The Art of Game Design: A Deck of Lenses

by Jesse Schell

Good game design happens when you view your game from as many perspectives as possible. Written by one of the world's top game designers, The Art of Game Design presents 100+ sets of questions, or different lenses, for viewing a game’s design, encompassing diverse fields such as psychology, architecture, music, visual design, film, software engineering, theme park design, mathematics, puzzle design, and anthropology. This Second Edition of a Game Developer Front Line Award winner: The Art of Game Design, Second Edition gives readers useful perspectives on how to make better game designs faster. It provides practical instruction on creating world-class games that will be played again and again.

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

113 pages, Cards

First published August 4, 2008

Reviews

[Jessica Mae Stover · Rating 1 out of 5]

Update: My giftee has read deeper into this book and shared some parts with me that I hadn't yet seen. This book is sexist and misogynistic.

I'll update with more details as soon as I have time (I want to look into who else is responsible for publishing this material in support of the author), but, wow: those parts are terrible, poorly cited, and contain glaring problems such as "people are saying" weasel words.

I'm going to go ahead and say most reviewers here likely would not have given this book a pass if it contained racism and antisemitism equivalent to the book's sexism, yet look at the 4-5 star reviews with not a single mention of the outrageous sexism contained herein. Either those readers believe as the author does, without evidence, so they didn't notice, or they just don't care, which is frustrating and disturbing no matter how you slice it.

This book is used as a university textbook, and I cannot imagine seeing those sections in a classroom setting. Furthermore the table of contents for the offensive sections hasn't changed for 3rd edition, so the material is still there! Until I return with more detail, this is being talked about online in other spaces: https://medium.com/@partytimehxlnt/ti...
------
Bought the second edition of this book as a gift, and read a few excerpts with the giftee. If you search the reviews here for "gender" and "sexist," you'll see that there are red flags about one particular section, and I urge readers to talk back to that part of the book in your reviews and in your game design. For future editions, it would be helpful if the section in question was handed over to someone else due to the author's limitations and the lack of needed citations, or else omitted entirely. I'm not sure if that lens permeates the entire book, but I sincerely hope not since this is the go-to book on game design, and otherwise looks to be well received.

A simple test readers and writers can use: Try reading the work with race substituted for gender. If you wouldn't say the thing about race -- if it sounds wrong -- don't say it about gender.

2018

[Michael Burnam-Fink · Rating 5 out of 5]

On one level, this is a textbook about how to design a game. On another level, this a work of love by someone who clearly understands why games are fun, and how to manage the tricky business of coordinating all the people required to build one. Jesse Schell breaks games down into their individual components, and explains how those can work together to reinforce an experience of fun. The book is full of practical, folksy wisdom on managing artists, programmers, playtesters, and clients. A charming, conversational book full of hard advice and useful ideas. A good read for anybody who loves games, and essential for somebody who plans to design one.

[Graham Herrli · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book contains some thought-provoking suggestions about game design, but it also contains enough empty truisms to become annoying. For example: "there were many decisions the designer made to lay it out, and these decisions made a significant impact upon the game experience" (p. 237). The final paragraph of each chapter and subchapter could probably be omitted without removing any information from the book.

And the number of typos was astounding. (I sent Jesse Schell a list of nearly twenty to correct in e-books or reprintings.) Their sheer volume made me a bit dubious of the depth of thought that went into the book. Some parts of it, especially the emotional ramblings toward the end, read like first drafts.

The premise of the book intrigued me. Schell pulled together a collection of one hundred "lenses": ways looking at a game to see what needs to be changed about it. Some of these could be quite useful, although most don't need the surrounding context of the book to support them. The book has a companion Deck of Lenses that might make a better purchase for anyone actually intending to use the lenses for a design.

As a former professional juggler and former employee of Disney, Schell's perspective on the entertainment side of the industry was valuable, albeit somewhat trite.

Here are some things this book says:

*Compared with other media, it is harder to hide the artifacts and connect the user directly to the experience in games because games are more interactive (p. 11).
*The lack of standardized definitions in game design means that we have to clarify what we mean more. Although this step of clarification slows the process, it also means that we think about each detail more thoroughly (p. 25). [This concept reminds me of the essay about Short Hand Abstractions from This Will Make You Smarter. By using SHAs, we can think about combinations of SHAs faster, but we don’t stop to consider what each SHA really means.]
*Schell proposes a ten-part definition of a game (they are entered willfully, have goals, have conflict and rules, can be won and lost, are interactive, have challenge, and create their own internal value to engage players in closed, formal systems)(p. 31-4). He then combines all these as “A game is a problem-solving activity, approached with a playful attitude” (p. 37).
*The four main components of a game (mechanics, story, aesthetics, and technology) (p. 41-3) should support a unified theme (p. 53).
*When brainstorming, numbering the ideas in lists helps to give each idea individual significance (p. 71).
*Games are built on top of toys. One way of designing is to come up with the toy first and let that inspire the form of the game (p. 90).
*In much the same way that comics simplify perception by aligning with our mental models (with large faces and lines dividing objects), games may be fun because they are simplified models and thus require less thought than non-abstracted perceptions of reality (p. 117).
*When designing a game’s mechanics, it’s worthwhile to consider separately the six basic elements of spaces, modes, actions, rules, skills, and chances (p. 130-69).
*Playtest with a mix of novices and experts to ensure that players begin in and remain in the flow channel (p. 177-8).
*Each individual game element should serve as many purposes as possible. Elements with few purposes should be merged (p. 197-8).
*If a game for children is designed to require only one mouse button, it can be useful to set the right-mouse button to also act as a left button so that if their small hands mis-click, the game still responds as anticipated (p. 244).
*A successful entertainment experience should have an “interest curve” that begins with a hook to engage the person’s interest and then adds gradually more interesting experiences until concluding with the most interesting (p. 246-52).
*Inconsistency in a story world is bad because it takes people out of the world and prevents them from imagining themselves in it in the future (p. 276).
*When creating game characters, it can be useful to consider their relationships with each other character, including their relative statuses (p. 318-23).
*One technique for designing aesthetics is to pick a song that evokes the feeling you want to convey and then structure the rest of the game around it (p. 351-2).
*It’s worthwhile to make your client feel like a creative partner in your design (420).
*Schell explains how the education system has many mechanics of a game but that it doesn’t feel like a game because it lacks the elements of a good game design. “It’s not that learning isn’t fun, it is just that many educational experiences are poorly designed” (443).
*If curiosity is a trait that can be nurtured, then structuring the education system to support the development of curiosity will be beneficial to students because they can then seek out any information they need on the internet (p. 447-8).


EDIT: Jesse responded to the list of typos I sent him by sending me a pack of his Deck of Lenses as a thank you. This was a very proactive gesture and gave me considerable respect for his professional courtesy. Now that I own the deck, my earlier recommendation that the deck is likely more useful than the book still stands. The deck also has the added merit of being beautifully illustrated and satisfyingly crisp.

I think it's a good idea to publish the media in multiple formats like this; multiple entries into a world are something which Jesse Schell advocates convincingly for in his book. I've heard that Stephen Anderson also created a complementary deck of psychological principles to go with his Seductive Interaction Design .

[George Kaslov · Rating 4 out of 5]

My crash course into game design continues. This book is an excellent resource for the whole process of making a game (most of these lessons can also be used for software development in general). It covers everything from the original concept/idea for a game to the end product, with all the hurdles in between (teem communication and organization, testing, balancing, talking to clients...). My only problem is that some of the topics were covered too generally, but I understand that this is the only way to do it without making it the size of Encyclopedia Britannica. The four star review is mostly because the writing style didn't sit well with me.

[Mythreyi · Rating 1 out of 5]

It starts off interesting. The structure(lenses) Jesse provides to understand a complex system i.e. video game is pretty good intro to design. But then midway through it derails. It has missed the point so much on gender that I have to wonder what else was over simplified? Few of the quotes that were troubling

"There is no female equivalent of a pickup game of touch football. On the surface, this is strange—girls tend to be more social, so you might expect that games involving large gatherings would
appeal to them more. The problem seems to lie in conflict resolution. When a group of boys play a game and there is a dispute, play stops, there is a (sometimes heated) discussion, and the dispute is resolved. At times, this involves one boy going home in tears, but despite that, play continues. When a group of girls play a game and there is a dispute, it is a different story. Most of the girls will take sides on the dispute, and it generally cannot be resolved right away. Play stops, and
often cannot continue. Girls will play team sports when they are formally organized, but two informal competing teams put too much stress on their personal relationships to be worth the trouble"

???

He goes on to generalize saying how men look for mastery, competition, destruction etc in games while women looks for Emotion, Nurturing and real world in games.

?????????

Terrible stereotypes are harmful for women AND men.


The book at best is reductive and at worst is perpetuating dangerous stereotypes.

This book would have been better served as a biography or opinion piece. It being recommended as a objective text or academic learning, is concerning. In any other field, this would be not the quality you would set for learning that discipline. Worries me about ecosystem of videogames , even further.

[Florian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good inspiration for beginners, but with flaws

I am torn about this textbook. There is much to like in The Art of Game Design, and the book is arguably at it's best when Schell relays his extensive personal experiences in the industry. I indeed found some sections to be excellent, for instance the discussions of design principles, of games in education, or or the social responsibilities of designers. I also appreciated the accessible writing style.

That said, as a uni instructor looking for a textbook for undergrad students in a Games Studies course, the book ultimately missed the mark for me. Aside from its excessive length and over-ambitious scope, I found many of the observations poorly reasoned and often grounded in a cursory understanding of related fields. I was irritated by the frequent generalisations about 'human nature', the uncritical discussion of 'player types' (taking the controversial arguments by Bartle at face value), and the frequent assumptions about gender in gaming ('women like to play nurturing roles', etc.). The book would have benefitted from a more careful consideration of the state of the field in disciplines like psychology, anthropology, sociology, and cultural studies. Instead, the author ignores much of the academic literatures, and at one point even derides theoretically-minded work as 'pedantic'. This is a real same, and a missed opportunity.

In short, if you are looking for inspiration, there is plenty to be found in these pages, but for a more critical assessment of game design I'd recommend turning elsewhere.

[Levon Zakharchenko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Отличная книга со множеством полезных советов. По сути является Art of game design 2.0

[Wise_owl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book mostly because a friend was reading it and game design is something I'm peripherally interested in. That being said, with a few exceptions, I found the book pretty useful. It covers the full range of decisions that go into game design and has tips, or at the book puts it 'lenses' through which you can examine you game. Who is your game for. What is your games 'world'. How do the players inter-act with that world. What are the spaces of that world. It was effective is getting me to look 'under the hood' as it were, and to recognize some of my own gaming decisions. For example, I realized I tend to be attracted to games with strong 'stories' where the game-play isn't divorced from the story or abstracted.

I have a few criticisms. Some of the book does feel like it dwells a little deeply in 'gamer' culture. The section in Gender and Demographics made me bite my tongue for it's predictability. Not that the underlaying message; that when you make a game you have to be conscious of the reality of different interest in different demographics, I just think his assertions regarding what those trends are is myopic and a tad ignorant of the broader social factors at play.

Over-all I'd recommend the book to those interested in Game-design. It's a pretty easy read.

[Kars · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this book. To start with the good: Schell takes a very holistic approach to game design. He's also plain spoken, demystifying a lot of the work that goes into making games. On the downside: the range of topics Schell covers in his effort to be holistic leads to some shallow treatments. His insistence on accessibility means things are sometimes dumbed down too much, assumptions aren't examined or (in the worst cases) arguments are based on questionable pseudoscience. I also found the insistence of turning everything into a lens tiresome. I personally find a list of 100 things to keep in mind when designing unwieldy and ultimately unrealistic. An approach that is at odds with the pragmatic tone of the rest of the book. In summary, I can't think of any game design book that covers this much ground, so it makes a great (if hefty) introduction to the field. However, each separate topic discussed herein is served better by other titles.

[Caroline Berg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I figured it was about time I read this, having heard such great things about it from other game designers, and it is an excellent book. It should have been a standard part of curriculum in college for my Game Art & Design degree. Honestly, anyone interested in going into game design, be it for board games, RPGs, or video games should spend some time reading this book.

However, as great as it is, I still disagree with parts of it. And to be fair, Schell does say in the book to question the knowledge presented within. The parts that bothered me the most were Chapter 9, which portrays sexist stereotypes as to what games women play and why they play games and Chapter 23 which is unapologetically anti-solitaire gaming. Schell says, "the single-player phenomenon appears to have been a temporary abnormality" - seriously? As an avid solo gamer across all platforms I find this to be a very extroverted way of looking at games. As long as there are introverts in the world, there will be solo games. Not everyone wants to game with friends.

As for the rest of the book, it is a veritable wealth of information and would be well worth owning, especially for the lists of further reading material at the end of every chapter.

[Sander Vanhove · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a bible for game designers. It introduces you to all the aspects of game design and gives pointers to places where you can learn about each topic in more detail.

Get it, read it, be a better game designer/person.

[Alexander Pavlov · Rating 3 out of 5]

Книга поможет совсем начинающим гейм-дизайнерам получить общее представление о создании игр, а опытным — придать форму знаниям, полученным из опыта. Книга слишком общая для того, чтобы иметь практическое применение. Автор предлагает использовать"призмы" для того, чтобы через них смотреть на свою игру. Но количество призм делает невозможным использование этого метода. Наверное, если настоящий гейм-дизайнер попробует его применить, то это застопорит его работу и погрузит в размышления на несколько лет.

[Sheri · Rating 2 out of 5]

About half of this book is truly excellent. Unfortunately I can't say exactly which half, since the good parts and the not-so-good parts are all mixed together.

The author himself seems to be of two minds about the importance and role of games in our culture, which causes some inconsistencies throughout the book. For most of the book one gets the sense that game design is a very cold calculating type of business. Schell leaves discussion of the game designer's responsibilities and motivations for the very end of the book. Those last two chapters feel much more honest, and I believe better reflect the author's actual opinions than the rest of the book. The book would be much stronger if he had maintained that honesty throughout.

This book would probably be most helpful for those from a computer science background or those without a traditional art background. It is a good basic overview of the game design process. Just remember not to take every word of it as gospel.

[Rich · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jesse has to be one of the smartest people I know...and this book is proof.

This book is not only a great way to learn about designing games, but teaches a lot of good tips for creating anything. I particularly appreciate that the book is not overly technical (its easily accessible to anyone who would pick it up), but it does go into some complex ideas...he hit that perfect balance in creating a book that anyone, regardless of skill or education level, can read and learn from.

[Osama Alsalman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a life changing book, not as a game designer only, but as a human. For it contains many valuable lessons on the design of human experiences, I would recommend this book to anyone.

The last three chapters were the most effecting for me, for they discussed the effect of games and how they can transform us.

Once you finish it, you will get a ring, a secret ring, but I can't tell you more. So, go read it yourself :)

[Madhur Bhargava · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very different take on game design! Most books try to teach by taking working examples and narrowing it down to details - this book is different - it narrows it down more to the thought process and encourages to look at the decisions being made through the lenses which are introduced in this book. Although the book is specifically for game design, however, just as a personal opinion, I felt that the process can be scaled to a lot of other digital mediums. The bonus part is the inspiration at the end of each chapter where the author selflessly shares a list of blogs/talks/literature that inspired his decisions and thought process.

[Seyed-Sajad Hamedheydari · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was searching for books about game design, and came across this book on the internet. From the first page I was hooked to it, and I must say every chapter has some unique insights about game design that I had never thought of. For whoever that is willing to become a game designer, and even other areas of designing experiences, like writers, this book is must read.

[Lama Hussein · Rating 4 out of 5]

مفيد لأي فن وليس فقط تصميم الألعاب

[Yury Popov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Огромная и непростая для чтения книга, отправляется на полку лучших. Автор, Джесси Шелл, (прошедший путь от уличного актера и инженера в Дисней, до основателя студии разработки) постарался описать геймдизайн через различные призмы восприятия, особое внимание уделяя вопросам, которые надо себе задавать в процессе разработки. А как мы знаем из философии, хороший вопрос всегда лучше ответа. В конце каждой главы даны 2-3 книги для дальнейшего изучения.

[Leonardo Prado · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a complete and great journey. The book has the intention of showing every aspect of game design and introduces, very successfully, the multiple dimensions and facets of its process. I’ll keep this book close and check its practical lenses in my toolbox, for it’ll surely be useful.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic intro to the field of game design. It chooses to be comprehensive instead of detailed, so towards the end, you get some very breezy chapters about working in a team and with clients, for example, and mentions enough biz talk so that you've at least heard the terminology but don't totally get it. I didn't fault the book for glossing over these topics. I was happy that it mentioned them, in a getting-to-know-the-lay-of-the-land way, and I also appreciated that the author clearly wasn't trying to stretch his own knowledge, or lay down rules that wouldn't work in real life. The book spends the most time on the bare essentials of game design from a mostly theoretical point of view, which felt very helpful. I feel that having read this book, I now have the beginnings of a rigorous way of thinking about games, which is really valuable.

The gimmick of the book -- here are a set of 100 lenses you can use to think about game design! -- fell a little flat for me, on the other hand. To me they seemed pretty much the same thing as the usual summary you'd find at the end of a chapter in a textbook, which is fine, but not especially amazing.

To close: this book, more than anything I have read so far, made me proud to be exploring this field myself, and that is priceless.

[Hung Vu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finished this book in under a week. Not a very strong book, but still indeed contains some gems. At times it feels like the book is more aimed towards game enthusiasts rather than game designers. The author often derails too far into the definition territory of things, making it hard to stay on point. When done with definitions, the book goes on about setting the right framework of mind, how to stay on track, overcome psychological pressures, and so on--which apply to many other creative fields too and are not exclusive to game design. I guess that's fine too, but I was expecting something else coming in, so that was rather disappointing.

I did find the chapters on game balancing and game production very useful however. If game designers should ask me about this book, I'd recommend those specific chapters. Otherwise, it's probably not worth your time if you're not looking to pursue game studies.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic book that gave me a lot to think about as I continue to design tabletop games. While it isn't 100% (some concerns with gender, understanding of choice-based narratives, etc), it is overall very useful. I've found ways to apply the contents to my (not game related) day job and other aspects of my life. I definitely recommend reading it, even if you don't agree with everything in it.

(I'm not sure how much I'll use the lenses, but the ideas around them are great. And, to echo some of the reviews, his knowledge at times can feel shallow. As with any textbook--take what is good and explore what seems shallow or unsure).

[Adriii · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me ha encantado, aunque esta pensado para quienes quieren diseñar un juego, realmente es interesantísimo también desde el punto de vista del jugador. Da un contexto más rico para disfrutar de esto que tanto nos gusta.

Habla sobre diseñar un juego, sobre diseñar una experiencia y los elementos esenciales que la definen. Habla desde la antropología, la etología, la introspección, la psicología. Habla sobre herramientas para la narrativa, la estética, las dinámicas. Aunque una revisión en temas de perpetuar ciertos sexismos en el mundo videojueguil le vendría bien, es completísimo y se lee que da gusto.

[Robin Pink · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can see why people recommend this book! It's quite a big volume to get through, but at the same time it is very concise; it just covers a large number of topics. The book is very good at putting things in your mind, giving you the choice of whether you want to use them and how you want to use them. This is done explicitly in the form of the Lenses, which each teach you a new perspective to view game design through. Very interesting read, and a sure recommendation to anyone interested in game design. The book focussed on video games, but really, 99% of the material applies equally to board game design.

[yuc yuc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pros: A thorough and thought-provoking guide to game design, and many of the techniques and knowledge from the book could be applied to general artistic creation as well as performance art.

Cons: After reading this book, I often find myself compulsorily analyzing the design when I'm playing a game, or studying carefully the structures of the plot line right in the middle of a movie or novel...which could sometimes be disrupting.

[Kyra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic overview on the game design process, raises interesting questions to ask one's self/team during development process. Drawbacks in narrative chapters, overall stereotyping of genders and giving absolute statements where differebt perspectives could have been beneficial.
A must read, but with care.

[Zsolt Varga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thorought, interesting, useful. From concept to market release with interesting stories and personal tidbits added to make it more fun to read. Highly recommended to anyone interested in tabletop or computer games.

[Jeremy Steingraber · Rating 4 out of 5]

You don't really read a book like this cover to cover, but I've been skipping through it for quite some time at sporadic intervals. If you're interested in game design this is one that might help you think about different perspectives: maybe even break you out of some dead ends.

[Brian Gee · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far the most helpful book I've read on game design. Most of the advice is very practical, but the writing style can also being somewhat philosophical (in a good way). It looks at the psychological roots of our appreciation of gaming, and how that connects to game design.