Fundamentals of Game Design What is Game Design?

1. Just E.T.C for Business, Education, and Technology Solutions www.JustEtc.net Fundamentals of Game Design What is Game Design? Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net Sayed Ahmed BSc. Eng. in CSc. & Eng. (BUET) MSc. in CSc. (U of Manitoba) http://sayed.justEtc.net http://www.justETC.net

2. Course Target • You Will • Be Introduced to Unreal • Learn major elements of Game Design • Learn major elements of game play • Learn fundamental game design techniques • Develop a game design • Critically evaluate games from different genres • Develop an understanding of the basic elements of game play • Balancing • Risk versus reward • Engagement • Document a game design using a game design document Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

3. Today’s Class • Discuss What is a game • Introduction to Unreal (Game Development Engine) • Discuss the Elements of Game Play • Character Development • Storytelling and Narrative • User Interfaces • Game Play • Core Mechanics • Game Balancing • Level Design • Introduction to the Game Design Document • Analyze a serious game in light of Game Design Document • Brainstorm Game Design Ideas Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

4. Define game Design • It’s a process that involves • Imagining a game • Define how it will work (the story, the interaction, the rules) • Define the elements of the game • Conceptual • Functional • Artistic • Others…. • Communicate the idea to the design team • What does a game designer do? • Perform all the above tasks Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

5. Design Arts or Science • Neither purely arts nor purely science • The imagining of ideas and concepts, and making the game aesthetic belong to Arts • However, to be a great game, the game also needs to function well. Though it’s not purely science but to implement the functionality, concepts from science and math are highly used • Games are crafts with highest possible level of elegance Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

6. Anatomy of Game Design • Game design is • creative and imaginative • where inherent talent also plays a very important role • And hence, Game design cannot be represented as • strict step by step procedure or rules or processes • However, game design is not a random process either (knowingly or unknowingly). • We may be able to identify some similarities (common/basic components/concepts/principles) in the successful games (may be genre dependent) • And device some common principles that hopefully will lead to good game design • Can work as guidelines for the novices (or checklist for the more experienced) Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

7. Key Elements of Games • As there is no perfect rule • One way of seeing game design is • Identifying common elements in a genre of games • And Create games in that genre with similar elements but different story, or graphics goals • Or find out the genre of your game concept, identify the common elements of that genre, compare, think, innovate. Make the game more interesting • Your ideas, stories can be great but it also needs to have some of those common and useful elements • Publishers usually do not go for the very innovative ideas but want the idea similar to a recent hit with some more twists • The successful games are successful – there is a reason behind this Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

8. Key Elements of Game • Common elements • Rules of the game (your concept should have rules) • The player’s role • The challenges • …. • Two games can have many common elements but • different settings, rules, strategies, and balancing • Many games have the same/similar play mechanics but with different graphics • Identifying common elements • does not to encourage you to imitate/create cookie-cutter games • but to ensure that all essential elements are covered Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

9. Ground Rules for Game Design • Game design can be broken in three specific area • Core mechanics • Storytelling • Interactivity • Core mechanics • Storytelling • All game has a story • The game itself can be a story like princess of Persia • The player can create the story (the way he plays and reaches the goal) • Talk about Narrative and non – narrative • No story, the player creates the story • Linear narrative, non linear narrative Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

10. Interactivity • Define how the interactivity will work • Graphics • Sounds • User Interface • Poor interactivity can ruin a game • Wire wind for example • Use right click, icon based menus, select options to proceed • Interactivity includes the user interface as well • Sonic the Hedgehog, and Mario 64 for Wii Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

11. Importance of Design Document • All game companies now want a design document to be written • The design document may not include all ideas but can write down the decisions • Many ideas come from lunch meetings • If a feature is not written down • Someone has to create it on the fly • Different team member may work to different goals Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

12. Types of Design Documents • High Concept (2-4) pages • Game treatment (10-20 pages) • Game script (50-200 pages) • High Concept (2-4) pages • Got a great game idea? Write a high concept document. Will be used to express the idea to the publishers to fund the game • Covers • Premise of the game • Intended audience • Genre Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

13. Game Design Document • Game Treatment • Analysis of the Competition • How your game is different • A document to sale your game • Some business and development details • Game Script • Bible of the game • Game design decisions • Creative, conceptual, and functional • Does not include how the game will be implemented in software • The design document may help you to play the games in paper – brainstorm, get feedbacks • A cheaper way to evaluate the game Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

14. Design Document • Design Document • The design document defines the game concept as well as functional and technical specifics of the game. A design document consists of 3 parts: • Game Concept Document • Game Design Document • Technical Design Document • Game Design Document: • Game Foundations (Game Features, The Essence of the Game play, Characters, Game play Elements, AI) • User Interface (Navigational Chart, Functional Requirements, Objects of the User Interface) • Graphics and Video (Graphics and Animations, Animated Insertions) • Sounds and Music (General Description, Sound Effects, Music) • Plot • Level Description (The graph of the Positional Relationship of the Levels, Queue of the New Objects Implementation, General Level Design Description) • Reference: http://digitalworlds.wordpress.com/2008/04/10/the-process-of-game-creation-the-game-design-document/ (Program Ace) Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

15. Elements of Game Play • Character Development, Storytelling and Narrative, User Interfaces, Game play, Core Mechanics, • Game Balancing, Level Design • Introduction to the Game Design Document • Activity: Analyze a serious game in light of a game design document – “Project Moonwalk” • Group discussion of Moonwalk • Activity: Brainstorm Game design ideas, begin documentation Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

16. Anatomy of Game Designer • Requires both • Talent • Skill • Skill Set • Imagination • Still if you do not have a talent for it, you can grow and improve (through exercise of imaginations) • Forms of Imagination • Visual and auditory • Dramatic • Good character plot, motivation, emotion, climaxes, and outcomes • Conceptual • Relationship between ideas, their interactions, and dependencies • Basic knowledge of the technical capabilities of the platform Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

17. Anatomy of Game Designer • Analytical Competence • Able to recognize good part and bad part of a design. • Self criticize and improve • Take opinions, and process those opinions • Mathematical Competence • Some math concepts are essential • Aesthetic Competence • Writing Skills • Technical Writing • Fiction Writing • Manual, Background Material, Character Description • Dialog Writing • Audio voice cover and cinematic materials Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

18. Anatomy of Game Designer • Drawing Skills • Ability to Compromise • Consider customer or publisher interests and adjust • Compromise to the limitation of the platform Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

19. References • Fundamentals of Game Design, 2nd Edition, Ernest Adams, Prentice Hall, 2006, ISBN-10: 0131687476. ISBN-13: 978-0131687479 • http://computer.justetc.net Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

20. Presented at the University of Winnipeg Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada By Just E.T.C www.JustEtc.net Fundamentals of Game DesignUnreal and Maya Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net Sayed Ahmed BSc. Eng. in CSc. & Eng. MSc. in CSc. http://sayed.justetc.net http://www.justETC.net

21. Unreal Game Engine (UDK) • Reference: • Basics , creating a scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8eJUYMKvUo • Adding Objects/Items to the scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqVPQ5S_Au0&feature=related Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

22. Video Tutorials • http://udn.epicgames.com/Three/VideoTutorials.html • User Interfaces • All • Content Browsers • Import external objects • View Port Options • Sound Effects • Use existing sound waves • Use Existing Sound Cues • Create new sound waves/cues • Physics • Whatever is shown in the class • UI Scenes • Convert UI elements and add game play • Import external objects and add properties Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

23. Create and Use Existing Map Files • Create • http://www.fileplanet.com/209254/download/UDK-Tutorial---First-Map-Creation Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

24. Resources • http://udk.com/documentation Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net

25. Game Design and Development Career • Inside EA: • http://www.youtube.com/user/InsideEA • EA Game Design Career Paths • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvPZ8xG4LlQ • Mum, Dad, I want to be a Game Designer • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiQcANX3NNE&feature=relmfu • EA QA (Games Tester) Career Paths • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foyEgHHBcI4&feature=relmfu • EA Programming Career Paths • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Eo2ikmbREo&feature=related Just E.T.C sayed@justetc.net