How to Make a Videogame in Eight (Sort of) Easy Steps

[BlueInkAlchemist]

Great read with amusing art.

Personally, I like the hat.

Does the lens flare render properly off of the horns, though?

 

[Danpascooch]

Hey, a BIOWARE guy is who gave the knowledge here?

Cool, I'm a massive bioware fan.

 

[Ericb]

2) Prototype..."Like X, but it has this one awesome thing!"...

Seems to me that's how we keep getting all these crappy, gimmicked knock-off clones of other games instead of any real innovation.

True that.

A more design-centric pipeline miht be preferable than this rinse-and-repeat stuff. Or even no pipeline at all, but that only seems more plausible in a one to three member team.

 

[rustedge]

Can I ask: How much do games companies actually rely on designers? It must be a bit annoying for the programmers who must also have ideas, and who have probably made a couple of small games independently before being recruited. What qualifies games designers for the job? From what I hear games programmers tend to earn a bit less than most programmers do, so it must be kinda demoralizing to also have creative control taken from them.
Or, maybe companies don't tend to hire people who just work on the design... can someone tell me?

Game designers don't necessarily work on just "game design" per se. Like most professions, they can specialize. Some do programming themselves, some can do modeling, level layouts, writing, etc. It's a fairly general term for people who know what stuff have to get done to produce a game. Of course, depending on what their specializations are, they'd be assigned to specific development phases. I just finished design school, and I specialize in user interaction and VFX, so theoretically I'd be around for phases 2-3 for pre-viz and prototyping, and 5-6 for interface work, particle effects, and post-effects.

As for creative control, it usually depends on how large the teams are. For smaller teams, everyone has equal chances of getting their suggestions out. (i.e. how accessible are the team heads for you). For AAA titles people don't always get the luxury of interacting with people outside their teams. Truth be told, it's much better if they can talk to other departments. Game designers can't rely on just game designers/gamers for ideas.

2) Prototype..."Like X, but it has this one awesome thing!"...

Seems to me that's how we keep getting all these crappy, gimmicked knock-off clones of other games instead of any real innovation.

True that.

A more design-centric pipeline miht be preferable than this rinse-and-repeat stuff. Or even no pipeline at all, but that only seems more plausible in a one to three member team.

That's sadly true. Inside a team it's much easier to think of something totally new, but when you have to pitch it to someone with a different background, let's say a potential publisher, or a gamer who has never heard of such a game idea, there's a very small chance of describing it any other way.

But the actual prototyping phase is important. This is when you'll see if your ideas would be enjoyable in-game or it they're even possible.

 

[LadyRhian]

The scariest words in the English Language are: "I have a great idea for a game/book/move/whatever! How about if I tell you about it and you make it for me, and you give me most of the profits because, hey, it was my idea!"