Building a Video Game

Phases Page

5 Phases in Designing a Video Game

Phase 1: Think of a Game to Make
Before officially starting to design your video game, it is best to figure out what it should be about.
Who will be the audience of your game? (Examples: kids, adults, casual players, hardcore players, etc.)
What will the genre of your game be? (Examples: Shooter, Puzzle, Racing, Platformer, etc.)
What is the core gameplay about? (Examples: High Scoring, Reaching the Goal, Collecting Enough Items, etc.)

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Phase 2: Decide What Technology you Need
Acquire all necessary software and hardware need to program the game as you envision it. Every tool will affect the how the game looks, how it will be controlled, and what devices are capable of running the game.
Which computer programs will you need to program different aspects of the game? (Examples: 3-D Modeler, Text-editor, Audio Software, etc.)
What computer language or game engine will you work with to program your game? (Examples: Unreal Engine, C++, JavaScript, etc.)
What will the technical specifications be needed from a device to run the game? (Examples: HD Resolution, Quad-Core CPU, 2 Gigabytes of RAM, etc.)

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Phase 3: Write Down the Game's Features
Take the idea for your game and expand on it. Specify the game's aspects by writing them down in a diagram map or drawing them out with artwork.
What are the aspects of your game? (Considerations: title name, characters, levels, menu, progression, rewards, penalities, etc.)
What will the look of your game be? (Considerations: 2-D, 3-D, cartoonish, simple, complex, realistic, etc.)
How are players going to interact with your game? (Considerations: touch-screen, online, gamepad, keyboard, motion-control, etc.)

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Phase 4: Begin Programming the Game
Once you have layed out the design of your game, you can start programming that game with your development tools.
What is the scope of your game project? Understand the size of it and divide your work into sections you can handle.
Shouldn't you make a prototype of your game first? A prototype can easily create an outline of your real game. Use abstract or simple objects in your prototype to create that outline.
Are you going to stick to your ideas throughout development? Your ideas likely won't stay the same as you make your game, so expect to make numerous changes when you notice something isn't as right as you thought.

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Phase 5: Test the Game
Play the game you made to make sure it functions the way you want it to be.
What's the main point of testing? You are looking for bugs that could glitch the game if they occur during gameplay.
What should you do when testing the game? Take notes about every issue that occurs when playing the game and then work to debug those errors.
How often will you be testing your game? You will be doing this step many times throughout development until the game is completed.

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