Game Design: Theory and Practice (2nd Edition) (Wordware Game Developer's Library) Review

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(More customer reviews)I work on video games professionally as a programmer, but I read a lot of books on design because that is the most challenging aspect of what we do. Technology is a solved problem; project management is getting there; that leaves the black hole of design. Of the books I've read, Richard Rouse's is the best. Where most books on game design treat you as if you have somehow landed in the position of creative director for a thirty man team -- and now you need help -- Rouse's book covers everything from level design in the trenches to the concept work of the lead designer. They say those who can't do, write, but Richard is an exception, with a few above average games in his ludography (and a flop or two, just like me). And when his knowledge isn't enough, he supplants it with interviews with the greats. Although it's true that some of the greats are no longer in the game, their advice is still valuable. (One thing that all of them agree on is the value of other people playtesting, whether it's Ed Logg field testing coin-op machines or Steve Meretzky looking at transcripts of people playing text adventures.) This book is also a survey of current trends in game design, from simulation to emergent strategy to meaningful choices. It provoked me to think deeper than I had before.
So why only four stars?
Yes, it is somewhat dated. Interviews with John Carmack, Warren Spector, and Jason Uyeda would be more relevant than the coin-op/PC game gurus presented here.
Furthermore, I could have used less survey and more depth. Take emergent strategies, for example: he touches on this concept, says that It Is Good, but without really giving it the treatment it deserves: how does one create a game in which emergent strategies develop? What are the costs of such an approach to game design?
Still, if you only read one book on game design, this should be it.

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In the second edition to the acclaimed Game Design: Theory & Practice, designer Richard Rouse III balances a discussion of the essential concepts behind game design with an explanation of how you can implement them in your current project. Detailed analysis of successful games is interwoven with concrete examples from Rouse s own experience. Game Design: Theory & Practice, Second Edition thoroughly updates the popular original with new chapters and fully revised text.

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