Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Amazon.co.uk Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Authors
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.
Product Description
Product Description
The Game Design Reader is a one-of-a-kind collection on game design and criticism, from classic scholarly essays to cutting-edge case studies. A companion work to Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman's textbook Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals, The Game Design Reader is a classroom sourcebook, a reference for working game developers, and a great read for game fans and players.Thirty-two essays by game designers, game critics, game fans, philosophers, anthropologists, media theorists, and others consider fundamental questions: What are games and how are they designed? How do games interact with culture at large? What critical approaches can game designers take to create game stories, game spaces, game communities, and new forms of play?Salen and Zimmerman have collected seminal writings that span 50 years to offer a stunning array of perspectives. Game journalists express the rhythms of game play, sociologists tackle topics such as role-playing in vast virtual worlds, players rant and rave, and game designers describe the sweat and tears of bringing a game to market. Each text acts as a springboard for discussion, a potential class assignment, and a source of inspiration. The book is organized around fourteen topics, from The Player Experience to The Game Design Process, from Games and Narrative to Cultural Representation. Each topic, introduced with a short essay by Salen and Zimmerman, covers ideas and research fundamental to the study of games, and points to relevant texts within the Reader. Visual essays between book sections act as counterpoint to the writings.Like Rules of Play, The Game Design Reader is an intelligent and playful book. An invaluable resource for professionals and a unique introduction for those new to the field, The Game Design Reader is essential reading for anyone who takes games seriously.
About the Author
Eric Zimmerman is a game designer, game design theorist, and co-founder and CEO of gameLab. He has taught at universities including MIT, the University of Texas, Parsons School of Design, New York University, Rhode Island School of Design, and the School of Visual Arts.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Impressed,
By
This review is from: The Game Design Reader: A Rules of Play Anthology (Hardcover)
At first I was upset about the price but I had to buy it because I need it for university, however, once I had the book in hand and I started to read it I found it deeply interesting and well worth the money.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.3 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews) 2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thoughtful,
By Tom "making games fun" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Game Design Reader: A Rules of Play Anthology (Hardcover)
This book collects a wide variety of critical thought on game design and the theory of games. As the subtitle states, it's a nice companion to "Rules of Play", but "Rules of Play" is by no means necessary to appreciate this book.
I like that it has a broad mix of theoretical articles from academics and more practical discussions from practicing game designers. It has most of the seminal articles I would expect to find in a summary of the field, as well as some I was not previously familiar with, but still enjoyed. As with any collection, not every piece was my cup of tea, but the overall quality was higher than I expected. If you like games, this will make you think about how they work. It won't give you much day to day practical advice on making games, but sometimes it's good to think outside the practical. As a professional video game designer, I like things that make me think in new ways. 1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not really a "book", exactly...,
By Keith D. Burgun - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Game Design Reader: A Rules of Play Anthology (Hardcover)
There's a lot in here, ranging from total hot-air nonsense to some really brilliant stuff. Basically, getting this book is a lot like googling "Game Design Article" - you have to do a lot of sifting of your own. However, with that said, I suppose it's nice to have. In general, though, I can't totally recommend it. You're better off reading other books on design, or simply playing games, or designing games than reading this.
3 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolute must-read!,
By Gi-In An - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Game Design Reader: A Rules of Play Anthology (Hardcover)
Curious minds that have delighted in games will love this book! I adored the compilation of shared thoughts from "Who's Who" in game design. Aesthetically, the book is so cute! My copy sits on my coffee table. The book had me at the cover...
|
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
