The Computer Game Design Course; Starting the design process

The Computer Game Design Course; principles, practices, and techniques for the aspiring games designer.

Written by Jim Thompson, published by Thames and Hudson

The design process refers to the ideal way in which a computer game should come together. There is no set order to follow to achieve an end result. The start comes when theres an idea, the initial spark can come from several sources.

Existing Intellectual Property - means that the game is intended to embody a pervious existing idea

Similar theme - Two games, with similar gameplay/ideas/themes with enough difference to avoid copyright infringement.

Mix and Match - New ideas can come from mixing together ideas from old genres. 

Brand new ideas - rarest and riskiest propositions in game development. 

Structuring the process;

Who is involved - small teams working on developing the initial ideas

Designers - games designers are responsible for the look and feel of a game. (designer, scriptwriter, level designer)

Art and animation staff - give visual form to the designers ideas, 2D & 3D models & animations to help create unique style/

Sound and music engineers - these roles may cover the design aspects of the game as well as the more technical side, when incorporating the soundtrack into the game programming.

Programmers - create the code for the engines that deliver games. The obvious roles in this category are software engineers and programmers, but these areas can be subdivided - possible roles also include artificial intelligence programmer or platform designer.

Quality Assurance and testing - QA professionals and testers make sure the game works & that it meets its specifications. 

Managers - project management pivotal. (project manager - programming manager - art director) over see entire project & running well and to schedule.