Book Image

Practical Game Design

By : Adam Kramarzewski, Ennio De Nucci
Book Image

Practical Game Design

By: Adam Kramarzewski, Ennio De Nucci

Overview of this book

If you are looking for an up-to-date and highly applicable guide to game design, then you have come to the right place! Immerse yourself in the fundamentals of game design with this book, written by two highly experienced industry professionals to share their profound insights as well as give valuable advice on creating games across genres and development platforms. Practical Game Design covers the basics of game design one piece at a time. Starting with learning how to conceptualize a game idea and present it to the development team, you will gradually move on to devising a design plan for the whole project and adapting solutions from other games. You will also discover how to produce original game mechanics without relying on existing reference material, and test and eliminate anticipated design risks. You will then design elements that compose the playtime of a game, followed by making game mechanics, content, and interface accessible to all players. You will also find out how to simultaneously ensure that the gameplay mechanics and content are working as intended. As the book reaches its final chapters, you will learn to wrap up a game ahead of its release date, work through the different challenges of designing free-to-play games, and understand how to significantly improve their quality through iteration, polishing and playtesting.
Table of Contents (22 chapters)
Title Page
Copyright and Credits
Packt Upsell
Contributors
Preface
Index

Chapter 12. Accessibility

In the previous chapter, we learned about the User Experience and the best practices in User Interface design. We'll now learn how to make these, and any other parts of the game, more accessible; that is, easier to use, understand, and relate to.

To begin with, we need to find ways to create a steady and frictionless introduction to the game world and the rules governing it. We then have to ensure that the game can provide a highly playable experience to players that are less experienced, skilled, or capable (be it cognitively or physically).

Last but not least, even the best games often start in a bad place, and there's no better way to find things to improve than to test our games on potential players. We'll spend the final half of the chapter on the art of usability testing, and arm you with the expertise required to plan and execute your very own playtesting sessions!