From Windows Solitaire to Bejeweled to Wii Tennis, casual games have radically changed the landscape of games. By simplifying gameplay and providing quick but intense blasts of engaging play, casual games have drawn in huge new audiences of players. To entertain and engage the casual player, game designers must learn to think about what makes casua

You understand the basic concepts of game design: gameplay, user interfaces, core mechanics, character design, and storytelling. Now you want to know how to apply them to the puzzle and casual game genres. This focused guide gives you exactly what you need. It walks you through the process of designing for the puzzle and casual game genres and shows you how to use the right techniques to create fun and challenging experiences for your players.

How casual games like Guitar Hero, Bejeweled, and those for Nintendo Wii are expanding the audience for video games. We used to think that video games were mostly for young men, but with the success of the Nintendo Wii, and the proliferation of games in browsers, cell phone games, and social games video games changed changed fundamentally in the years from 2000 to 2010. These new casual games are now played by men and women, young and old. Players need not possess an intimate knowledge of video game history or devote weeks or months to play. At the same time, many players of casual games show a dedication and skill that is anything but casual. In A Casual Revolution, Jesper Juul describes this as a reinvention of video games, and of our image of video game players, and explores what this tells us about the players, the games, and their interaction. With this reinvention of video games, the game industry reconnects with a general audience. Many of today's casual game players once enjoyed Pac-Man, Tetris, and other early games, only to drop out when video games became more time-consuming and complex. Juul shows that it is only by understanding what a game requires of players, what players bring to a game, how the game industry works, and how video games have developed historically that we can understand what makes video games fun and why we choose to play (or not to play) them. Important Notice: The digital edition of this book is missing some of the images found in the physical edition.

The author teaches game design from concept to delivery through the creation of a sample game using a simple scripting language called Lua and a DX9 game shell. Techniques covered are applicable across the PC and game console platforms. Game design industry veterans reveal their secrets in sidebars throughout the book, and techniques are illustrated with b&w screen shots. The accompanying CD-ROM contains the demo game, a 2D game engine, Lua scripts, and other tools.

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Covers the fundamentals of iOS game development, with information on such topics as Xcode, Objective-C, Cocoa, user interaction, animation, audio apps, and networking.

Create the next generation of gaming titles for Windows Phone 7! Providing an overview of developing games for Windows Phone 7 while working within XNA Game Studio 4, this comprehensive resource covers such essential topics as device/emulator, development tools, device orientation, tilt and accelerometer sensors, multi-touch, working with Cloud and Web services, and more. Three complete games are included within the book plus hands-on explanations and clear example codes help you gain a deeper understanding of the Windows Phone 7 features so that you can start building a game right away. Serves as a comprehensive reference on Windows Phone 7 game development with XNA Game Studio 4 Includes real-world examples and anecdotes, making this book a popular choice for those taking their first steps into the game development industry Demonstrates how to program for device orientation, incorporate Touch Input, add music to a game, work with 3D, and take your game to the marketplace Put your game face on and start designing games for Windows Phone 7 with Professional Windows Phone 7 Game Development!

Presents a collection of ready-to-use ideas to create computer and video games, with information on game types, storyline creation, character development, weapons and armor, game worlds, obstacles, and goals and rewards.

Whether you are a professional game developer working in an established studio or a creative thinker interested in trying your hand at game design, "Video Game Design Revealed" will show you the steps and processes involved in bringing a video game from concept to completion. Beginning with an overview of the history of video games and an examination of the elements of successful games, the book breaks down the video game design process into its simplest elements and builds from there. You'll learn how to take an idea and tweak it into a viable game based on the genre, market, game style, and subject matter, moving on to creating and organizing a timeline for the production of the game. Once you've mapped out your game production plan and gathered all the information you need, you'll learn how to choose the development platform and other technologies that best suit the game you've designed, add sound and graphics, and apply game mechanics such as whether the game will be single-player or multiplayer and what levels and objects to add to your game to make it challenging and interesting. "Video Game Design Revealed" concludes with guidelines on how to compose a proposal to be used to present your idea to the game industry as well as tips and information on how to find and contact game studios, publishers, and investors to help you make your game design a reality..

Written in a non-technical manner, Game Development Essentials: Game Industry Career Guide is a valuable asset for anyone looking for a job, not only in the game industry but also in any field requiring technical expertise and creative talent.