This book delves into the intricate realms of games and their creation, examining them through cultural, systemic, and, most notably, human lenses. It explores diverse themes like authorship, creative responsibility, the tension between games as a product and games as a form of cultural expression, and the myth of a universal audience.
Marta Fijak making games since 2013. With a master's in experimental biology and an engineering degree in computer science, she decided to dedicate her life to games instead. Tried every form of game development, from basement indie with 20 players to a BAFTA-nominated game with ~2 million players, to F2P with ~10 million players. Has been a gameplay programmer, system and technical designer, and eventually a lead designer and a creative director. Recently, and not under NDA, she worked (a lot) on Frostpunk and (a little) on Rimworld. Teaches game design at the Warsaw Film School, consults on games, and just in general, can not shut up about them.
Artur Ganszyniec making games since 2006. Data analyst by education, storyteller by choice, designer by trade, autistic by birth. Worked on AAA games, overseeing the story for the first two The Witcher games, and worked on ethical mobile F2P games, and artistic indie darlings. Teaches game design at the Lodz University of Technology, consults on games, and works for the Polish game industry as a part of the Polish Gamedev Workers Union.
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Chapter 1: Games as a Medium. Chapter 2: Why Do People Make Games. Chapter 3: The Myth of the Universal Audience. Chapter 4: Traps of Realism. Chapter 5: Authorial Voice and Intent in System Design. Chapter 6: The Topography of Narrative. Chapter 7: Playing with Authorship. Chapter 8: Why Games Will Always Be Political. Chapter 9: Author as a Group Entity: How It Feels to
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