Game Design Essentials: Tools, Theories And Techniques

Harness the power of game design, psychology and systems thinking to understand your players and how games work.

What you'll learn

Learn to design games understanding all their constitutive parts and how they connect with each other

Learn to play games like a game designer (Analytical play)

Understand Systems Thinking to understand our world and existing games to transfer those experiences into your own games

Use the Design Thinking method to improve your design process

Use psychology to understand your players and create more directed experiences

Create spreadsheet simulations to balance your games

Use GDD and pitching to communicate with your team and different stakeholders

Requirements

Be able to access a text editor, slides presentation and spreadsheets

Having scrap paper and dices would be nice, since we are going to make some board games!

Description

This course offers a comprehensive framework to understand and practice game design. At the end of this course, you will have the tools and thinking process to understand why some games are fun and keep players playing for a long time, while others fail. WHAT YOU WILL LEARN…Understand the role of the game designer and other roles in game developmentHow to keep improving as a game designer and what skills you needWhat are game parts, mechanics and dynamics and understand the language of gamesHarness the power of Design Thinking to better Empathize, Ideate and Prototype your games.Use Psychology to understand your players and how they perceive your game What is a GDDWhat is a game pitchHow to communicate your game idea to your teamHow math and probability work in board and video gamesCreate game models using Google Spreadsheets to test your game earlyUse random, procedural generation and systems thinking to create systemic gameplay to design games that are interesting to play and watch.Analyze real and game systems to create meaningful games by relating players to their surroundings and experiencesHOW WILL YOU PRACTICE WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNEDYou will create a card game from a humble beginning all the way to a unique and engaging game.Each activity is designed to practice what you have just learned.The card game will be uniquely modified by you, so you can keep working on it even after the course ends.What is NOT included in this course…Programming languagesArt asset creation

Overview

Section 1: Section 1: Setting Up for Success

Lecture 1 Welcome

Lecture 2 About the Instructor and Game Design Thinking

Lecture 3 Companion Website

Lecture 4 0.1 & 0.2 Tiny Pixel Fights Instructions and Materials

Section 2: Game Design Basics

Lecture 5 Identifying the Elements of Asteroids

Lecture 6 1.1. Asteroid Elements

Lecture 7 What is a Game and What is Design

Lecture 8 The Role of the Game Designer

Lecture 9 Other Roles in Game Development

Lecture 10 Game Design Specialisations

Lecture 11 1.2. What is the role for you?

Lecture 12 Games' Unique Feature

Lecture 13 Game Mechanics

Lecture 14 MDA and other Game Design Frameworks

Lecture 15 1.3.1. & 1.3.2. List and Add Mechanics to Tiny Pixel Fights!

Lecture 16 How to keep Improving as a Game Designer?

Lecture 17 What Skills do you need to be a Game Designer?

Lecture 18 Game Design Basics - References

Lecture 19 Game Design Basics - Graphics & Slides

Lecture 20 Congratulations on Completing Section 2!

Section 3: The Game Design Thinking Process

Lecture 21 The Game Design Thinking Process

Lecture 22 Game Concept: Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Lecture 23 Game Concept: The Beginner's Mindset

Lecture 24 Game Pillars: Game Pillar Document

Lecture 25 Ideate: Ideation Techniques

Lecture 26 2.1. Using the SCAMPER technique on your favourite game

Lecture 27 Define: The Three Brains (YouTube)

Lecture 28 Define: The 5 Phases of Players’ Decision-Making

Lecture 29 Define: Automatic vs. Rational Decision-making

Lecture 30 Define: Interactive Loops for Decision-making

Lecture 31 Define: Bad Decision-Making

Lecture 32 Define: Interesting Decisions

Lecture 33 Define: Self-Determination Theory

Lecture 34 2.2. Brainstorming new mechanics

Lecture 35 Prototyping and Playtesting: Three Hats For Analysing Games

Lecture 36 Prototyping and Playtesting: Csikszentmihalyi's Flow Theory

Lecture 37 2.3. Playtest your new mechanics!

Lecture 38 The Game Design Thinking Process — Graphics & Slides

Lecture 39 The Game Design Thinking Process — References

Lecture 40 Congratulations on Finishing Section 3

Lecture 41 Can you leave us a review?

Section 4: Communicating your Game

Lecture 42 What is a GDD?

Lecture 43 Creating Compelling Documents

Lecture 44 3.1. Write a Concept GDD

Lecture 45 Use presentations as a lethal weapon!

Lecture 46 Pitching your Game

Lecture 47 Talk — 30 things I hate about your game pitch

Lecture 48 3.2. Create a 3-minute presentation!

Lecture 49 Communicating Your Game - References

Lecture 50 Communicating Your Game - Slides

Section 5: Math & Probability

Lecture 51 Math & Probability in Games

Lecture 52 Probability in Board Games

Lecture 53 Probability in Video Games

Lecture 54 Excel Basics

Lecture 55 Using Spreadsheets for Modelling

Lecture 56 4.1., 4.2. Balancing Tiny Pixel Fights

Lecture 57 Random and Procedural elements

Lecture 58 Playtesting Your Balance!

Lecture 59 Math & Probability - References

Lecture 60 Math & Probability - Slides

Section 6: Introduction to Game System Design

Lecture 61 Introduction to Systems Thinking

Lecture 62 Systemic Game Design

Lecture 63 Systems Parts

Lecture 64 Feedback Loops

Lecture 65 5.1.1. & 5.1.2. Find and Create some Feedback loops

Lecture 66 Real Systems Analysis

Lecture 67 Game Systems Analysis

Lecture 68 5.2. What other systems can you add?

Lecture 69 Introduction to Game Systems Design

Lecture 70 Introduction to Game Systems Design - Slides

Section 7: Farewell

Lecture 71 Congratulations!

Lecture 72 Course survey

Lecture 73 6.1. Moving the Game Forward

Lecture 74 6.2. Sharing Your Companion Website

Lecture 75 Acknowledgements and Attribution

Lecture 76 Bonus Lecture

Any person who wants to understand how to create engaging and meaningful experiences,Beginner game designers who wants to acquire more specific, hands-on knowledge and experience,People related to game developent who wants to transition to a game designer role