| Game design is a highly collaborative art. Each of us who works in the industry is
a game designer, whether he knows it or not. From testers and producers to programmers,
artists, marketers, and executives, we all shape the games that pass
through our hands. The product that appears on the shelves is the sum of all our efforts.
This book explains how a game gets designed and developed from the day the idea is born
to the day the box hits the shelves.
Above all else, it is a practical guide that covers everything from the fundamentals of game
design to the trade-offs in the development process to the deals a publisher makes to get
a game on the shelves.
No matter what your role is in the industry, understanding this entire process will help
you do your job better. And if you’re looking to break in, you’ll find knowledge here that
is usually attained only after years in the trenches.
Throughout the book I refer to players, designers, programmers, and everyone else using
the pronoun “he.” I do this strictly for readability of the text. I have considered the alternatives
(s/he, he or she, alternating gender pronouns between paragraphs, and so on), but
unfortunately, our language has not yet settled on gender-neutral terminology that is not
jarring. Therefore, with apologies to the many women game-industry professionals and
the many more women game-players, I have opted for the less intrusive “he.” |
