Game Designer's point of view: Want to be a better developer — play!

Eugene Shevchenko,GAMELOFT

DisclaimerAll the trademarks mentioned belong to their owners and are used in this presentation only as the educational example

• 5 years of experience • WAP, Browser, Mobile games

About the speaker:

How long are you in gamedev?

• Just going to

• Less than 2 years

• 2+ years

Why?

Link Link

● Game dev is far away of your dreams of it

● Games can be usefull in learning

Profit?

Game Consumer Game Developer

Experience takeaway

Most important everyday skills: ● Communication● Systems view● Time management

Communication

• Wording makes a difference

• Context is important

• Be constructive!Clipart

Senseless and merciless

COMMUNICATION: Don'ts

• Never rage

• Listener is not idiot• Bring details only when

asked

COMMUNICATION: What to play?

Chinese whispers / Telephone

MMORPG raiding

COMMUNICATION: My experience

Guild Wars 2:● Party dungeons● One awful player● But she is a girl,

everybody loves● Challenge:

not to butt-hurt

System view

• Complex – is the unity of simple

• Any methodology of software development is systematic

SYSTEM VIEW: Don'ts

• Don't overcompicate (KISS)

• Don't try to 'fix', when you don't understand

SYSTEM VIEW: Games

Construction set Minecraft

SYSTEMS VIEW: My experience

Dark Souls 2:● You have to learn

under the stress● You have to

remember everything● More challenge?

Time management

• Skill of completing task due to date

• Skill of making precise estimations

• Skill of building pipelines with others

TIME MANAGEMENT: Don'ts

• Don't do everything at the last moment

• Don't waste time on unimportant (prioritize and optimize)

• Don't hesitate to add 'Producers coefficient'to your estimate

TIME MANAGEMENT: How to evolve?

TIME MANAGEMENT: Games

Planning poker Darkest dungeon

TIME MANAGEMENT: My experience

Albion Online● You can do

everything● Pick one or level-up

for 10 years● Challenge: stop

collecting trash

OTHER TOOLS: English

OTHER TOOLS: Drawing

Frank Ching,Prof. Emeritus at the University of Washington

„The active seeing [..] can often lead to better understanding and more vivid visual memories.“

OTHER TOOLS: Gamer’s diary

• Note important / interesting stuff while playing

• Develop the rules of noting

OTHER TOOLS: Engines

Summary• Communication, Systems view & Time management are

the most important skills for a game developer

• To practice Communication: play MMO's with the people you don't like

• To practice Systems view: play hardcore, complicated games with a 10+h tutorial

• To practice Time management: play sandbox games and try to progress inside the time frame

QUESTIONS?

Thank you!