1972年，雅达利公司推出了街机游戏Pong。之后，游戏行业历经了几十年的风风雨雨和几许轮回，依然方兴未艾。多少年以来，无论是俄罗斯方块，还是魔兽世界，游戏制作者面临的挑战都始终如一，即如何为玩家展现出最佳的游戏体验。 本书是一本有关游戏设计的技术类书籍。从表面上看，本书的重点在于游戏的设计，规划，平衡性，界面，市场等要素。然而实际上，本书的核心正是游戏体验。如何通过游戏设计来创造丰富多彩的游戏体验，以及如何真正从内心打动玩家，才是作者的真正目的。难能可贵的是，本书虽然涉及了许多游戏行业的专业课题，内容却轻松易懂，耐人回味。而读者在阅读本书时，也可以从自己感兴趣的章节开始，逐层深入。所以，无论读者是游戏行业的从业者，还是游戏爱好者，都不妨一读。说不定在某一页，就会不由自主地产生共鸣。

A Theory of Fun for Game Design is not your typical how-to book. It features a novel way of teaching interactive designers how to create and improve their designs to incorporate the highest degree of fun. As the book shows, designing for fun is all about making interactive products like games highly entertaining, engaging, and addictive. The book's unique approach of providing a highly visual storyboard approach combined with a narrative on the art and practice of designing for fun is sure to be a hit with game and interactive designers, At first glance A Theory of Fun for Game Design is a book that will truly inspire and challenge game designers to think in new was; however, its universal message will influence designers from all walks of life. This book captures the real essence of what drives us to seek out products and experiences that are truly fun and entertaining. The author masterfully presents his engaging theory by showing readers how many designs are lacking because they are predictable and not engaging enough. He then explains how great designers use different types of elements in new ways to make designs more fun and compelling.Anyone who is interested in design will enjoy how the book works on two levels--as a quick inspiration guide to game design, or as an informative discussion that details the insightful thinking from a great mind in the game industry.

Master the craft of game design so you can create that elusive combination of challenge, competition, and interaction that players seek. This design workshop begins with an examination of the fundamental elements of game design; then puts you to work in prototyping, playtesting and redesigning your own games with exercises that teach essential design skills. Workshop exercises require no background in programming or artwork, releasing you from the intricacies of electronic game production, so you can develop a working understanding of the essentials of game design. Features: * A design methodology used in the USC Interactive Media program, a cutting edge program funded in part of Electronic Arts. * Hands-on exercises demonstrate key concepts, and the design methodology * Insights from top industry game designers, including Noah Falstein, American McGee, Peter Molyneux

The bestselling introduction to "flow"--a groundbreaking psychological theory that shows readers how to improve the quality of life. "The way to happiness lies not in mindless hedonism, but in mindful change."--New York Times Book Review

本书堪称一份关于游戏行业内幕的弥足珍贵的调研报告。凭借着行业资深人士的身份，作者与数十款游戏的主创人员进行了深入的交流。这些游戏涵盖了多种类型、风格及运行平台，既包括那些高成本大制作的经典之作，如《魔兽世界》、《半条命2》等，又有短小精悍的休闲精品，如《虚拟农场》、《粘粘世界》等。以翔实的访谈内容作基础，本书不仅展现了游戏开发缤纷绚丽的全景画面，而且还提供了大量的真知灼见，足可照亮游戏开发者的前行之路。 本书共分两大部分，第一部分是游戏个案部分，介绍了10款优秀游戏的制作过程，并通过聆听主创人员的真切感悟，深入剖析并列举出了这些杰作在制作中的正确举措与失策之处。 第二部分是游戏案例总结分析，展示了由第一部分案例所总结提炼出的一些共同主题与规律，通过详尽地剖析各种最佳实践和常见失误，为游戏开发的各个阶段（概念设计、原型设计、制作、测试及发行）提供了具体的实施方案。这些建议不仅真实可靠，而且易于上手与使用。 全书还间或插入一些游戏团队角色的访谈录，这些人都来自全球知名的开发团队，通过这些无私的分享，读者可以了解到游戏开发中的关键要素。

《游戏创作与职业:来自行业专家的内部机密》介绍了如何创建游戏PS2、Xbox以及GameBoy、机密电话等，PC游戏设计和生产，破解游戏行业的方法、技术和策略，如何创建共享软件并通过网络销售等内容。

本书囊括了游戏设计的整个流程，剧情、设计文档、游戏策略及玩法等内容，在剧情的创意指导以及游戏设计文档上面，虽然用墨不多，但却极具作用。作者把大量的精力都用于介绍游戏策略与玩法的设计上，包括有“3C”内容（角色、镜头、操作），符号语言、关卡设计、战斗要素、敌对角色的设计、关卡的机关和陷阱的设计、Boss战的设计等。作者并不囿于自身以往的动作RPG游戏设计背景，兼顾了很多种类游戏的设计策略，从而使得本书从理论层面上来说几臻完美。

这是一本专供游戏设计师系统学习游戏设计方法与技巧的专著，是资深游戏设计师25年实践经验的结晶。本书以数据驱动的方式系统阐述了游戏机制设计、角色设计、场景设计、故事情节设计、动作设计、位置和物品设计、游戏对话设计、关卡和地图设计、界面设计、游戏数据收集与设置等游戏设计师必修技能，通过大量实例深入讲解了角色扮演游戏、实时战略游戏、第一人称射击游戏、模拟游戏等各种主流游戏的设计方法、技巧和最佳实践。 本书分3部分，共12章。第一部分包括第1~3章，简单介绍了游戏制作的周期、游戏设计师的职责、游戏玩法和游戏机制的分类，以及游戏制作中的数学和逻辑学，从基础层面阐释了游戏制作周期中各个要素。第二部分包括第4~9章，逐一详细地探讨了大多数重要的游戏机制（包括运动、战斗、角色和怪物、物品、魔法和技术、游戏中的谜题等），并且解释了设计师为查明每种机制将如何工作以及必须创建什么资产以使之工作所必须经历的过程。第三部分包括第10~12章，探讨了设计师必须知道的其他重要主题，比如故事和对话结构、关卡和地图设计，以及界面设计和游戏交互等。本书的附录部分收录了对领袖级游戏设计师之一Chris Taylor所做的一次深度采访，为即将崭露头角的游戏设计师们提供了宝贵的建议。

"Game Feel" exposes "feel" as a hidden language in game design that no one has fully articulated yet. The language could be compared to the building blocks of music (time signatures, chord progressions, verse) - no matter the instruments, style or time period - these building blocks come into play. Feel and sensation are similar building blocks where game design is concerned. They create the meta-sensation of involvement with a game. The understanding of how game designers create feel, and affect feel are only partially understood by most in the field and tends to be overlooked as a method or course of study, yet a game's feel is central to a game's success. This book brings the subject of feel to light by consolidating existing theories into a cohesive book. The book covers topics like the role of sound, ancillary indicators, the importance of metaphor, how people perceive things, and a brief history of feel in games. The associated web site contains a playset with ready-made tools to design feel in games, six key components to creating virtual sensation. There's a play palette too, so the desiger can first experience the importance of that component by altering variables and feeling the results. The playset allows the reader to experience each of the sensations described in the book, and then allows them to apply them to their own projects. Creating game feel without having to program, essentially. The final version of the playset will have enough flexibility that the reader will be able to use it as a companion to the exercises in the book, working through each one to create the feel described. *Demystifies this crucial, fundamental, and unexplored aspect of game design with case studies and fully interactive examples *Interviews with industry luminaries and in-depth examination of many classic games from a fresh angle *Website includes a fully playable interactive playset with ready-made tools for game designers

本书的目的是想让人们考虑设计虚拟世界的问题。问题不在于你是否赞同其中的观点，而在于——除非你能够提出自己的观点。 从虚拟世界的创建与设计、玩家与生命、伦理学与美学导向、虚拟角色与现实基础等内容的介绍中，让你了解到有关虚拟世界设计与创建的方方面面。虚拟世界不能被简单地概括为电脑或街机游戏，其中有它自己的生存方式，而角色几乎可以代表玩家思维的一切。本书不仅介绍了虚拟世界的创建与设计技术，同时也讨论了如何玩的技巧。 本书结构清晰，内容丰富，所涉及的概念、技巧极有实用性。适合于所有游戏设计者——游戏设计师以及玩家，而且对艺术、美术专业师生也有很好的参考价值。