Ask a Game Dev

MARCH 29, 2024

Prototype - A playable example of a single gameplay system to prove out the concept. Examples might be character movement, a combat combo system, or a specific game mechanic. The above screenshot is from the Breath of the Wild systems prototype - wind, fire, etc. a specific system, a feature, etc.).

Prototyping 64

Prototyping Demo Dev Concepts 64

PreMortem.Games

APRIL 21, 2023

AZUR have provided extended commentary on the matter: “We rely on internal analytics, test hypotheses across thousands of prototypes, and monitor various ongoing projects. Also, if a game mechanic has high retention, but other metrics are not as promising (e.g., Do you test ad creatives before creating a prototype?

Prototyping 104

Prototyping Mechanics Media Games 104

PreMortem.Games

OCTOBER 9, 2023

What originally started out as a treehouse building simulator prototype, slowly evolved as the duo gradually added different mechanics. “It From the building mechanics, all the way to the third person character movements. We judge each feature based on three criteria. Does it improve the mechanics of the game?

Engineering 129

Engineering Engine Build Mechanics 129

Perforce

APRIL 28, 2023

Studios are using premade, free game assets to help them iterate more quickly before committing to any particular feature or game mechanic. Here, we will discuss how you can use free game assets — such as Unity free assets — for your video game prototype, and how a digital asset management tool can help.

Prototyping 52

Prototyping Asset Game Developer Game Development 52

iXie gaming

AUGUST 8, 2023

However, getting a competitive edge in the industry requires creativity and that’s where rapid game prototyping comes in. This article aims to explore the rising significance of rapid game prototyping in the game development process. The Process of Rapid Game Prototyping Rapid game prototyping is a powerful tool in game development.

Prototyping 52

Prototyping Game Developer Game Development Development 52

PreMortem.Games

OCTOBER 4, 2024

. “If we’re really interested in signing, we’re going to ask for something that really articulates mid-game, late-game, scope, features—all of that stuff,” says Handrahan. To that end, a simple pitch deck and prototype are no longer enough to secure a deal, unless the studio has an established track record.

Prototyping 151

Prototyping Concepts Build Development 151

PreMortem.Games

SEPTEMBER 17, 2024

The game immerses players in a captivating odyssey across worlds within worlds, beckoning them to master the art of world-leaping mechanics to uncover a cosmic mystery. Carlsen’s vision for Cocoon sprang from a fascination with game mechanics. This prototype had many worlds, and a lot of the focus was on jumping between them.

Puzzle 104

Puzzle Prototyping Art Communications 104

Big Games

MARCH 27, 2025

This article compares these two platforms in detail and explores their features, benefits, and real-world applications to help you make an informed decision. Although it mostly employs C++, it also provides a visual scripting language called Blueprints that lets programmers construct intricate mechanics without knowing how to code.

Engineering 52

Engineering Engine Game Developer Game Development 52

Radiator Blog

AUGUST 12, 2022

Elden Ring features big tree levels where you have to platform on narrow branches that snake around. I liked the idea of climbing / descending a big weird tree, and building it in Quake would be a big challenge, so that's what I prototyped first. It helps supplement the stealth fantasy in a game with basically no stealth mechanics.

Prototyping 130

Prototyping Fantasy Fighting Terrain 130

PreMortem.Games

MARCH 1, 2024

The Brew Barons also features aerial combat. “As As we were prototyping there was still a feeling the game needed more action. We turned once more to Porco Rosso which features a band of mischievous but loveable pirates, so we added them to the game to help introduce some combat.” But that’s not all.

Studios 104

Studios Prototyping Visual Scripting Art 104

PreMortem.Games

NOVEMBER 15, 2023

“I remember when an Early Access update added the overworld feature. Disappointed by the lack of integration of the overworld feature into RimWorld, he further developed his idea. We discovered that in some cases, it took twice as long as normal to implement features. It looked really exciting to me”, he says.

Dev 118

Dev Development Feature Prototyping 118

Brand Game Development

DECEMBER 30, 2019

If you’re the kind of creator who has a few prototype board games in your closet somewhere, consider playing one of them with a few game designers. Order a professional physical prototype of one of your board games. Experiment with a theme or mechanics you’ve never used. Get featured on a podcast or a blog.

Dev 130

Dev Prototyping Games Game Design 130

Logic Simplified

APRIL 1, 2024

UE5’s features and functionality have further expanded to include experimental new features for rendering, animation and simulation. It contains the game’s proposed design like the concept of the game, genre, core game mechanics, gameplay, timeline, illustrations/sketches, story and characters, levels and monetization strategies.

Game Developer 100

Game Developer Game Development Development Engineering 100

Game Dev Unchained

MAY 28, 2024

Ben described how AI can assist in brainstorming and prototyping, generating multiple variations of a concept and allowing developers to experiment with different approaches quickly. It can suggest new game mechanics, visual styles, or narrative elements, giving us a broader palette to work with,” he said.

AI 52

AI Feature Technology Data 52

Radiator Blog

APRIL 18, 2022

Unity's imperfect WebGL export is objectively more promising than Unreal publicly dropping web support in 2020 (not that Epic's web support was ever good anyway) I tried using UE4 already , learning enough to prototype basic game mechanics and build 90% art passed levels. I'm not an expert, but I've learned much more than a beginner.

Engineering 100

Engineering Engine Bug Rigging 100

Big Games

NOVEMBER 13, 2023

Developers work closely with the engineers to decide the game mechanics. This includes making the sound effects and music, planning the levels, implementing the game mechanics, and producing the game’s assets. Prototyping Prototyping is not integral to the mobile game development process but has advantages.

Concepts 52

Concepts Game Developer Game Development Development 52

Logic Simplified

AUGUST 8, 2023

Game designers must work closely with other development team members, like developers and artists, to guarantee that the video game mechanics and elements work together smoothly. The game mechanics involve matching three or more candies of the same color to smash them. Let’s take the example of Candy Crush again.

Game Design 86

Game Design Game Designer Art Prop 86

Game Analytics

NOVEMBER 15, 2022

A list of 14 of the best hyper-casual mechanics to use for your game. Prototyping, testing and analytics. Hyper-casual games are all about prototyping and iterating your games to hit certain KPIs and targets. How to do fast prototyping and what you need to know. How to make effective game art in hyper-casual games.

Prototyping 68

Prototyping Games Mobile Mobile 68

Big Games

JANUARY 30, 2024

To ensure compatibility, you should identify the features and tools essential for your chosen genre. The software should have features that match the goals of your project, regardless of how big or little your production is. Seek for features that improve overall performance, optimize visuals, and speed up load times.

Software 52

Software Game Design Game Designer Cross platform 52

Grid Sage Games

MARCH 10, 2022

Mechanics that are never quite worth taking advantage of, items that haven’t lived up to their potential, or were later superseded by other options but remained unchanged, or even long-term experiments that were included at some point but never updated/expanded/removed. Categorical Approach.

Balance 52

Balance Mechanics Beta Prototyping 52

Big Games

JANUARY 8, 2024

Here are some of them: AI-Powered Content Creators Ludo AI: This tool excels at generating gameplay concepts and mechanics based on your preferences. Simply input parameters like genre, target audience, and desired features, and Ludo AI will suggest potential game ideas. It can even help define core loops and progression systems.

Game Developer 52

Game Developer Game Development Development Cross platform 52

iXie gaming

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

Also, define your game’s genre, interaction modes, and gameplay mechanics. Prototyping  Create a minimum viable product or a prototype to assess your multiplayer game’s core mechanics. Through prototyping, you can identify possible issues early. Start by defining the type of game you want to create. Programming languages. 

Game Developer 52

Game Developer Game Development Development Quality Assurance 52

Designer Notes

AUGUST 2, 2021

None of these systems were any fun and weren’t intended to be so; they were mechanics put in place to keep the players from ruining the game for themselves by founding too many cities just because it was simply the most effective strategy. I was well aware that the city sites of Old World would be a controversial feature.

Tile 52

Tile Build Mechanics Prototyping 52

Deconstructor of Fun

OCTOBER 1, 2024

The collection and account progression mechanisms, as well as their utility in an action sequence, are very different and lacking when compared to Brawl Stars. Features that prolong match length and make MOBAs hard for more casual audiences to enjoy. The process also featured a change of the game leadership. Down But Not Out!

Mobile 115

Mobile Mobile Games Feature 115

Big Games

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

The players should intuitively understand the mechanism of the game and get engaged with the gameplay within a few minutes they start playing the game. To make the game innovative and fresh, you have to make few updations in the game at regular intervals, like adding content, levels, features, or characters. Make a User-friendly Game.

Mobile Gaming 52

Mobile Gaming Mobile Mobile Build 52

Mnenad

JANUARY 14, 2020

  So I remember exactly how my first prototype looked like. I don’t remember anymore how it came to the decision to make it Countryball themed, but I guess the sheer number of possibilities, both in game mechanics and design choices, have led to that decision.   History seems to repeat itself (lol). Go Polandball!

Bug 52

Bug Communications Mobile Mobile 52

Cocos

MAY 5, 2023

This article will discuss the new feature of Cocos Creator, Custom Render Pipeline(CRP), and demonstrate how to apply the custom render pipeline already written in Cocos Cyberpunk to your own project. The most important feature here is the Custom Render Pipeline, CRP. Ok, without further ado, let’s get started.

Render 52

Render Graphics Code Baking 52

Tom Francis

JANUARY 22, 2019

Some features of my week: Business Mondays. That’s two massive lucky things I’m grateful for, but I’m used to having literally a year to f**k around with ugly prototypes of random s**t I make up before having to decide which one is my real project.

Racing 52

Racing Prototyping Mechanics Bug 52

Designer Notes

AUGUST 10, 2021

The big change that always gets mentioned when going from Civ 4 to Civ 5 is one-unit-per-tile (1UPT), which is interesting as 1UPT is purely a mechanical – as opposed to thematic – change. The game, a historical 4X set in classical antiquity, released on July 1, 2021, and is available for purchase here.

Tile 40

Tile Point and Click AI Mechanics 40

Game Designing

SEPTEMBER 30, 2023

They even emphasize specific features and expressions. The newest Playstation 5, for example, features 8K graphics at a 60Hz or 4K output with a 120 Hz refresh rate. Game Designer A game designer is someone who brainstorms ideas and concepts, builds prototypes, and develops the game’s mechanisms.

Games 52

Games Graphics Technology Game Design 52

Deconstructor of Fun

MARCH 14, 2023

ATT did not kill mobile gaming: UA, game mechanics, and creatives Matej Lancaric , user acquisition, and marketing consultant aking the stage with a phenomenal Lenny Kravitz-inspired scarf and a positive outlook – or “Kumbaya s**t” in Lancaric’s words – the consultant offered tips and context for marketers working with iOS14.

Games 59

Games Cross platform Mobile Mobile 59

Deconstructor of Fun

JANUARY 22, 2020

Successful tactical shooters feature a vehicle or a machine to focus on slower gameplay. It requires the least amount of control complexity, and typically has opportunities for light RPG mechanics and progression alongside it. Instead 2019 ended up focusing much more on “Drafting” style mechanics. Ad revenues not included.

Mobile 52

Mobile Mobile Console PC 52

Interesting Choices

FEBRUARY 25, 2015

Not long after that I started working on a game (then called City Draft) that would be strongly inspired by a few key influences: 7 Wonders for the mechanics and structure, Carcassonne for the idea of placing tiles in a grid, and SimCity for the theme. Militaristic neighbors can further invalidate strategies.

Build 40

Build Tile Point and Click Games 40

Deconstructor of Fun

FEBRUARY 7, 2021

There are a number of reasons for this: first, ATT will handicap ad platforms’ abilities to target specific users, and an IP that is well-aligned with a core gameplay mechanic may provide useful in effortlessly segmenting audiences across taste and interest boundaries. It seems likely that a resurgence of IP licensing deals may occur in 2021.

Advertising 52

Advertising Mobile Gaming Mobile Mobile 52

CG Spectrum

JUNE 10, 2024

They oversee both the foundation and execution of the game mechanics and overall user experience. They commonly create prototypes that will act as proof of concept, a crucial early stage of the production pipeline. Others are writers and/or world directors who focus on player experience. What does a game programmer do?

Film 52

Film Animation Animation Concepts 52

Game Designing

JULY 18, 2023

Here is a list of industries and jobs that can use AI art: Industries That Use AI Art Here are the top industries that leverage AI art in their operations: Gaming The gaming industry is increasingly using AI software and tools to create images and videos featuring photorealistic yet imaginary characters, settings, and themes.

Art 40

Art AI Editing Software 40

Deconstructor of Fun

JANUARY 21, 2021

By all accounts this genre is matured to a point where it could use a massive innovation to both the progression mechanics and social gameplay. The only true bright spot was Art of War , which despite prototype level production quality has scaled up to over 5M in net revenue a month with no stop in sight! Then Yu-Gi-Oh came along.

Mobile 52

Mobile Mobile Cross platform Puzzle 52