Knowledgebase

Viewing articles tagged 'gamedevelopment'

Accessibility in Games Games more people can play.WHY IT MATTERSMany players have needs that small changes accommodate,... Animation Systems Bringing characters to life.WHAT ANIMATION TYPES EXISTSprite sequences, for two-dimensional work... Art and Content Production: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.CONSISTENT SIMPLE ART LOOKS INTENTIONAL; INCONSISTENT GOOD ART LOOKS BROKENWhich is... Artificial Opponents and Behaviour Making the game act.WHAT THE GOAL ISOpponents that are interesting to play against, not opponents... Backend Services for Games Servers beyond gameplay.WHAT THEY PROVIDEAccounts and authentication Player profiles and... Balancing Difficulty Matching challenge to ability.WHAT THE GOAL ISChallenge that is demanding but achievable,... Balancing Game Systems Making the numbers work.WHAT BALANCE MEANSNo option being clearly best, and no option being... Budgeting a Game Project What it costs.WHAT COSTS MONEYSoftware and licences Purchased assets Contract work Hardware and... Building a Game Development Portfolio Demonstrating capability.WHAT DEMONSTRATES MOSTFinished games, however small.WHY FINISHEDIt... Building an Asset Pipeline Getting content into the game.WHAT A PIPELINE ISThe defined path from creation to running in the... Building Development Tools Tools for your own team.WHY THEY MATTERThe speed of content creation determines how much content... Cameras and Presentation Framing the action.WHAT THE CAMERA CONTROLSWhat the player sees, and how they feel about it.WHAT... Choosing a Game Engine Selecting your foundation.WHAT AN ENGINE SAVES YOURendering, physics, audio, input, asset... Choosing What Game to Make Scoping a project.WHAT TO DECIDE FIRSTWhat the player actually does, moment to moment.WHY THAT... Core Game Design Principles What makes play work.WHAT A GAME NEEDSA goal the player understands Meaningful choices Feedback... Cutting Features Deciding what not to build.WHY IT IS NECESSARYEvery project has more ideas than time.WHAT TO ASK... Deciding Whether to Continue a Project When to stop.WHY IT MUST BE ASKEDContinuing a project that will not succeed costs the projects... Designing Character Progression Growth over time.WHAT PROGRESSION SYSTEMS DECIDEWhat improves How improvement is earned Whether... Designing Checkpoints and Failure What happens when players lose.WHAT FAILURE SHOULD COSTEnough to matter, little enough to retry... Designing Combat Systems Conflict as a mechanic.WHAT COMBAT MUST PROVIDEDecisions with consequences Readable threat... Designing Crafting Systems Making things from components.WHAT CRAFTING PROVIDESA use for gathered materials Player agency... Designing Dialogue Systems Conversation as a mechanic.WHAT A DIALOGUE SYSTEM NEEDSA structure of nodes and responses... Designing Game Systems: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.THE PLAYER MUST ALWAYS BE ABLE TO ANSWER WHY SOMETHING HAPPENEDTelegraph attacks,... Designing In-Game Economies Currencies and value.WHAT AN ECONOMY CONSISTS OFSources: where currency entersSinks: where it... Designing Inventory and Item Systems What players carry.WHAT AN INVENTORY SYSTEM DECIDESWhat can be held How much How it is organised... Designing Movement and Traversal How the player moves.WHY IT MATTERS MOSTMovement is what the player does constantly, so it must... Designing Quests and Objectives Giving players purpose.WHAT AN OBJECTIVE MUST DOState what to do Indicate where, sufficiently... Designing Roguelike Structures Runs, permanence and variety.WHAT DEFINES THE STRUCTURERuns that end Procedural variation between... Designing the Core Loop The repeated activity.WHAT TO IDENTIFYWhat the player does most often.WHAT TO ENSURE ABOUT ITIt... Designing Turn-Based Systems Play without time pressure.WHAT TURN-BASED PLAY PROVIDESTime to consider Complexity that... Developing a Game in Public Sharing progress.WHAT IT PROVIDESAn audience building before release Feedback while changes are... Engines and Programming: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.BUILDING YOUR OWN ENGINE IS YEARS OF WORK BEFORE ANY GAME EXISTSJustified only when... Establishing Art Direction Deciding how the game looks.WHAT ART DIRECTION ISA consistent set of decisions about appearance,... Game Audio Sound as a system.WHAT AUDIO CONTRIBUTESFeedback confirming actions Atmosphere and tone... Game Design: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.IF THE CORE LOOP IS NOT SATISFYING AT ITS SMALLEST SCALE, NOTHING BUILT ON IT WILL... Game Development Foundations: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.THE MOMENT-TO-MOMENT ACTIVITY IS THE GAME; EVERYTHING ELSE DECORATES ITBuild that... Game Development in the Nigerian Context Local realities and opportunities.WHAT THE CONSTRAINTS AREHardware cost for development machines... Game Development Tools and Software What is needed.WHAT AN ENGINE PROVIDESRendering Physics Audio Input Asset management Scene... Game Development: Everything That Matters, Briefly The whole category in one page.THE MOMENT-TO-MOMENT ACTIVITY IS THE GAMEBuild it as grey boxes... Game Feel and Juice Why actions feel good.WHAT GAME FEEL ISThe tactile sensation of controlling something.WHAT... Game Monetisation Models How games earn.WHAT THE MODELS AREPremium: paid onceFree with in-application purchases... Game Performance Optimisation Making games run smoothly.WHAT TO MEASUREFrame time, and its distribution Time spent on the... Graphics and Visual Production: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.DRAW CALLS AND OVERDRAW ARE WHAT USUALLY COST YOUCombine objects sharing materials,... Handling Reviews and Player Feedback Responding after release.WHAT REVIEWS DODetermine whether others buy Reveal what players actually... How Games Are Rendered From scene to screen.WHAT THE RENDERER DOES EACH FRAMEDetermines what is visible Submits geometry... Latency and Its Consequences The fundamental constraint.WHAT LATENCY ISThe time for a message to travel and return.WHY IT... Launching on a Storefront The release itself.WHAT TO PREPARE WELL IN ADVANCEStore page, complete Trailer Screenshots... Learning Game Development Building the skills.WHAT TO LEARN FIRSTProgramming fundamentals, if you lack them One engine,... Level and Encounter Design Building the spaces play happens in.WHAT A LEVEL MUST DOTeach or test something Guide the player... Lighting and Shadows Making scenes readable and atmospheric.WHAT LIGHTING TYPES EXISTDirectional, like sunlight Point,... Live Operations and Updates Running a game after release.WHAT POST-RELEASE WORK INVOLVESFixing defects Balancing Adding... Localising Games Reaching other languages.WHAT MUST BE EXTRACTEDEvery string shown to players.WHAT TO NEVER... Managing a Game Project Production practice.WHAT MAKES GAME PRODUCTION DIFFICULTThe design changes as it is discovered... Managing Game Content at Scale Organising large amounts of data.WHAT GAME DATA INCLUDESItem and character definitions Level and... Managing Game State Tracking what is happening.WHAT STATE EXISTSWorld state: what is wherePlayer state: position,... Marketing a Game Being found.WHY IT CANNOT BE LEFT TO THE ENDAwareness takes months to build, and a release into... Matchmaking and Player Sessions Bringing players together.WHAT MATCHMAKING MUST BALANCEMatch quality Waiting time Connection... Materials and Shaders Defining surface appearance.WHAT PHYSICALLY BASED MATERIALS USEBase colour Metallic quality... Memory and Loading Managing what is in memory.WHAT CONSUMES MEMORYTextures, usually most Meshes Audio Animation data... Multiplayer and Networking: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.THE SERVER DECIDES; THE CLIENT REQUESTS AND DISPLAYSIf a client determines outcomes,... Multiplayer Architecture How networked games are structured.WHAT THE MODELS AREPeer to peer, with players connecting... Narrative in Games Telling stories interactively.WHAT MAKES GAME NARRATIVE DIFFERENTThe player acts, so the story... Networking Implementation Practical construction.WHAT PROTOCOLS ARE USEDA connectionless datagram protocol, for most game... Performance and Platforms: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.ESTABLISH WHETHER YOU ARE PROCESSOR OR GRAPHICS LIMITED FIRSTReduce resolution: if... Physics and Collision Simulating the world.WHAT A PHYSICS ENGINE PROVIDESRigid body simulation Collision detection and... Planning a Solo Game Project Scoping for one person.WHAT TO ESTABLISH HONESTLYHow many hours per week you actually have How... Playtesting Learning what the game actually is.WHY IT IS ESSENTIALYou cannot see your own game as a new... Polish and Finishing The last stretch.WHAT POLISH MEANSRefining what exists rather than adding.WHAT IT INCLUDESFixing... Preparing a Demo A playable sample.WHAT A DEMO IS FORConvincing people to buy, and proving the game exists.WHAT IT... Preventing Cheating Protecting fair play.WHAT THE PRINCIPLE ISNever trust the client.WHAT CLIENTS CAN DOModify memory... Procedural Generation Creating content with code.WHAT IT PROVIDESContent volume beyond what can be authored Variation... Production and Release: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.PRE-PRODUCTION DETERMINES WHETHER PRODUCTION IS EFFICIENT OR WASTEFULProve the... Progression and Reward Systems Giving players reasons to continue.WHAT PROGRESSION PROVIDESA sense of advancement, and access to... Prototyping Finding the game quickly.WHAT A PROTOTYPE IS FORAnswering one question about whether something... Publishing and Distribution Getting the game to players.WHAT THE ROUTES AREDigital storefronts for desktop Console... Roles in Game Development Who does what.WHAT PROGRAMMING SPECIALISMS EXISTGameplay Engine and systems Graphics Networking... Running a Closed Playtest Structured testing with real players.WHAT TO ESTABLISH FIRSTWhat you want to learn.WHYAn... Scripting Gameplay Writing the game's behaviour.WHAT LANGUAGES ENGINES USEA managed language with an... Solo and Small Team Production: Everything That Matters, Briefly The summary.MULTIPLY YOUR ESTIMATE BY THREECreative work estimates are unreliable and solo work... State Synchronisation Keeping players consistent.WHAT MUST BE SYNCHRONISEDPositions and orientations Actions and events... Sustaining Motivation Over a Long Project Finishing what you started.WHY IT MATTERSMost unfinished games were abandoned, not defeated... Targeting Desktop and Console Larger platforms.WHAT DESKTOP REQUIRESSupport for a wide hardware range Graphics settings the... Targeting Mobile Platforms Games on phones.WHAT CONSTRAINS MOBILEThermal limits, which reduce performance over time Battery... Teaching Players Without Tutorials Learning through play.WHAT THE PROBLEM WITH TUTORIALS ISThey interrupt, they are skipped, and... Testing Games Finding problems before players do.WHAT TYPES OF TESTING EXISTFunctional: does it... Textures and Art Assets Managing visual content.WHAT TEXTURES CONSUMEMemory, which is frequently the tightest... The Game Loop The heart of every game.WHAT IT DOES, EACH FRAMEGathers input Updates simulation state Renders... Three-Dimensional Asset Production Making models for games.WHAT THE PROCESS INVOLVESBlocking out the form Detailing Creating a... Two-Dimensional Game Graphics Sprites and tiles.WHAT A SPRITE ISA two-dimensional image drawn in the scene.WHAT A SPRITE SHEET... Understanding Engine Architecture How engines are organised.WHAT A SCENE ISThe collection of objects currently active.WHAT AN... Understanding Game Genres and Their Demands What different games require.WHAT ACTION GAMES DEMANDResponsive input handling High frame rates... User Interface in Games Menus and displays.WHAT GAME INTERFACES MUST HANDLESeveral input methods: pointer, controller,... Using Purchased and Free Assets Building with what exists.WHAT THEY PROVIDEContent far beyond what a small team could... Visual Effects and Particles Explosions, magic and atmosphere.WHAT A PARTICLE SYSTEM DOESEmits many small elements with... Web and Browser Games Games without installation.WHAT THE WEB PROVIDESNo installation Instant access from a link Easy... What Game Development Actually Is The discipline and its shape.WHAT A GAME IS, TECHNICALLYA program running a loop: read input,... Working as an Independent Developer Making games alone or in small teams.WHAT IT REQUIRESBreadth across disciplines Finishing... Working in a Game Team Collaboration across disciplines.WHO IS INVOLVEDDesigners Programmers Artists Audio Writers... Working With Contract Artists and Composers Buying what you cannot make.WHAT TO PREPARE BEFORE APPROACHING ANYONEA clear brief Reference... Writing for Games Text and dialogue.WHAT GAME WRITING INCLUDESDialogue Item and ability descriptions Interface text...
Back

Are you happy with your experience? Leave us a review on Trustpilot.


Trustpilot