Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
in more than one level, and leave special-case features found only in a particular
level to the level designer. It may be that the level designer can create code for
those features using a scripting language and won't have to ask the game's pro-
grammers to do it.
This doesn't mean that you can push all the work off onto the level designers,
though. Think of the features you create in the core mechanics as being like LEGO
blocks that the level designers will use to build their level. In a war game, the core
mechanics, not the level designs, define how all the units in the game move and
fight. Once you design all the units, the level designers can use your information
on how the units operate to construct exciting levels featuring those units.
FIGURE 10.1
The core mechanics
read the level design
data from files.
PLAYER
Outputs
Inputs
USER INTERFACE
Narrative Events
In-Game Events
Player Events
Triggers
STORYTELLING ENGINE
CORE MECHANICS
LEVEL
DESIGN
DATA
Key Concepts
To design the core mechanics, you must doc ument the different components that
define how your game works:
resources
,
entities
,
attributes
,and
mechanics
.This sec-
tion defines these terms. Although you do not have to be a programmer to design a
game, you wouldn't be a game designer if you didn't intend for your ideas to
