Video Game Design: Introduction: An Open Learning Guide

Video games have many different forms, from old arcade games to small hand held devices, simple flash games you play online to the newest hit for one of the big names in the industry that can cost more than a movie to make.

Like any other type of game, a video game can be simple or complex, quick or slow, and even require a great deal of practice or patience to get the hang of. A lot of people, however, do not really know what goes on behind the screen. You can see the moving symbols and colors, the sounds, and know that they react when you press buttons, but what actually is happening back there?

Before designing a game for implementation, it is necessary to understand the industry you are getting into. Video Games have been around since 1931, today it is one of the fastest industries. Most new ideas in software developments are really new variations on old ideas. Some research will always provide new insights or ease the implementation of new approaches.

Today there are a myriad of different programming languages available to the amateur game designer, many of them freely available. There are also tools that allow you to create your own games without programming. If you ever want to be a paid game designer, you will have to know a programming language or two. If, however you just want to make games for your own amusement, this is not required.

Source and licence

Text adapted from Video Game Design/Introduction by Wikibooks contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0. Paragraphs have been selected and abridged, and formatting adjusted. This adapted text is shared under the same licence. Contributor history.