The Game Design Resource Guide

Jul 25

I rounded up a list of references for some of the most useful resources when designing games. This includes game design references, books on Game Design, game engines to use, and some general inspiration.

Design Resources

Engines

Unity — your all around engine, and my preferred choice
Unreal Engine 4 — your all around engine with a great visual scripting system called Blueprints
Godot — I’ve never used Godot but I hear good things
Gamemaker — this was the first engine I ever made a game with, it was a 2D game, but that was back in 2014
Construct3 — every time I want to make a web game I choose Construct due to the easy to use code blocks and wide variety of plugins from the community
Phaser JS — Great for web games, but ultimately you need to know javascript

Game Design and Critique Channels

Reading

I’m only listing this because it’s the first book I ever bought for game dev in 2014. It’s going to be very out of date, but I’d recommend getting something similar:

Unity 3.x Game Development Essentials

If you’re looking for more information on making games or on careers in games, get my book Video Game Design for Dummies:

Video Game Design For Dummies (For Dummies: Learning Made Easy)

A good one on general product and team advice:

Ask Iwata: Words of Wisdom from Satoru Iwata, Nintendo's Legendary CEO

Good info on the psychology of play with interviews from game devs: Getting Gamers:

Getting Gamers: The Psychology of Video Games and Their Impact on the People who Play Them

I really love this read because it covers community, identity, and design of systems by interviewing players of massive multiplayer online games:

The Proteus Paradox: How Online Games and Virtual Worlds Change Us―And How They Don't

Why gaming is good for you and how to gamify mundane things, like chores:

Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World

Covers integrity in virtual worlds by outlining the darker history of some online communities back when it was all text-based:

My Tiny Life: Crime and Passion in a Virtual World

How to design mechanics that feel great:

Game Feel (Morgan Kaufmann Game Design Books)

A tale on the history of two companies targeted at similar player bases. I learned a lot about marketing and why good character design is really important:

Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation

Super in-depth read on game design, playtesting, and everything else to do with gamedev. Quite a slog to read but good for reference:

Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals (Mit Press)

A few more books that cover more technical game design (systems, psychology, playtesting, level design, mechanics design, production) at higher levels: