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Introduction
I. What is a Game?
1. Some Game Definitions
2. Costikyan's Definition
3. Formal Elements of Games
4. Weaknesses of Definitions
II. Game Analysis for Game Designers
5. Critical Analysis of Games
6. Games as Systems
7. Quality of Decision-Making
8. Mechanics, Dynamics, and Aesthetics
9. What Makes a Game "Fun"?
10. Kinds of Fun
11. Kinds of Players
III. Game Design
12. What is Game Design?
13. The Design Process: Game Ideas
14. Formal Abstract Design Tools
15. The Design Process: Prototyping
16. The Design Process: Playtesting
17. The Design Process: More About Playtesting
18. How to Improve a Game
19. A Note About Intellectual Property
IV. What Students Have to Say
20. Digging Deep Inside the Game of Go Fish
21. A Game to the Core: A “Go Fish” Analysis
22. Getting A Better Understanding of War
23. What is War Good For? Still Nothing, Apparently
24. Important Foundations
The following chapters were written by Plymouth State University students in CMDI-1105.
Creating Games by Cathie LeBlanc is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.