Theory of Fun for Game Design
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Average rating4
Now in full color, the 10th anniversary edition of this classic book takes you deep into the influences that underlie modern video games, and examines the elements they share with traditional games such as checkers. At the heart of his exploration, veteran game designer Raph Koster takes a close look at the concept of fun and why it’s the most vital element in any game. Why do some games become boring quickly, while others remain fun for years? How do games serve as fundamental and powerful learning tools? Whether you’re a game developer, dedicated gamer, or curious observer, this illustrated, fully updated edition helps you understand what drives this major cultural force, and inspires you to take it further. You’ll discover that: Games play into our innate ability to seek patterns and solve puzzles Most successful games are built upon the same elements Slightly more females than males now play games Many games still teach primitive survival skills Fictional dressing for modern games is more developed than the conceptual elements Truly creative designers seldom use other games for inspiration Games are beginning to evolve beyond their prehistoric origins
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This was such a good surprise. So well written and so much to take away even if you're not a hard core game designer. Will definitely be reading again at some point. Highly recommend.
This is a genuinely great and accessible book for people looking to get into game design. It delves into what "play" is and how fun is derived from our mind. It sometimes repeats itself sometimes but otherwise it's a great start.
4.5*
This book is a gem. And it is also more on the philosophical and psychology side. Does not really give any definition of fun is (besides mentioning the definitions from literature). But this doesn't necessarily have to be wrong. After all, fun can mean something different for everyone. Instead, he rather tries to explain what can spark fun in what we are doing. In games. However, I feel, that his biggest goal here was rather to push boundaries on how people see and create games and move it a bit into the ‘art' direction. To transform the medium into a little bit more mature one. To make it ask questions without answers and ones which reflect our own struggles in life.
It was written in 2003 and updated 10 years later and the industry has grown a lot since then. And I believe that in the direction that the author wanted it to be. The Indie scene is the best examples of this. But even some bigger titles tried to struggle not only with black and white or power fantasies.
