One of my first games created in the RTS genre was Our Planet is Dying, a spaceship-themed game with grid movement in the Space (combat units) and free movement on the Base (resource-gatherer units). The overall gameplay was judged positively by the testers, but something was missing. Some time after
Tag: Strategy
Decisions as the Focus of Interactivity
This essay is a compendium of a talk I gave (Spanish) in October 1st, 2019, in the context of Gamedev Planet, a monthly gathering in Santiago, Chile, where gamemakers give talks and show demos of their in-development games. This talk focused on the decision-making process from the players and how to analyze
On Music Theory and Game Design
Maybe you don’t know it, but in the older days, I was a professional musician. I’ve struggled for many years trying to find a relationship between both worlds. Can we find a relationship between Music Theory and Game Design Theory? How could we benefit from that?
5 Great GDC Talks for Game Designers
GDC is one of the most important gaming events. It’s a great place to network and also to hear amazing talks given by experienced game developers in many areas. In this new post, I have selected 5 GDC talks that I think will be very useful for you.
Replicating Real World Systems
To learn Systems Design you first have to understand Systems Thinking. Once you are already familiar with real-world systems, you’ll notice that they are everywhere. But the real power is achieved once you’re able to translate a well-known real-world system to a game world…
Player Decision in the Book of Laws
Frostpunk’s Book of Laws can seem like a regular tech tree, but behind its (not so) innocent appearance, you can find a source of well-crafted opportunities for players to make meaningful decisions about the people in their colony. Can humanising these characters have an influence on players’ decisions?