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Creating Emotion in Games: The Craft and Art of Emotioneering Paperback – 1 Oct. 2003
David Freeman brings you the inside scoop on how to apply the Emotioneering™ techniques he's so well known for. These powerful techniques create a breadth and depth of emotion in a game, and induce a player to identify with the role he or she is playing. Mr. Freeman's techniques are so highly sought after because they're the key to mass market success in today's competitive game market. The over 300 distinct Emotioneering techniques in this book include (to name but a few): ways to give emotional depth to an NPC (non-player character), even if the NPC has just one line of dialogue; techniques to bond a player to a game's NPCs; and techniques to transform a game into an intense emotional journey. In a warm and crystal-clear style, Mr. Freeman provides examples which demonstrate exactly how to apply the techniques. He also shows how some of these techniques were utilized in, and contributed greatly to the success of such games as "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City"; "Deus Ex"; and "Thief" I & II, among others. The book is packed with striking art by some of today's top concept artists and illustrators, including an eight-page color section and a four-color, fold-out cover. When you've finished this book, you'll be equipped to apply Mr. Freeman's powerful Emotioneering techniques to artfully create emotion in the games you design, build, or produce.
- ISBN-101592730078
- ISBN-13978-1592730070
- PublisherNew Riders
- Publication date1 Oct. 2003
- LanguageEnglish
- Dimensions19.69 x 2.54 x 24.77 cm
- Print length576 pages
Product description
From the Back Cover
David Freeman brings you the inside scoop on how to apply the Emotioneering™ techniques he's so well known for. These powerful techniques create a breadth and depth of emotion in a game, and induce a player to identify with the role he or she is playing. Mr. Freeman's techniques are so highly sought after because they're the key to mass market success in today's competitive game market. The over 300 distinct Emotioneering techniques in this book include (to name but a few): ways to give emotional depth to an NPC (non-player character), even if the NPC has just one line of dialogue; techniques to bond a player to a game's NPCs; and techniques to transform a game into an intense emotional journey. In a warm and crystal-clear style, Mr. Freeman provides examples which demonstrate exactly how to apply the techniques. He also shows how some of these techniques were utilized in, and contributed greatly to the success of such games as "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City"; "Deus Ex"; and "Thief" I & II, among others. The book is packed with striking art by some of today's top concept artists and illustrators, including an eight-page color section and a four-color, fold-out cover. When you've finished this book, you'll be equipped to apply Mr. Freeman's powerful Emotioneering techniques to artfully create emotion in the games you design, build, or produce.
About the Author
Coming from a background as a Hollywood screenwriter and screenwriting teacher, David Freeman has become one of the world¹s authorities on bringing emotion into games. David, along with his game design and writing consultancy The Freeman Group, is currently working, or has worked, as a designer and/or writer on games for Electronic Arts, Vivendi Universal Games, Atari, Activision, Microsoft Game Studios, Ubi Soft, 3D Realms, and others. In "Beyond Structure," his renown writing course, he has taught executives and game designers from many of the world's top game publishers and development studios--as well as the writers, producers, and key players behind such films and TV shows as "Lord of the Rings," "Austin Powers," "Good Will Hunting," "Minority Report," "The X-Files" and many others. As a writer and producer, David has had scripts and ideas bought or optioned by MGM, Paramount, Columbia Pictures, Castle Rock, and many other film and television companies.
Product details
- Publisher : New Riders (1 Oct. 2003)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 576 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1592730078
- ISBN-13 : 978-1592730070
- Dimensions : 19.69 x 2.54 x 24.77 cm
- Best Sellers Rank: 1,485,898 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- Customer reviews:
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However, the author's writing is, more often than not, arrogant. He seems full to bursting with boasts, that can sometimes make the book a little uncomfortable to read. He is often very self-indulgent, dedicating an entire section of the book (Gatherings) to his own random creative musings. He continually insists on using anecdotes - anecdotes that frequently cloud his meaning, rather than revealing it.
Despite his faults, this book is very useful, and is a highly recommended buy. And at times, it is enjoyable to read, though this is not a book that should be bought if you are not entirely sure you want to write for games. It may put you off in its arrogant style, but the content in the book is more than worth the price of admission.
The book also states very clearly the differences between writing for Hollywood/TV and writing for interactive media - and how current gamedevs are falling into traps by striving to be like Hollywood by hiring professional writers with no gaming experience.
If you intend to write a screenplay for a game, interested in getting someone else to make your game an emotional and engaging experience, or simply interested in the field of emotional gaming, then you simply CANNOT be without this book. This guy knows what he is talking about, and it's our duty to listen.