News - The Rules of Game Design

Misc Links

The Rules of Game Design
Posted by newsbot on January 23rd 2008

One of the new features we’ve launched lately on bit-tech hasbeen guest columns. That is, columns written by developers and industryinsiders on a rotating monthly schedule. We’ve had stories and thoughtsfrom every corner of the industry, including budding indie developerslike James Silva and writers for established studios, like Simon Halland Rob Yescombe. After reading Simon Hill’s latest column,which talked about difficulty balancing in computer games and why hethinks computer games have got progressively easier, I got thinking.The more I thought about the topic, the more I decided I wanted to dosomething about it – partly because I’m a pretty heavy gamer and I likemy games to be worth the effort, but mainly because I'm just a noseybusy-body.As I looked into the issue though, the more my mind raged with examplesof how games had changed for the worse over the years – how simpleconcepts that had once been core to the design of every game were nowbeing forgotten or dismissed. The rules that had governed and createdthe Golden Axe Age of Gaming were now no longer beingobeyed.Naturally, being a bit of presumptuous so-and-so, I decided to shove mynose in and take Simon’s complaint to the next level. Thus, I presentwhat I think are the cardinal rules of game design.

View article at bit-tech.net

(Due to past abuse from spammers you must be a registered forum member to post comments, and must be logged in)