sep 14, fall 2006iat 4101 design teams team structure interdisciplinary teams
Post on 21-Dec-2015
219 views
TRANSCRIPT
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 2
Game Design
1. The game design vision drives everything
2. Every team member contributes something vital
Respect their expertise
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 3
Team Structure
Director/Producer– The person who’s driving– Has the creative vision for entire project
– Possibly an expert in some area
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 4
The Game Vision
A game derives from a vision The Visual, Audio, Graphics, AI, Networks derives from this vision
It’s a collaboration! It’s probably not a dictatorship– No one person can do all the work
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 5
Team Components/Members
Game Play/Storyboard
Level Design Graphics Graphic Design Animators MoCap Actors Networks Multi-player Design
AI Audio Audio Design Dialog Voice Talent Playtesting Marketing Technical Writers
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 6
Software Engineering
The Waterfall Model:– Design -> Spec -> Coding -> Testing
Better:– Programmers discover what the customer wants
– Programmers implement prototype– Users test prototype– Tests feed back to design
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 7
Game Software Engineering
Many team members are not programmers
Eg. Graphic artists are picture people
Marketing people have limited programming or design experience
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 8
Specifications
Game specifications will cover many bases
It’s not all about software per se
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 9
The Bottom Line
The team members are there for a reason:
Each team member is an expert
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 10
Design
Like any design job, there must be a logic to the game design
The logic drives – Choice of materials– Arrangement of elements
•Colors, textures, shapes of items, musical instruments, etc
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 11
Logic Source
The detailed design logic arises from game logic– Eg. Audio design derives from game design
The driving vision comes from the game– It’s not about creating a hit record, for example
Team members…
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 12
Game Play
Expertise: Games, Storytelling Provide a compelling experience Set up goals for player(s)
– Script– Storyboard
Programmers– Control game logic– Formal Language Scripts, etc for game play
– Formal Language Script interpreter
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 13
Level Design
Expertise: Games, Storytelling, Creative writing Provide compelling experience this level– Adjust difficulty appropriate to level
– Subsidiary to game design Design
– Spatial layout– Composition of forces– Pacing
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 14
Level Design
Expertise: Games, Storytelling Programmers
– Creating behavior of enemy agents in geographic space
– Special-purpose features this level
– Design tools
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 15
Graphics
Expertise: CS -- Computer Graphics Programmers
– Create the graphics game engine– Customize engine components for particular game
– Visual effects– Performance tuning– Until recently, used most CPU
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 16
Graphic Design
Expertise: Visual Arts/Graphic Design Providing the visual content
– Design the look– Implement the look
Graphic design will generate a visual system– Main task is to make the system visually consistent, coherent
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 17
Animators
Expertise: Visual Arts/Animation
Create the animated characters– Keyframes– MoCap – Capture, Blending, Adjustment
– Programming simulation controllers to create good animations
Programmers– Animation control & playback system
– Scripting setup– Simulation system
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 18
MoCap Actors
Expertise: Dance, Acting Act out motion scripts
– Create consistent character for each captured motion
– Seamlessly join together motion segments
Programmers– Motion capture – Data management
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 19
Networks
Expertise: CS Networks, Multiplayer Programmers
– Implement network components– Client-server system– Server creation– Create multi-player control for game•Prediction, Etc
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 20
Multi-player Design
Expertise: Multiplayer, CS Networks Design multi-player scheme
– Resolve conflicts– Deal with lag
Programmers– Game-specific strategies
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 21
AI
Expertise: AI Algorithms, AI Game Practice Programmers
– Create the AI engine•Could be just a general object suite
– Customize to game components– Responsible for good AI enemy play
•Details!
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 22
Audio
Expertise: CS -- Digital Sound Filters/Effects
Programmers– Create System-level audio software
– Environmental effects filters– Resource management
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 23
Audio Design
Expertise: Music Designers
– Create audio space – Interact with other system elements•Player health, location•Time of day, environment
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 24
Dialog
Expertise: Creative Writing, Play Writing Create believable speaking characters– Create lines of dialog that will sound good
– Get the point across (or obscure it!)
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 25
Voice Talent
Expertise: Acting, Radio Create a compelling animated voice character– Voice fits the body– Delivers the lines appropriately
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 26
Playtesting
Expertise: Games, Dealing with people Test the game with real users
– Get feedback– Adjust game difficulty– Adjust explanations, back story, etc
– Get organized!
Sep 14, Fall 2006 IAT 410 27
Marketing
Expertise: Game market, distribution Get the game on the market
– Figure out who your customers are– Generate demand
•Get it reviewed favorably•Place ads•Hype