Game design is not about building games—it’s about creating experiences.
✨ 1. The Designer’s Role: Listener & Visionary
- Listen to your team, audience, client, and even yourself.
- Create experiences; without them, games are just code and art.
TOL (Tool of Learning): What emotion do I want my player to feel? Why?
🧠 2. Foundations: Psychology, Anthropology & Design
- Psychology: How players think and feel.
- Anthropology: Cultural venues (private, public) where games live.
- Design: Solving problems with creativity.
“People may forget what you said, but they’ll never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou
🎲 3. Fun & Play
- Fun = Pleasure + Surprise
- Play is manipulated curiosity.
TOL: What question does my game put into the player’s mind?
🔑 4. Key Qualities of Games
Games are voluntary, goal-driven, conflicted, rule-based, and interactive. They can be won or lost, offer challenge, and generate internal value.
| Quality | Description |
|---|---|
| Goals | Clear objectives |
| Conflict | Obstacles or opposing forces |
| Rules | Boundaries that shape play |
| Challenge | Skill, chance, and meaningful choices |
| Feedback | Immediate responses to player actions |
TOL: What is valuable to the players in my game?
🧩 5. Problem Solving & Puzzles
- Games are problem-solving activities approached playfully.
- Remove problems → remove the game.
TOL: How can my game generate new problems so players return?
⚙️ 6. The Four Elements of Game Design
- Mechanics: Rules, actions, chance.
- Story: Narrative arc, characters, transformation.
- Aesthetics: Visuals, sound, emotional tone.
- Technology: Medium that makes play possible.
TOL: What makes my game feel powerful and special?
🌟 7. Theme & Problem Statements
- Theme: The unifying idea that gives meaning.
- Problem-first: Love the problem, not the solution.
- Good statement: Defines both goal and constraint.
TOL: What core problem am I solving? Is a game the best solution?
🚀 8. Flow & Motivation
Flow requires:
- Clear goals
- No distractions
- Direct feedback
- Gradual challenge
Mental Needs: Competence, autonomy, relatedness.
“Different isn’t always better, but better always different.” — Scotty Meltzer
📖 9. Storytelling in Games
- Games generate stories during play.
- Choices and conflicts create varied narratives.
- Story Tips: Goals → Obstacles → Conflict → Transformation.
| Tip | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Simplicity | World simpler than reality |
| Transcendence | Player more powerful than in real life |
| Unity | Cohesive narrative even in branching paths |
🗺️ 10. World & Level Design
- Freedom vs. Guidance: Feel free without feeling lost.
- Visual flow: Guide the eye effortlessly.
- Transmedia: Cohesive, intuitive, story-rich worlds.
TOL: How is my world better than reality?
🤝 11. Community & Collaboration
- Four elements: Membership, influence, fulfillment, shared emotion.
- Teamwork: Communication keys—objectivity, respect, trust, love.
- Encourage help and self-expression in multiplayer.
🔍 12. Playtesting & Iteration
- Collect feedback: Surveys (visuals, timely), interviews (scripted).
- FFWWDD: Frustrations, favorites, missing features, wand wishes, actions, descriptions.
- Use data intelligently to refine design.
🛠️ 13. Technology & Innovation
- Foundational vs. Decorational: New tech enables new experiences.
- Hype Cycle: Trigger → Peak → Trough → Slope → Plateau.
- Ask: How can new tech become foundational to my game?
“Form follows function. Form follows fun. Form follows funding.”
📈 14. Pitching & Business
- Pitch: Know what you want and what they want.
- Barriers: Technical, hardware, expertise, distribution, imagination, relationships, uncertainty.
- Follow the money: Understand audience play and pay habits.
🎉 Conclusion
Great games craft memorable experiences through psychology, narrative, mechanics, and technology. Listen to players, solve meaningful problems, and keep innovating—because games change people.
“The only responsibility of a game company is to make money. The responsibility for making games do good lies solely with you.”
Ready to design your next masterpiece? 🚀🎮
Source: Schell, J. (2008). The Art of Game Design: A book of lenses. CRC press.