Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
goals, and play by the same rules. Such a game is usually considered to be
fair
and
is generally easier to
balance
than an
asymmetric game
.
tech tree
Short for
technology tree
.
technology tree
A diagram that represents the available sequences in which a
player may upgrade his
units
in a strategy game by means of research. The diagram
is tree-shaped because at intervals it branches, allowing the player to choose one
particular sequence or another.
technology-driven game
A game designed to show off a particular technological
achievement.
teleporter
A mechanic, often implemented in the game world as a visible object,
that instantaneously transports a character from one place in the world to another.
temporary upgrade
An upgrade in the capabilities of a player's avatar or units that
lasts for less time than the remainder of the game—either until the end of the cur-
rent level, until a fixed number of real-time seconds has elapsed, or until some
resource has been consumed.
termination condition
An unambiguous true-or-false condition that determines
when a game has ended. Not always identical to a victory or loss condition; a race
ends not after one runner wins but after the final runner crosses the finish line.
third-person perspective
A
camera model
intended for use with
avatar-based inter-
action models
in which the
virtual camera
follows behind the
avatar
as he moves
around the
game world
.
tilt
To cause the game's virtual camera to look up or down.
top-down perspective
A
camera model
in which the
virtual camera
displays the 2D
game world
from directly overhead. Its 3D equivalent is the
free-roaming
camera model.
top-scrolling perspective
A
camera model
in which the
virtual camera
displays the
2D
game world
from directly overhead and the world scrolls by from the top to the
bottom of the screen at a constant rate; most often used in
avatar-based gameplay
modes
involving vehicles.
toy
A physical object that a person can play with, typically in an unstructured
fashion and without any formal rules (though the player may invent rules of his
own if he wishes).
trader
An on-demand mechanic, often implemented as an NPC, that exchanges
resources with the players and NPCs for other resources. A trader does not create or
destroy resources but changes their ownership.
treatment
A document, typically about 20 pages long, intended to describe a game
in enough detail to allow a funding agency to decide whether or not to fund a
developer to build a prototype of the game.
