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Computer Games Design Lecture Notes

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Course
Computer Games Design (CE2175SPCO)

Institution
The University Of Essex (UoE)

Unit 1: Basics of Game Design Definitions and Distinctions: Explains what games are, differentiating them from puzzles, toys, and stories. It includes quotes from notable figures like Katie Salen & Eric Zimmerman and Johan Huizinga. Historical Context: Describes the evolution of gaming consoles a...

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Uploaded on August 7, 2024
Number of pages 23
Written in 2024/2025
Type Class notes
Professor(s) Richard bartle
Contains All classes

production lead designer programmer lead artist
play testing development timeline waterfall meth
agile methodology game pitch
game spec game overview interface objectives
tokens rules gameplay level d

Institution
The University of Essex (UoE)
Education Unknown
Course
Computer Games Design (CE2175SPCO)

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Unit 1:
● Game is a form of art in which participants, players make decisions in order to manage resources through game
tokens.
● Puzzles are static, games are interactive.
● Toys are interactive, but games have goals.
● Stories are linear, but games are nonlinear as they demand participation.
● A game is a context with rules among adversaries trying to win objectives”.
● “a game is a system in which players engage in artificial conflict, defined by rules, that results in quantifiable
outcome”. (Katie Salen & Eric Zimmerman, 2003).
● A puzzle is a fixed problem with one or more fixed solutions and no randomness.
● There are differences between play, puzzles and games depending on how they end: – Play only ends when you
give up , Puzzles only end when you give up or win, Games only end when you give up, win or lose .This means:
– If you can lose, it’s a game – If you can win, it might be a game or it might be a puzzle – If you can give up, it
might be any of them.
● Johan Huizinga (1938), as cited by Salen and Zimmerman, introduced the concept of the "magic circle,"
describing it as a social contract where players agree to follow a set of rules for the benefit of mutual enjoyment,
like fun. When all participants adhere to these rules, the game exists; breaking these rules constitutes cheating or
leads to the game's end.
● a Game is any form of play at which you can lose.
● First-generation consoles were hardwired to play only one game • 1n 1976, fairchild released its second
generation, cartridge-based chanNel F • In 1977, atari created the atari vcs – “video computer system”, the atari
2600 • Intellivision, colecovision etc. did likewise – Atari led the market as it had most games • This caused a
boOm, followed by the bust of 1983 that reduced sales by a factor of 30
Paradigms :
● By the mid-1990s, the main computer game paradigms had been established by key, breakthrough products:
● Rts (dune ii, 1992)
● FPS (Wolfenstein 3d, 1992; doom, 1993)
● Adventures (king’s quest, 1984; monkey island, 1990)
● God games (sim city, 1989; populous, 1989)
● Tbs (Civilization, 1991)
Tagline is one line of player-attracting Goodness that accompanies the title – Fallout 4: "Welcome home."

Unit 2:
● Development – Making the game.
● Production – Making the making of the game (putting resources in place)
● The lead designer designs the games , he creates an initial treatment, develops this into the design document.
● Lead programmer is responsible for the integrity of the software.
● The programmer does testing and bug fixing.
● Lead artist ensures that all artists are producing work consistently.
● Artists also have specialisations – concept artist, storyboard, asset, environmental, visual effects, UI artist.
● Quality Assurance lead supervises the QA team, discusses what needs to be tested with the designer, draws up
plan, passes overall results to producer, signs off the game for submission.
● Quality assurance technician mainly does validation testing.
● The first play testers are programmers and artists.
● SFX technician may be the sound engineer.
● The development timeline consists of – inspiration, conceptualisation, blueprint, tech architecture, tool building,
assembly, levels and finally review.
Development timeline :
Step 1: Inspiration (1 month)
● Lead designer develops the initial idea into a treatment document, possibly with input on feasibility from
architecture and technology groups.
● Outcome: Decision by the publisher to proceed or not.
Step 2: Conceptualization (3 months, varies)
● Lead designer writes a detailed game design based on the initial treatment.
● Outcome: A comprehensive design document and notes.
Step 3: Blueprint (2 months)
● Lead designer and lead programmer estimate implementation time for each software tier, followed by detailed
documentation.
● Outcome: Mini-spec documents for major software tiers.
Step 4: Technical Architecture (2 months)
● Transfer of project ownership from lead designer to producer. Lead programmer prepares technical designs from
mini specs.
● Outcome: Technical specifications and project milestones.
Step 5: Tool Building (4 months)

, ● Producer outlines necessary tools, which are then developed by 1-4 tools programmers.
● Outcome: Development tools and core game functionality.
Step 6: Assembly (1 year or half the total development time)
● Team of programmers and artists, guided by the producer, create the actual game.
● Outcome: Game and level creation tools.
Step 7: Levels (4 months)
● Level designers create game content and tutorials, possibly overlapping with assembly.
● Outcome: Finished game content.
Step 8: Review (3 months, overlaps with level design)
● Testing team identifies and reports bugs for resolution by the development team.
● Outcome: Finished, “bug-free” game.

Computer games have 4 development stages (waterfall methodology):
– Pre-production (plan it) :
• steps 1 to 4, 10%-25% of development time
– Production (make it) :
• steps 5 to 8, rest of development time
– Roll-out (Sell it) :
– operation (Run it):

● Game developers tend to prefer agile – Because game designs don’t always work and frequently need to be
iterated.
● Small games are almost always developed using an agile methodology.
● The pitch is half a page or so describing the game.
● The pitch should mention - Aim of the game – Number of players – Platform – Game (and story if you have one)
genre.
● A treatment extends the pitch( it’s the following): – Headline with its salient features – Give an overview of what
players do – Describe the game concept – Describe the gameplay – Give important design details – Outline the
graphics used.
● A game spec is a specification document for a computer game - Use a game spec to describe the basic idea
behind a game , The Actual game may end up somewhat different to the original spec.
● Game specs are made up of a number of sections, in something like this order: – Overview – Players – Look &
feel – Interface – Start-up – Objectives – tokens – Features – ways to organise tokens – Rules – gameplay –
Level design – Technical requirements – Marketing.
● The overview section includes the title page and describes the kind of game this is – Title: “Far west” , Tagline:
“guns, bandits, cows – lots of cows” (High concept: “far west is a real-time strategy game set in the wild west. buy
land, raise cattle, and manage your ranch while waging war against bandits and competitors.”)
Look and Feel :
● The main screen depicts a 3D polygon-based, scrollable, free-viewpoint wild west town and surrounding area.
● The style is influenced by Frederic Remington, featuring lean gunslingers, frock-coated men, and women in
prairie dresses in an idealized wild west setting. The background music consists of simple burlesque piano tunes.
Interface :
● Interaction: Players use the mouse to select objects and interact with them.
● Display: A side panel shows stats of the selected object along with a minimap and icons for various settings and
options.
Start-up :
● At game start, each player has $200, a ranch, a buggy, a cowboy, and a field with two cattle. Players need to
manage their resources wisely from this point.
Objectives :
● Players aim to outcompete others either by accumulating enough wealth to buy out competitors or by driving them
to bankruptcy through aggressive strategies like rustling livestock.
Tokens :
● Entities within the game include structures, characters (cowboys, bandits), and resources (coffee, beans, guns).
Rules :
● Gameplay mechanics involve resource management and strategic use of characters. For example, cowboys need
coffee and beans to function; without these, cattle may be left unguarded.
● Gameplay:
● Players must balance the growth and protection of their herds to maximize profit and sustainability. Decisions
about expanding herds and hiring guards are crucial.
Level Design :
● Different scenarios cater to various playing styles, influenced by resource availability, rustler activity, or specific
objectives like driving a herd to a stockyard.
Technical & Marketing :
● Technical specs: Planned for PC with specific hardware requirements.

, ● Marketing strategy: Targeted towards fans of management sims, offering unique gameplay that distinguishes it
from other genres.
The Core Gameplay section shows the foundational elements that shape the player's experience :
● Main Screen View: Describes the initial visual presentation of the game, including the layout and aesthetic of the
game environment.
● Core Player Activity: Outlines the primary actions and tasks that players will engage with frequently, such as
navigating, interacting, or combat.
● Controller/Keyboard Diagram: Provides a diagram or layout of the game controls, detailing what each button or
key does.
● Screen Mock-ups: Visual drafts that display the placement and design of interface elements like health bars,
menus, and inventory on the screen.
● In-game User Interface: Details the design and functionality of in-game menus, windows, and other UI
components that players interact with during gameplay.
The Contextual Gameplay section delves into detailed game mechanics and settings, offering a deep dive into
the specifics that affect gameplay:
● Detailed Token Properties: This includes comprehensive tables listing attributes for every game entity or token
(e.g., weapons, items) such as weight, cost, durability, impact on gameplay, and interaction effects with NPCs.
● Shell Menu Specs: Specifications for the game's shell menu, including options for saving games, character
creation, and other essential menu functionalities.
● Tutorial Mechanics: Describes how the game introduces its mechanics and story to new players, ensuring they
understand how to play.
● Multiplayer Mechanics: Details the structures and rules governing player interactions in multiplayer mode,
including matchmaking, player communication, and competitive elements.
Story:
● Backstory: Provides the lore of the game world and foundational narratives.
● Character Backstories: Details the histories and motivations of key characters.
● Level/Mission/Area Stories: Describes the narrative for specific levels or missions.
● Maps: Visual representations of game areas, crucial for navigation and planning.
● Cut Scene Descriptions: Outlines the content and purpose of cut scenes to enhance narrative delivery.

Unit 3:
● The relationship between games and stories in modern culture often places stories at a higher pedestal than
games. However, the view here is that games should be privileged above stories because games are essentially
machines for generating stories. This perspective values the interactive and dynamic story-generation capabilities
of games, which allow players to create unique narratives through gameplay.

Views:

● Narratologists see games as texts to be read, interpreting them as narrative forms like literature or drama. In this
view, games allow players to assume different identities and enact scenarios, similar to how one experiences a
play.
● Ludologists view games as systems to be played, focusing on the structure, rules, and gameplay mechanics
rather than narrative elements. They discuss games in terms of how they are player, emphasizing the interactive
and rule-based aspects of gaming.

● Plot differs from a story in that it is a predefined sequence of events with causality, where each event occurs as a
result of preceding events. For example, in a two-event scenario: "I ate a bar of chocolate. I was sick." The plot
does not clarify whether the chocolate caused the sickness or if the consumption was a response to already
feeling sick. The plot sets up the sequence, but interpretation can vary, demonstrating that while all plots contain
elements of a story, they don't explicate every detail or motivation.
● A narrative is essentially the act of telling a story, conveying a plot through structured storytelling. It usually
encompasses the entire story, not just isolated events. In literary terms, narrative refers to the discourse or the
way the story is told, including the style and structure of the text. "Backstory" refers to the narrative detailing
events that happened before the main story unfolds, providing context and depth to the current events in.
History:

● History: Defined as the retelling of past events that are causally connected.
● Records: Events that are not causally connected are simply recorded without narrative linkage.
● Plots in History: While non-fictional events lack a plot crafted by an author, real-life plots such as the
Gunpowder Plot do occur, driven by the actions of individuals.
● Historical Analysis: Historians use records to explain and interpret causality between events, but unlike in
stories, these events are not prearranged into a plot.

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