Patterns in Game Design

by Staffan Björk, Jussi Holopainen

Patterns in Game Design provides professional and aspiring game designers with a collection of practical design choices that are possible in all types of games. These choices, called patterns, are used to illustrate the varying types of gameplay found in games. For the purposes of this book, gameplay is defined as the structures of player interaction with the game system and interaction with other players. This includes the possibilities, results, and reasons for players to play. By putting these elements of gameplay into practical patterns, designers have access to a common set of concepts that can be used by all developers, allowing game projects to be approached with more standard tools. These patterns help designers put their concepts and ideas into words, which makes communication between members much easier. The patterns also help with making design choices, understanding how other games work, and inspiring game ideas. The book itself is divided into two main parts. The first part covers the theoretical aspects of describing games and defining the template used to develop the game design patterns. The second part includes the actual patterns divided into chapters based on the aspect of gameplay they cover. The patterns can be used in any order and referenced as you would a dictionary. By studying these various game design patterns, designers learn about the choices they'll have to make when using a pattern in their own designs, and they'll gain an understanding of what gameplay is, so that they can design better games.

Genres: Game Design, Games, Design

423 pages, Paperback

First published December 20, 2004

Reviews

[Herve Tunga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very technical though exactly what I was looking for.

[gem · Rating 4 out of 5]

A super useful book for game designers, that acts as a dictionary of a variety of game patterns and how they all interact with each other. Very dry content, which made it hard to get through at times, but still an excellent addition to any game designers collection.

[David Hunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting system for classifying game mechanics. If not a must read, then at least a must be aware of in the field of game design. As a warning, the text is mostly just a long list of different patterns, much like Christopher Alexander's A Pattern Language.

[Sean]

NULL

[Bill Seitz]

was recommended on "best book on individual game mechanics" by GregCostikyan.