DESIGN DOCUMENTS DESIGN DOCUMENT What is expected OUTLINE

DESIGN DOCUMENTS

DESIGN DOCUMENT What is expected

OUTLINE Title Page Game Overview Gameplay Mechanics Story World Characters Levels Interface

TITLE PAGE Game Name and Tag Line. Team Date of last update

GAME OVERVIEW Game Concept Target Audience Genre(s) Game Flow Summary – How does the player move through the game? Look and Feel – What is the basic look and feel of the game? What is the visual style?

GAMEPLAY Objectives of the game Game Progression and Play Flow – How does the game flow for the game player Mission/challenge Structure Puzzle Structure

MECHANICS (KEY SECTION) Rules of the game, both implicit and explicit Model of the game universe How the pieces interact Physics of the game world Economy of the game and how it works Character movement Objects and how they are manipulated Actions and character communication Combat and how it is modeled Screen flow: screen purpose and how they relate

STORY AND NARRATIVE back story plot elements game story progression cut scenes

GAME WORLD General look and feel of world Areas � General description and physical characteristics � How relates to the rest of the world levels that use it connections to other areas

CHARACTERS Characters � back story � personality � appearance � abilities � relevance to the story � relationship to other characters Use of Artificial Intelligence in Opponent and Enemy Non-combat and Friendly Characters

LEVELS For each level � Synopsis � How required introductory material is provided � Objectives � Details of what happens in the level Map critical path that the player needs to take important and incidental encounters Training Level

INTERFACE Visual System � HUD � Menus � Camera model Control System Audio, music, sound effects Game Art: intended style Help System

CREATIVITY Go beyond your first idea

THROW ONE AWAY: FIRST IDEAS ARE RARELY SUBTLE Want to teach math � First idea: have them solve math problems to move around the board � Better idea: have them USE math to decide if an action will be okay or will kill them Want to teach history � First idea: have them answer trivia questions � Better idea: have them impacted by the history by needing to avoid the places where they will die