Preface

If you are seeking an up-to-date and actionable guide to game design, then you have come to the right place! Immerse yourself in the fundamentals of game design with this book, written by two industry veterans with decades of game design experience across a variety of genres and platforms.

This second edition retains the original goal of teaching the basics of game design in a practical manner, but it also adds coverage of some of the most recent trends in game design and a whole lot of new practical examples from games of the current generation. A new chapter on games as a service will explain how the role of the game designer is evolving and will go deeper into the design of games that are meant to be played forever.

Starting with learning how to conceptualize a game idea, you will gradually move on to devising a design plan and adapting solutions from existing games. You will discover how to produce original game mechanics and test and eliminate anticipated design risks. You will then learn the basics of level design, interactive storytelling, user experience, and accessibility.

Toward the end of this book, you will learn how to wrap up a game ahead of its release date, work through the challenges of designing games as a service and free-to-play games, and understand how to significantly improve game quality through iteration, playtesting, and polishing.