Game Design: Theory and Practice

by Richard Rouse III, Steve Ogden, Noah Falstein

“Both burgeoning game designers and devoted gamers should consider [Game Design: Theory & Practice] an essential read.” — Computer Gaming World
“Ultimately, in both theory and practice, Rouse’s Game Design bible gets the job done. Let us pray.” - Next Generation magazine

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. This second edition thoroughly updates the popular original with new chapters and fully revised text.

Genres: Game Design, Games, Nonfiction, Video Games, Design, Gaming, Programming

729 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 25, 2001

Reviews

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Game design is a broad and diverse subject. A book of 550 pages can only spread itself thinly across so broad a surface. Despite that, this book manages to have a certain amount of filler, giving it a somewhat "rushed publication" feel.
Of course, you're going to get something out of this book, it has some good information and ideas. I think I enjoyed the famous game designer interviews the most. While they may not have been particularly useful, they were entertaining and fun to read.
Note: Goodreads does not have the 1st edition (which I read) listed, so things may have changed a bit in the 2nd edition.

[Pedro Gardel Camara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this a long time ago and thought it was a good book for introducing me into the game design literature. But nowadays I consult more frequently denser books such as Rules of Play.

[Jimmy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too verbose. Mostly stories. Not very helpful.

[Jesica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Si bien es un libro viejo con ejemplos por ahí desactualizados (pero muchos de ellos clásicos conocidos por todos), sigue dandole en el clavo con temas desarrollados.

[Timon Bestebreur · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an awesome book and really helped me building my first game for a school project. What I didn't like about the book was that it was more focused on the big development teams working at huge companies instead of the indies like me.

[Ensley · Rating 4 out of 5]

First time reading this type of thing, quite revealing

[Ahmad Iftikhar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book for all the game level designers.

[Adya Mahardhika · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ngga tamat, tebel banget. tadinya dibaca karena pengen jadi Game Designer, tapi ngga jadi