PreMortem.Games

MAY 1, 2023

BitCake Studio , an indie game development studio based in Brazil, is celebrating its 10th year in the industry. Eduardo Lamhut, the company’s main Game Designer and Creative Director of the upcoming game Atomic Picnic , explains how the company started. There was a bunch of things she wanted in the game.

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Studios Build Playtesting Concepts 104

Brand Game Development

JUNE 3, 2019

Need help on your board game? Join my community of over 2,000 game developers, artists, and passionate creators. For that reason, I’ve brought in Sean Fallon, Founder & CEO of Smunchy Games and User Experience (UX) Designer extraordinaire. That’s a complex question. In this particular case, gamification.

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Brand Game Development

JANUARY 2, 2018

Board game development is a very individual process. Every single developer has different methods for creating their games. This article is the ninth of a 19-part suite on board game design and development. Need help on your board game? Games are more than just what’s in the box. Who is Carla?

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Brand Game Development

FEBRUARY 17, 2020

When I was a neophyte game developer, I found an excellent article by Wizards of the Coast, creators of Magic: the Gathering , called Ten Things Every Game Needs. No matter what type of game you’re making, these 10 elements are critical to making a good game. Need help on your board game? In War Co. ,

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Game Design Game Designer Tile Games 130

Brand Game Development

MARCH 9, 2020

When board gamers need a game to mercilessly mock , they look no further than Monopoly. Need help on your board game? Join my community of over 2,000 game developers, artists, and passionate creators. Monopoly is a bad game, but have a little respect. Watch your playtesters’ reactions.

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Brand Game Development

JUNE 20, 2019

Need help on your board game? Join my community of over 2,000 game developers, artists, and passionate creators. Allow me to introduce you to Jeff Beck of Grandpa Beck’s Games. You might know their company through Cover Your Assets , their breakout game. It is also currently on Kickstarter!

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Game Dev Unchained

MAY 21, 2024

.’ Through our discussion, I gained a profound appreciation for the delicate balance required to honor the original’s spirit while introducing innovative gameplay mechanics that captivate a new generation of gamers. “Hacking is a central mechanic in the new game,” James explained.

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Brand Game Development

APRIL 27, 2020

” Need help on your board game? Join my community of over 2,000 game developers, artists, and passionate creators. Before you ask people to play-test your game, bear in mind the following advice. Two groups that come to mind are the Tabletop Game Playtesters Guild and Card & Board Game Designers Guild.

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Brand Game Development

SEPTEMBER 24, 2019

This is where board game design often becomes very tricky. Need help on your board game? Join my community of over 2,000 game developers, artists, and passionate creators. With this in mind, let’s talk about how exactly you can make board game rules. Playtest a Ton. 14 Rules for Board Game Rules.

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Balance Games Communications Mechanics 130

iXie gaming

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023

Getting started with your first NFT game development venture can be interesting. But is the NFT game development market worth entering? The global play-to-earn (P2E) NFT games market is predicted to reach $3.6 So, yes – NFT game development is worth it. But what are NFT games? billion by 2028.

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PreMortem.Games

SEPTEMBER 13, 2024

White Star Studio, a small and ambitious game development studio based in Shenzen, China, has captured the essence of ancient China in their game Thriving City. Combining these elements with sim mechanics meant we could come up with some exciting, innovative gameplay.” But it took some tweaking to get the right balance.

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Studios Content Balance Mechanics 104

Brand Game Development

OCTOBER 23, 2017

I’ve talked about the benefits and challenges of working alone in the board game industry. Yet I’m a bit of an odd beast in the board game development world since most people prefer to work in teams. Need help on your board game? I’m a designer, and I do development and social media outreach.

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Prototyping Games Playtesting Game Design 130

PreMortem.Games

MAY 24, 2023

White Star Studio, a small and ambitious game development studio based in Shenzen, China, has captured the essence of ancient China in their game Thriving City. Combining these elements with sim mechanics meant we could come up with some exciting, innovative gameplay.” But it took some tweaking to get the right balance.

Studios 104

Studios Balance Content Playtesting 104

Brand Game Development

DECEMBER 26, 2017

Board game development is a very individual process. Every single developer has different methods for creating their games. This article is the eighth of a 19-part suite on board game design and development. Need help on your board game? Playtesting storytelling. Not allow you to, but make you.

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Art Games Mechanics Game Development 130

PreMortem.Games

NOVEMBER 17, 2023

“Sadly, the reality of the business showed me that the type of games that pay the rent weren’t the type of experiences I wanted to create”, he says. After a five-year hiatus from game development, he returned as a solo developer to create his debut game Repunk.

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iXie gaming

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

As a result, multiplayer games have revolutionized modern gaming, from human vs. computer to human vs. human interaction. Building multiplayer games can be rewarding and exciting for aspiring game developers. But before that, let’s start with some basics.  Multiplayer game genres are diverse.

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PreMortem.Games

JULY 1, 2024

The sheer confidence of steering clear of the beaten track and creating something truly original, comes from experience gained outside the world of video game development. Evan Anthony: “Alternating between two timelines with such different visual designs, mechanics, and stories has been a real brain puzzle for us.

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Art Games Graphics Puzzle 138

Big Games

DECEMBER 5, 2023

Game development isn’t as smooth and glamorous as many newbies imagine. It comes with challenges like tight deadlines, production obstacles, publisher pressures, and long work hours, which are just a glimpse of every developer’s hurdles. Many newbies ask the question, what are the stages of game development ?

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Brand Game Development

DECEMBER 3, 2018

Yet the process, so heavy on rejection, has left many game designers heartbroken. Need help on your board game? Join my community of over 2,000 game developers, artists, and passionate creators. Board game publishers have to sort good from bad. There are mechanics in there that nobody’s ever seen!”

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Games Retail Game Design Game Designer 130

Logic Simplified

SEPTEMBER 23, 2024

Level design is a part of video game design that focuses specifically on designing game levels (an area or stage a player must complete before moving on to the next one) while keeping in mind the architecture, layout, video game mechanics , and pace to keep the players invested in the game.

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Mechanics Games Playtesting Concepts 60

Brand Game Development

MARCH 16, 2020

To get the Start to Finish series going, I’ve spent some time discussing games, game development, and the amount of careful messaging that is needed to create and sell a great game. At this point, you may be beginning to have some healthy doubts about the benefits and drawbacks of self-publishing a game.

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Games Quality Assurance Art Game Developer 130

iXie gaming

SEPTEMBER 15, 2023

Join us as we review some popular video game testing tools to level up your game QA or quality assurance. Unity Test Tools Unity is one of the most used game engines globally, with about 70% of developers using it for mobile game development. This tool focuses on gathering user feedback and playtesting.

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iXie gaming

OCTOBER 10, 2023

And what are some top console game testing practices to “wow” your players and create a polished gaming experience? Why is Console Game Testing Important? Like software testing, console game testing plays a crucial role in the game development process. Let’s find out.

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iXie gaming

MAY 3, 2024

Preparing for Testing Before you start testing your Nintendo Switch game, it’s crucial to set up the required infrastructure. This includes acquiring the hardware, such as the Nintendo Switch console, controllers, and other peripherals needed for specific games. This makes it difficult and costly to identify and fix issues in the game.

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Radiator Blog

MARCH 16, 2023

Each level also had unique mechanics and art styles that all tied into a cohesive whole. Other mascot platformers like Mario, Sonic, or Crash, might've had more complex platforming, but Psychonauts told an actual story with memorable characters and human warmth that's still rarely matched in games today.

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iXie gaming

OCTOBER 3, 2023

Gameplay testing is done before launching the game to identify and mitigate issues in the game’s design, controls, graphics, and mechanics, to mention a few. This process can be done at different phases of game development. But what is gameplay testing? And how does it work? What is Gameplay Testing?

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iXie gaming

NOVEMBER 17, 2023

The gaming sector has experienced numerous changes over time. Whether it’s game development , every aspect of creating games has experienced new trends in recent times. One of the notable introductions in the industry has been video game test automation. This is because they need to be run consistently.

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Simulation Games Scripting Development 52

Deconstructor of Fun

MAY 23, 2023

At that point, Second Dinner revealed that their first project just so happens to be a licensed Marvel IP, which the team has been working on for six months already and is currently beginning to playtest. Fastforward to September of 2022 and the game, Marvel Snap, is finally out globally after a considerable amount of time in soft launch.

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Feature Mechanics Tile Mobile 95

Sirlin

JUNE 13, 2015

During Pandante development, I posted dozens of versions of the game board, cards, rules, etc. Patrons helped playtest and also just point out errors or give suggestions how to improve things. Right now, in addition to my podcasts, I have three main game development projects in the works.

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Game Global

JULY 12, 2021

Our most important storytelling tool is not the written word: We use the game’s feature set to tell its story. We must understand (and preferably help create and document) the game as a whole: from core mechanics to level design to cinematics, and everything in between. This is a clip of the Heider-Simmel animation.

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Cutscenes Writing Scripting Localization 52

Tom Francis

AUGUST 20, 2019

If you’re going to charge for it, maybe think about if there’s something you’d like to add to the game. Could just be theme/art/flash, or perhaps a mechanics change? I’d also suggest not calling it just ‘Gridcannon’, but it’s fine to use that word in the title. – Old Version.

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Games Playtesting Prototyping Concepts 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.

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Games Cross platform Mobile Mobile 59

PreMortem.Games

JUNE 11, 2024

Renee Gittins , indie game developer of Potions: A Curious Tale , faced severe harassment after the release of her game on Steam earlier this year. When EA unexpectedly dropped their back catalog just hours after her game’s release, it derailed Gittins’ carefully planned path to success. This is her story.

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Development Playtesting Indy Prototyping 104

Brand Game Development

JULY 20, 2020

I’ve written about the five levels of communication game developers must master. Need help on your board game? Join my community of over 2,000 game developers, artists, and passionate creators. Game development is a lot harder than you’d expect. How long does board game development take?

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Prototyping Games Dev Playtesting 130

Brand Game Development

JULY 15, 2019

One of the hallmarks of good board game design is being able to create hard choices. Particularly when hard choices come from simple mechanics. Let’s talk about how you can create hard choices in your board game. Need help on your board game? When selecting a game mechanic, it is the most familiar solution.

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Brand Game Development

JULY 22, 2019

Need help on your board game? Join my community of over 2,000 game developers, artists, and passionate creators. In each of the design diaries that I have written so far, I have focused on a specific game mechanic or isolated portion of the game. I initially liked the idea of it being a surprise.

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Radiator Blog

JUNE 30, 2022

L loss or often worse, since cops can exploit the same chain reaction mechanic as the player. In my playtests, it felt like the best tactic is to try to trap the cop in the corner with your body while the AIs coordinate a big orgy that gives you a huge payout. So for example, instead of redeeming two men for a +3.0

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