Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
chapter 6
Quality
Software quality can be determined by how well the product performs the functions
for which it was intended. For game software, this includes the quality of the player's
experience plus how well the game features are implemented. Various activities can be
performed to evaluate, measure, and improve game quality.
In his book,
Quality is Free
, Philip Crosby states that, well, “Quality is free.�? This
should be the high concept (remember that from Chapter 5?) of your quality pro-
gram. If the cost of performing some quality function is not expected to produce an
eventual saving, find a way to do it cheaper or better. If you can't, then stop doing it.
Different gamers may have different criteria for what makes a game “good�? for them.
Some qualities are likely to be important to many game customers:
Quality of the story
Quality of the game mechanics
Quality (for example, style, realism) of in-game audio and visual effects
Beauty of the visual style
Use of humor and exaggeration
“Human-like�? non-player character Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Additionally, games should have an interface that is easy to use and clear to under-
stand. This includes both the graphical user interface elements presented on the
screen during gameplay and the game control(s) provided for the player to operate
105
