Key differences between game development and game design

Video games are developed by a developer who can be represented by either one person or a company. Typically, large-scale commercial games are developed by development teams within a computer or console game company. The development of an AAA project costs from $ 1,000,000 or more.  For Russian companies, the development of a medium-sized project costs on average from 100 to 1000 thousand dollars. The cost of developing small Russian projects starts from 10 thousand dollars.

Development is usually financed by the publisher, although recently there have been successful examples of financial injections from industries not related to game development. The development process for an ordinary modern game takes about a year, for AAA projects it can take up to 2-3 years, the development cycle for ordinary casual games takes about 4-6 months, while there is a pipeline development of 2-3 projects at once.

Development process

The game development process varies from company to company and project to project. However, developing a commercial game usually involves the game design and programming.

The early stages of game development are often characterized by poor graphics quality. This is especially true for various game prototypes.

Usually, before starting any game development, an idea has to be formed and the publisher / developer has to give the green light.

In the more common case, if the developer and publisher are different companies, the idea should be proposed to management, approved, and submitted to the publishers for review. A working demo can help, but is not required for a reputable publisher. If an interested publisher is found, production can begin. Today, the idea of a game is rarely convincing unless the publisher is interested in it.

The video game industry has taken a huge leap forward over the past decade. Modern game engines in game animation company allow you not only to create three-dimensional worlds, but to provide them with believable physics of light, shadows, reflections, and HairWorks technology completely allows you to emulate the effect of external conditions on the hair.

Game development is a complex process that consists of many points, from the plot to the technical implementation. It also becomes difficult because high competition forces studio management to constantly raise the bar for quality. Imagine: the first part of Assassin’s Creed was released in 2007, and the second – only in 2009. Now they are released every year and are regularly updated with additions. This makes professional game designers very much in demand in the job market. We decided to tell in more detail what the behind-the-scenes of the gaming industry is and where you can learn the basics that will help you become a specialist. And the guys from the largest school of computer technologies in Russia, Scream School, helped us in this.

What is game design

Game design is understood as the process of creating a game in a global sense:

• this includes the creation of lore, plot, characters;
• choice of game engine and program code;
• development of game mechanics, animations, locations.

The game designer is the bearer of the idea, who centrally manages all other departments and evaluates how their work corresponds to the original design. The text is taken from the chic BroDude.ru service.

Game design itself, in turn, can be divided into the following areas:

– System design – the development of rules within the game and the accompanying calculations.

– Level design – creating locations, placing mobs, developing ways of passing, taking into account the peculiarities of the gameplay.

– World design – thinking through spaces, maps, locations, landscape, architecture and how all this dictates the user experience and ties in with the overall idea of the game. Dozens and even hundreds of people can work in each of these areas, depending on the scale and budget of the game. Some projects can be so large that, despite the huge staff, the development process is delayed for several years.

So game design vs game development is not a difficult question.