《game design workshop》阅读笔记（一）——Game Design Basics——The Role of the Game Designer

We play games to learn new skills, to feel a sense of achievement, to interact with friends and family, and sometimes just to pass the time. Ask yourself, why do you play games? Understanding your own answer, and the answers of other players, is the first step to becoming a game designer.

The focus of this book will be on understanding and designing for that player experience.It is what we call a “playcentric” approach to game design.

The role of the game designer

As a game designer, a large part of your role is to keep your concentration focused on the player experience and not allow yourself to be distracted by the other concerns of production.

For now though, it’s just important to know that playtesting is the heart of the design process explored in this book and that the feedback you receive during these sessions can help you transform your game into a truly enjoyable experience for your players.

试玩测试是十分重要的，虽然有时候会让设计人员觉得不爽，但确实至关重要！！！

如何成为一个游戏测试者：Write down what you’re doing and feeling. Try to create one page of detailed notes on your behaviors and actions. Then repeat this experience while watching a friend play the same game. Compare the two sets of notes and analyze what you’ve learned from the process

passion&skill

First, a great game designer is someone who loves to create playful situations. A passion for games and play is the one thread all great designers have in common. If you don’t love what you’re doing, you’ll never be able to put in the long hours necessary to craft truly innovative games.

当我们听到一些不想听得事情的时候，最重要的是妥协。例如，如果设计师提出的设计方案在技术和现有资源上是不能实现的，技术人员提出了一种可以实现的方案，但是有违设计的初衷，这个时候就需要妥协。

要能够理解一个游戏系统是如何运作的并用自己理解来创造自己游戏系统

how game systems work, analyzing how they make meaning, and using your understanding to create your own game systems

建议把自己的分析写在游戏日志里面。不要只是回顾游戏或者讲述游戏特征。试着记录一个在玩游戏过程中富有意义的一刻。

Try to remember it in detail—why did it strike you? What did you think,feel, do, etc.? What are the underlying mechanics that made the moment work? The dramatic aspects?

我们过去的经历，兴趣爱好，人际关系以及我们的身份地位都会成为游戏创意的来源。重要的不是是否有idea，而是idea来的时候是否能够实现他！

Having a good solid process for developing an idea from the initial concept into a playable and satisfying game experience is another key to thinking like a game designer.

那么我们需要如何设计一个playcentric的游戏呢？

第一，要把初始的概念变为一个具有可玩性的游戏，是一个designer必备的素质。我们需要时刻把玩家的用户体验放在脑海中。

Setting Player Experience Goals goals that the game designer sets for the type of experience that players will have during the game.  one of the hardest things to do is to see beyond features to the actual game experience the players are having 

What are they thinking as they make choices in your game? How are they feeling? Are the choices you’ve off ered as rich and interesting as they can be?

迭代

By “iteration” we simply mean that you design, test, and evaluate the results over and over again throughout the development of your game,

· Player experience goals are set.
· An idea or system is conceived.
· An idea or system is formalized (i.e., wri en down or prototyped).
· An idea or system is tested against player experience goals (i.e., playtested or exhibited for feedback).
· Results are evaluated and prioritized.

· If results are negative and the idea or system appears to be fundamentally fl awed, go back to the first step.
· If results point to improvements, modify and test again.
· If results are positive and the idea or system appears to be successful, the iterative process has been completed.

第一步：头脑风暴

1、设定一个以提升玩家体验为目标的计划。

2、找到能够使得游戏体验提升的概念和机制。

迭代过程图表：

缩小前三个名单

写一个简短到只有一页的关于自己想法的文档，可以成为概念文档。

用潜在玩家测试自己想法的可行性。

第二步：物理原型

· Create a playable prototype using pen and paper or other craft materials.
· Playtest the physical prototype using the process described in Chapters 7 and 9.
· When the physical prototype demonstrates working gameplay that achieves your player experience goals, write a three- to six-page gameplay treatment describing how the game functions.（如果物理模型达到了用户体验的目标，需要写一个3到6页的文档来说明一下游戏是如何运行的）

第三步：陈述（可选）

presentation常常用来拉取资金，即使不需要资金，也一样可以做pre，因为这样可以让自己go through整个游戏，并且向整个团队/高层管理人员介绍自己的游戏。

pre应该包含作品的demo和游戏设置的一些事情。

第四步：软件原型

通常软件原型有好几个，每个有不一样的侧重点。

软件原型如果达到了用户体验的目标，就可以进入到设计资料的阶段。

第五步：资料

· While you have been prototyping and working on your gameplay, you have probably been compiling
notes and ideas for the “real” game. Use the knowledge you’ve gained during this prototyping stage to write the fi rst dra of a document that outlines every aspect of the game and how it functions.
· This document is usually called the design document, but recently, many designers have moved away from static documents toward online design wikis because of their fl exible, collaborative nature. A design wiki is a great collaboration tool and living document that changes and grows with the production.

第六步：产品

通过跟所有团队的人沟通确保设计的每个方面都是可以实现的。

创新

做游戏的过程中我们需要开拓新的用户玩家。这需要我们在游戏体验上有所突破。从现有的参考游戏中找到突破点是很难的。

电子游戏设计的初期阶段我们需要物理原型和游戏测试。物理原型可以让团队相互讨论，共享观点。

下一代的设计师需要能够突破玩家的用户体验。所谓的创新，意味着：

1、设计新鲜的，超越现有机制的游戏机制

2、吸引新的玩家，那些有着不一样的品味和技巧的人来参与游戏。

3、解决游戏中的难题，类似于

故事和游戏设置的完整性

• 更深层次的游戏同理心
• 设计情感丰富的游戏
• 发现游戏和学习之间的关系

4、询问关于游戏的一切，例如，游戏是什么，他们会成为什么样子，他们影响了我们的什么（个人？文化？）

事实上，真正的创新从来都不是一瞬间的，他是跟很多人交流结果。