-evan-skolnick
Sorry for the format, I'm on mobile.
Mostly, to keep up with things, I play games. I also read design retrospectives and customer reviews. I use gamasutra a fair bit too. But mostly, it's actually playing games and then thinking about what worked and didn't work.
In regards to books, I'm not a huge fan of "one-size fits all" design, but I found http://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-Game-Design-Ernest-Adams/dp/0321929675/ a useful book, more geared I think towards starting out though.
This book is pretty decent...
http://www.amazon.com/Free-Play-Making-Money-Games/dp/0321919017
Covers a lot of the basics as well as the main stats and acronyms used by developers. Discusses retention and game loops etc...
Yeah, the book is called Chris Crawford On Game Design. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0131460994/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1483563082&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=On+game+design&dpPl=1&dpID=517ReMCaAlL&ref=plSrch
I don't have time to type up the list sitting at my desk, but I'll do it at home tonight.
There was a book I had, (not anymore, lent it and never got it back) that had sort of a meta-mythological approach. You could take mythic stories, recast them in terms of games reality and the procedural tool your using.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1568813473/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1499816227&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=quest+in+game+design&dpPl=1&dpID=515wF34noWL&ref=plSrch
About 730 milliHammetts.
https://mrwasteland.itch.io/twwds
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B5XbvectpwIgbnBxWGdIR0E3R0k
https://www.amazon.com/Video-Game-Storytelling-Developer-Techniques/dp/0385345828
The Illusion of Life
For design, get the combo of Jesse Schell's Book of Lenses and Deck of Lenses.
For dev get Nystrom's Game Programming Patterns
You can buy a deck of lenses or get the app
Game related :
https://www.amazon.de/Slay-Dragon-Writing-Great-Stories/dp/1615932291
Stories in General:
https://www.amazon.de/Stein-Writing-Successful-Techniques-Strategies/dp/0312254210
I think the stuff I recognise from other suggestions is still rather in depth stuff. Some of it is for beginning students of game development, but I don't think that's the same as being aimed at non-game developers.
I would advise reading Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World. This book looks at some systems humanity has put in place for itself from a game design perspective.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/0099540282/
No problem, people just want to push your own opinions sometimes and not answer the question that was asked.
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700$ pre-tax https://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-Ideapad-i5-9300H-Processor-81LK00HDUS/dp/B07VC55LF5/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=gaming+laptops&qid=1570576929&refinements=p_36%3A2421888011&rnid=2421885011&sr=8-4
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Looks to be a good one, can defintely handle either engine for game dev