All topics / game design
Topic
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Game design
4
episodes
3
thinkers
16h
of conversation
16
books & papers
9
terms defined
The neighbourhood: game design and the ideas it travels with. Drag to roam, click a star for the episode, click a neighbour to travel.
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From foundational to frontier
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The lexicon
Every term the guests lean on, in plain language. Read one in full, or filter to find it.
What the corpus says
The throughline across every conversation that touches this idea.
Jeff Kaplan's career in game design was catalyzed by his extensive time in EverQuest, logging over 6,000 hours.
Jeff Kaplan spent over 6,000 hours playing EverQuest, which he credits with shaping his career and personal life.
World of Warcraft's quest-driven leveling system was a pivotal shift from EverQuest's static leveling, contributing to its massive success.
World of Warcraft's quest-driven leveling system revolutionized the MMO genre by making gameplay more accessible and engaging.
Kaplan views AI integration in game development as problematic, with AI often providing incorrect solutions.
Kaplan's new game, The Legend of California, is set during the Gold Rush era and features a dynamically changing open world.
Overwatch's development faced challenges due to executive pressure and a focus on revenue generation.
Kaplan believes small studios are the future of gaming, driving innovation with compelling ideas.
Kaplan argues that AI in game development is currently ineffective, with a correct response rate of only 10%.
Dan Houser views Red Dead Redemption 2's Western setting as providing a mythic seriousness that contemporary settings lack.
Houser believes that a structured story is crucial for player engagement in open-world games, balancing freedom with narrative.
Voices on game design
12 standout quotes from across the corpus.
Go read
16 books and papers cited across these episodes.
For the specialist
What experts find new
11 expert-level takeaways for a specialist reader.
At the frontier
Still unresolved
6 open questions flagged across these conversations.
The thinkers
Who takes this idea on, by how often they return to it.