Key Deliverables
Game Design Document
The game design document is an important tool in producing a game. It contains the current state of the design of the game
- Create a ‘document’ which is accessible for all team members (e.g. google documents, wiki page etc.).
- Figure out which headers are useful and relevant to your team and project.
- Use the game concept document as a reference to fill in the headers of the design document.
- Use the section below to help you write down the content for the headers. Use the referenced tools to help add more detail.
- Try to describe each part in such a way that it has enough detail to get a sense of what needs to be made.
- Let other team members review headers.
- Change or add content to the headers based on feedback
A short description about what the game is about.
Suggested questions you can answer:
What genre does this game fits in?
What is the main thing a player does?
What is the goal of the game?
What is narrative about?
A description of how the elements and systems of the game, when played with, create the intended meaningful play.
Suggested questions you can answer:
- What can the player do? (verbs, actions, etc.)
- How can they use these actions? (emergent gameplay )
- Why do they need to do this? (goals, progression etc.)
- How is the player being helped? (improvements, allies etc.)
- What are the hindering factors? (obstacles)
- Where does it take place? (game level / space)
Tools:
A description of what the experiences the player should have when they are playing the game and how this is being created through structures and systems.
Suggested questions you can answer:
- How should the game feel?
- How can we help the player to play the game well?
- How should the game present itself?
- How should the game flow?
- How does the player control the game?
- How can the player see what they need to do at each moment of the game?
- What does a player need to learn to control the game?
- How could a player be taught these skills and knowledge?
- What does a player need to learn to master the game?
- How could a player be taught these skills and knowledge?
A description of how the game would use narrative elements to present itself.
Suggested questions you can answer:
- What kind of role does the narrative have in the game?
- What kind of world does the game exist in?
- What kind of entity does the player control and what kind of role do they have in the world?
- What is happening in the world?
- What has happened in the world?
A description in what way the game will visually present itself using a style, quality of art assets and how they are being used to support the intended experience.
Suggested questions you can answer:
- What kind of visual style would support the intended experience?
- Which assets do we need (character model / sprite, environmental model / sprite, ui elements etc.)?
- How can we create these assets?
- How can the asset support the gameplay?
- How can the asset support the narrative?
A description of how the game should sound expressed in the style and quality of sound effects, music and how they are being used to support the intended experience.
Suggested questions you can answer:
- What kind of sound style would support the intended experience?
- Which assets do we need (sound effects, musical score, etc.)?
- How can we create these assets?
- How can the asset support the gameplay?
- How can the asset support the narrative?
A description of what kind of technology is being used to develop the game with and what kind of technology the game will use to support the gameplay (platform).
Suggested questions you can answer:
- On what kind of hardware is the game going to be played on (pc, mac, switch, ps5, etc.)?
- What kind of inputs does it have (controller type etc.) ?
- What kind of outputs does it have (visual, audio, haptics etc.)?
- What kind of engine is going to be used (unity, unreal etc.)?
- Are there any relevant technical restraints (memory, resolution etc.)?
Turn the design into a physical or digital prototype to validate your concept (is it as fun as you think it is?).
Translate the design into a pitch document or presentation (how can we convince others that this project has potential?).