Sunday, November 19, 2006

Secrets of Game Design: 1

I have decided to reveal some game design secrets. The first of which is that when you are writing design documents you have to say stuff happens. I take it from your stunned silence you don’t get it. I’m sure you get that stuff happens but you don’t get my point. You have to write that stuff happens not that stuff will happen. I have this problem when I write I say things like “When the player presses the close button the GUI menu will close.” That’s bad. You have to change that to “When the player presses the close button the GUI closes.” See the difference?

Every time I finish writing a design document I have to then spend another 30 minutes changing all the “will do stuff” to “does stuff”.

But Joseph, what does it matter? It’s the same thing! Why does it matter?

Beats me.

But be sure to join me next time on SECRETS OF GAME DESGIN!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

You actually made me go look for a command guide book(cant find them).

Joseph B. Hewitt IV said...

I would make more of a fuss about it, but along a similar line one of the secrets to writing is that "things are" not "seem to be".

BAD: The night seemed to crawl out across the city.

GOOD: The night crawled out across the city.

Now for homework I want a 2 page story that starts with "The first time I saw *somebody* was on the stairs.