Task - Week Six

Gameplay is a broad umbrella term that most people are unsure of the exact definition for. The Gameplay incorporates the way the technology effects how we play the game, how the art effects our response to the game or how the storyline draws us in. It could also take into a account hardware specifications, and the music used on a game, or a specific colour palette.

Initial game development is normally down to one person, who writes the design document. This should detail their ideas and concepts for their game, and is presented to the publishers in the hope of gaining funding. However, this design documents need to be constantly modified and updated once the game is in the process of being made, otherwise it soon becomes outdated. This in turn means the responsibility is shared between people who have expertise in certain areas, and should mean the game turns out better as a whole.

Personally I'm very picky about art styles in a game. While the visual isn't everything, it is very important to me as a gamer, and often I won't consider a game that is visually unappealing to my specific taste. The move towards realism in games tends to make this less of a problem – if everything looks like reality anyway, what is there to disagree with? Over complexity can be off-putting too. If it takes too long to learn the basic controls, then generally I won't bother, hoping to pick it up later. Inevitably this leads to failure. I know I know, I'm a blight on the gaming world.

http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/fac/peabody/game-book/Coverpage.html
http://gamasutra.com/features/20060425/shahrani_01.shtml
http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20041101/rouse_02.shtml
http://www.randomterrain.com/game-design.html
http://www.paranoidproductions.com/gamedesign/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_design