Game Magic: A Designer's Guide to Magic Systems in Theory and Practice

by Jeff Howard

Make More Immersive and Engaging Magic Systems in Games Game A Designer’s Guide to Magic Systems in Theory and Practice explains how to construct magic systems and presents a compendium of arcane lore, encompassing the theory, history, and structure of magic systems in games and human belief. The author combines rigorous scholarly analysis with practical game design advice in the form of a magical recipe book (grimoire). The book gives you an in-depth understanding of the history and structure of magic to make your games richer and deeper. It shows how to set up tables of correspondences and spell components as well as how to write programming code integrating these components as part of game mechanics. It also illustrates how to divide a simulated world into domains of influence (such as alteration, conjuration, and necromancy) and how to use specific rule systems to simulate powers within these realms. Showing you how to weave compelling magic into your games, the book is interspersed with examples that illustrate how to design and program magic systems. Working examples are available for download on a supporting website.

Genres: Game Design, Games

337 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2014

Reviews

[John Pennycook · Rating 3 out of 5]

I definitely learned something from this book -- specifically, the importance of magic existing outside of battle and ensuring it "feels magical" -- but I didn't enjoy the structure. The book tries to target too many audiences simultaneously, and I ended up skimming some of the less interesting chapters.

[Denis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read and well researched. If you want to create a magic system for your game check this out.

[Francis Wiget ii]

Damned useful for novelists, occultists, tabletop gamers as well as for video game designers and writers.