Video game design

Video game design is the process of creating the content and rules of video games in the pre-production stage, and designing the gameplay, environment, plot, and characters in the production stage. It is also known as video game development. In many respects, the designer of a video game is similar to the director of a film; the designer is the game's visionary, and they manage the creative and technical parts of the game to ensure that their vision is realised in the final product. In addition to aesthetic and technical abilities, video game creation necessitates the development of literary talents in certain cases. Due to the changing nature of the gaming business, which has adopted new methods of production such as agile, the job of a primary game designer has started to differentiate, with some companies stressing the auteur model, while others emphasising a more team-oriented approach. Generally speaking, video game design is referred to as "game design" inside the video game business, as opposed to "game development" which is a more broad phrase outside.

Video game programmers have also been known to make up the whole of the design team in rare cases. This is the case with designers like as Sid Meier, John Romero, Chris Sawyer, and Will Wright, to name a few examples. Coleco was a significant exception to this philosophy, having separated the functions of design and programming from the beginning of the company's existence.

As video games got more complicated and powerful computers and consoles became available, the role of the game designer became more distinct from that of the main programmer. Soon after, the game's complexity necessitated the concentration of team members on game design. Many early veterans took the road of game creation, foregoing programming and handing such responsibilities to other parties.

Designers for very complicated games, such as massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) or high-budget action or sports games, may number in the hundreds. It is common in these situations to have one or two lead designers and a large number of junior designers who each describe subsets or subsystems of the game. The control scheme and level design may be handled by a distinct producer and lead designer in addition to multiple general designers in bigger organisations such as Electronic Arts (see Control Scheme and Level Design). A storyline for the game may also be devised by the players.