Table Of ContentCover Page: Cover
The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses Page: iii
Copyright Page Page: iv
Table of Contents Page: vii
Table of Lenses Page: xvii
Acknowledgments Page: xxi
Hello Page: xxiii
Chapter 1 In the Beginning, There Is the Designer Page: 1
Magic Words Page: 1
What Skills Does a Game Designer Need? Page: 2
The Most Important Skill Page: 4
The Five Kinds of Listening Page: 5
The Secret of the Gifted Page: 6
Chapter 2 The Designer Creates an Experience Page: 9
The Game Is Not the Experience Page: 10
Is This Unique to Games? Page: 11
Three Practical Approaches to Chasing Rainbows Page: 12
Introspection: Powers, Perils, and Practice Page: 14
Dissect Your Feelings Page: 17
Defeating Heisenberg Page: 18
Essential Experience Page: 20
All That's Real Is What You Feel Page: 21
Chapter 3 The Experience Rises Out of a Game Page: 23
A Rant About Definitions Page: 24
So, What Is a Game? Page: 26
No, Seriously, What Is a Game? Page: 30
Problem Solving 101 Page: 36
The Fruits of Our Labors Page: 37
Chapter 4 The Game Consists of Elements Page: 39
What Are Little Games Made Of? Page: 40
The Four Basic Elements Page: 41
Skin and Skeleton Page: 45
Chapter 5 The Elements Support a Theme Page: 47
Mere Games Page: 48
Unifying Themes Page: 49
Resonance Page: 53
Back to Reality Page: 56
Chapter 6 The Game Begins with an Idea Page: 57
Inspiration Page: 58
State the Problem Page: 60
How to Sleep Page: 62
Your Silent Partner Page: 63
Fifteen Nitty-Gritty Brainstorming Tips Page: 68
Look At All These Ideas! Now What? Page: 74
Chapter 7 The Game Improves Through Iteration Page: 75
Choosing An Idea Page: 76
The Eight Filters Page: 76
The Rule of the Loop Page: 79
A Short History of Software Engineering Page: 80
Risk Assessment and Prototyping Page: 83
Eight Tips for Productive Prototyping Page: 86
Closing the Loop Page: 91
How Much is Enough? Page: 94
Chapter 8 The Game is Made for a Player Page: 97
Einstein's Violin Page: 98
Project Yourself Page: 99
Demographics Page: 99
The Medium is the Misogynist? Page: 102
Psychographics Page: 108
Chapter 9 The Experience is in the Player's Mind Page: 113
Modeling Page: 115
Focus Page: 118
Empathy Page: 123
Imagination Page: 124
Motivation Page: 126
Judgment Page: 127
Chapter 10 Some Elements are Game Mechanics Page: 129
Mechanic 1: Space Page: 130
Mechanic 2: Objects, Attributes, and States Page: 136
Mechanic 3: Actions Page: 140
Mechanic 4: Rules Page: 144
Mechanic 5: Skill Page: 150
Mechanic 6: Chance Page: 153
Chapter 11 Game Mechanics Must be in Balance Page: 171
The Twelve Most Common Types of Game Balance Page: 172
Game Balancing Methodologies Page: 201
Balancing Game Economies Page: 203
Dynamic Game Balancing Page: 205
The Big Picture Page: 205
Chapter 12 Game Mechanics Support Puzzles Page: 207
The Puzzle of Puzzles Page: 208
Aren't Puzzles Dead? Page: 209
Good Puzzles Page: 211
A Final Piece Page: 219
Chapter 13 Players Play Games Through an Interface Page: 221
Breaking it Down Page: 223
The Loop of Interaction Page: 228
Channels of Information Page: 234
Other Interface Tips Page: 240
Chapter 14 Experiences Can be Judged by Their Interest Curves Page: 245
My First Lens Page: 246
Interest Curves Page: 247
Patterns Inside Patterns Page: 249
What Comprises Interest? Page: 253
Interest Factor Examples Page: 258
Putting It All Together Page: 259
Chapter 15 One Kind of Experience Is the Story Page: 261
Story/Game Duality Page: 262
The Myth of Passive Entertainment Page: 263
The Dream Page: 264
The Reality Page: 264
The Problems Page: 266
The Dream Reborn Page: 270
Story Tips for Game Designers Page: 270
Chapter 16 Story and Game Structures can be Artfully Merged with Indirect Control Page: 283
The Feeling of Freedom Page: 284
Indirect Control Method #1: Constraints Page: 285
Indirect Control Method #2: Goals Page: 286
Indirect Control Method #3: Interface Page: 286
Indirect Control Method #4: Visual Design Page: 287
Indirect Control Method #5: Characters Page: 292
Indirect Control Method #6: Music Page: 292
Collusion Page: 293
Chapter 17 Stories and Games Take Place in Worlds Page: 299
Transmedia Worlds Page: 300
The Power of Pokemon Page: 301
Properties of Transmedia Worlds Page: 303
What Successful Transmedia Worlds Have in Common Page: 305
Chapter 18 Worlds Contain Characters Page: 309
The Nature of Game Characters Page: 310
Avatars Page: 312
Creating Compelling Game Characters Page: 314
Chapter 19 Worlds Contain Spaces Page: 329
The Purpose of Architecture Page: 330
Organizing your Game Space Page: 330
Christopher Alexander is a Genius Page: 334
Real vs. Virtual Architecture Page: 338
Level Design Page: 343
Chapter 20 The Look and Feel of a World Is Defined by Its Aesthetics Page: 345
Monet Refuses the Operation Page: 346
The Value of Aesthetics Page: 347
Learning to See Page: 348
How to Let Aesthetics Guide your Design Page: 349
How Much Is Enough? Page: 350
Use Audio Page: 351
Balancing Art and Technology Page: 352
Chapter 21 Some Games are Played with Other Players Page: 353
We Are Not Alone Page: 354
Why We Play With Others Page: 354
Chapter 22 Other Players Sometimes Form Communities Page: 357
More than just Other Players Page: 358
Ten Tips for Strong Communities Page: 359
The Challenge of Griefing Page: 368
The Future of Game Communities Page: 370
Chapter 23 The Designer Usually Works with a Team Page: 371
The Secret of Successful Teamwork Page: 372
Designing Together Page: 375
Team Communication Page: 376
Chapter 24 The Team Sometimes Communicates Through Documents Page: 381
The Myth of the Game Design Document Page: 382
The Purpose of Documents Page: 382
Types of Game Documents Page: 383
So, Where Do I Start? Page: 387
Chapter 25 Good Games Are Created Through Playtesting Page: 389
Playtesting Page: 390
My Terrible Secret Page: 391
Playtest Question the First: Why? Page: 392
Playtest Question the Second: Who? Page: 393
Playtest Question the Third: Where? Page: 394
Playtest Question the Fourth: What? Page: 396
Playtest Question the Fifth: How? Page: 396
Chapter 26 The Team Builds a Game with Technology Page: 403
Technology, At Last Page: 404
Foundational vs. Decorational Page: 405
The Hype Cycle Page: 409
The Innovator's Dilemma Page: 410
The Singularity Page: 411
Look Into Your Crystal Ball Page: 412
Chapter 27 Your Game Will Probably Have a Client Page: 415
Who Cares What the Client Thinks? Page: 416
Coping with Bad Suggestions Page: 417
Not That Rock Page: 418
The Three Layers of Desire Page: 419
Firenza, 1498 Page: 419
Chapter 28 The Designer Gives the Client a Pitch Page: 423
Why Me? Page: 424
A Negotiation of Power Page: 424
The Hierarchy of Ideas Page: 425
Twelve Tips for a Successful Pitch Page: 425
Chapter 29 The Designer and Client Want the Game to Make a Profit Page: 433
Love and Money Page: 434
Know Your Business Model Page: 435
Units Sold Page: 436
Breakeven Page: 436
Know the Top Sellers Page: 437
Learn the Language Page: 437
Chapter 30 Games Transform Their Players Page: 441
How Do Games Change Us? Page: 442
Can Games Be Good For You? Page: 442
Can Games Be Bad For You? Page: 448
Experiences Page: 451
Chapter 31 Designers Have Certain Responsibilities Page: 453
The Danger of Obscurity Page: 454
Being Accountable Page: 455
Your Hidden Agenda Page: 456
The Secret Hidden in Plain Sight Page: 456
The Ring Page: 457
Chapter 32 Each Designer has a Motivation Page: 459
The Deepest Theming Page: 460
Chapter 33 Goodbye Page: 463
All Good Thingsƒ Page: 464
Endnotes Page: 465
Bibliography Page: 477
Index Page: 481
A Page: 481
B Page: 481
C Page: 482
D Page: 482
E Page: 483
F Page: 483
G Page: 483
H Page: 484
I Page: 484
J Page: 484
K Page: 484
L Page: 484
M Page: 486
N Page: 486
O Page: 486
P Page: 486
Q Page: 487
R Page: 487
S Page: 488
T Page: 489
U Page: 489
V Page: 489
W Page: 489
Y Page: 489
Z Page: 489
Description:Anyone can master the fundamentals of game design - no technological expertise is necessary. "The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses" shows that the same basic principles of psychology that work for board games, card games and athletic games also are the keys to making top-quality videogames. Good game design happens when you view your game from many different perspectives, or lenses. While touring through the unusual territory that is game design, this book gives the reader one hundred of these lenses - one hundred sets of insightful questions to ask yourself that will help make your game better. These lenses are gathered from fields as diverse as psychology, architecture, music, visual design, film, software engineering, theme park design, mathematics, writing, puzzle design, and anthropology. Anyone who reads this book will be inspired to become a better game designer - and will understand how to do it.
* Jesse Schell is a highly recognizable name within the game industry - he is the former chair of the International Game Developer's Association, and has designed many successful games, including Disney's award-winning "Toontown Online."
* The book's design methodology was developed at Carnegie Mellon University's Entertainment Technology Center, co-founded by Dr. Randy Pausch of "Last Lecture" fame.
* 100 'lenses' are scattered throughout the book. These are boxed sets of questions, each a different way of seeing a game that will inspire the creative process.
* 500 pages of detailed, practical instruction on creating world-class games that will be played again and again.
