Can someone with a decent amount of experience give me some idea of the game design process- from conception to release. Please be as thorough as possible. Keep in mind I''m not in the industry so I don''t know all the jargon. I''m doing my senior research paper on the Game Design Process so, like I said, please be thorough. Thank you very much.

Game Design: Theory and Practice
by Richard Rouse
ISBN: 1556227353

Ultimate Game Design: Building Game Worlds
by Tom Meigs
ISBN: 0072228997

Chris Crawford on Game Design
by Chris Crawford
ISBN: 0131460994

Andrew Rollings and Ernest Adams on Game Design
by Andrew Rollings (Author), Ernest Adams (Author)
ISBN: 1592730019

Game Architecture and Design: A New Edition
by Andrew Rollings (Author), Dave Morris (Author)
ISBN: 0735713634
Note: Make sure you buy this new edition.

Game Design: Secret of the Sages
by Marc Saltzman (Editor)

Game Design: The Art and Business of Creating Games
by Bob Bates
ISBN: 0761531653

Dan Marchant
Obscure Productions (www.obscure.co.uk)
Game Development & Design consultant

Thank you very much for the references. These should do nicely.

There really isn''t a formal game design method, and this article explains why.

http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20030303/kreimeier_01.shtml

One way of designing a game is to pick the setting first, and then think in terms of what you could with the setting, for example:

First I decide that I wanted to do a game based on Transformers, then I would think of the approriate type of gameplay (rpg, fps, shooter), and go from there. Designing from a genre is a bit harder because then we tend to think more limited.

I can only advise you up to the point in design that I''m at with my current project(which isn''t very far), but I can definitely give you a few springboards which should make everything flow more nicely.

#1: Make a document.

A design document should cover every feature you plan on putting into the game. Actually, this should be a step two, but if the game visualized in your head is pretty clear, making the document first is always good. Explain every facet of the design-- how it looks, what the world is like, how the player is controlled, even some engine specs. If you''re unclear about any part, start a new document, start brainstorming, and summarize in the design document. When everything''s laid out on the table, you and your team can decide where to start.

#2: Find your killer-app status.

What''s the driving force behind your game? Your easy-to-use GUI? Your seamless blend a genres? Your engine that pushes millions of traingles? Focus on what the player is going to experience first and foremost, and turn that into the most enjoyable experience ever. Squaresoft starts every new Final Fantasy by making the battle system. Why? Because the player spends half his time doing that. "id" starts with a new world engine. Notice I didn''t say "graphics", because a BSP isn''t really graphical. It''s just a way of dropping textures and structures in and out of the pipeline. From Doom3 we know that he''s not using BSP''s anymore, and that he''s implementing per-pixel shading. We knew this first because he worked on it first. And surprise! That''s the selling-point of the game.

#3: What isn''t being done?

If your game doesn''t have an amazing feature, then for the love of god-- make it different. We really appreciate that driving sims are getting more and more realistic, but do you need another one besides GT3? I''m not saying it''s the best, I''m saying customers typically find one product line and stick with it. If your graphics engine is completely lacking in originality, why not make it into "Child Brutalizer 2004"? People will say, "Hey, did you see that game with the children on fire? It''s F__KING AWESOME." They won''t seem to notice that your models are only 300 polys.

I hope this helps you out. And I also hope you don''t create a generation of child abusers.