[hemmerling] Game Development

Documents

Vision Document.
- Guiding Light.
- 1-2 pages.
- Created in an early project phase.
- Mission Statement.
- “Maybe” is allowed .
- Paint a picture with words .
High Level Concept.
- The interlocking ( German: “Verzahnung” ) between and the amount of contents ( scope ).
- Mission statement.
- Platforms.
- Game Setting - In which “world” does the game take place?
- Central Gameplay Mechanics.
- Control / UI.
- Story Synopsis.
- Concept Art.
- Audio Concept.
- Maybe a prototype.
Game Design Document ( GDD ) / Detailed Game Design Concept.
- Goal of a good GDD:
  - Shared Vision and focus ( to keep everyone on the same page & get up-to-speed )..
  - Base for the project plan ( once it's built, set the deadlines ).
  - Urge you to rethink of detail questions ( think it through, it's fast and cheap ).
  - Makes visible future dependancies and conflicts ( visibility is key ).
- Target audience:
  - Design team.
  - Software developers.
  - Producer.
  - Quality assurance.
- Contents of the GDD:
  - A complete description of the game project ( how many game levels,..)
    - The amout of your prototype.
    - The contents of your Vertical Slice.
    - The features of your game.
    - A concrete description of all game elements.
- How to design a good GDD? Requirements:
  - Short.
  - Up-to-date.
  - Relevant.
  - Structured ( Example: Clear structured language, bullet lists prefered ).
  - Link redundant informations, don´t repeat yourself.
  - For checking off. Programmers like that.
  - Separate story from game mechanics ( Example: Level-up of a character ).
  - Define project phases. Example:
    1. Phase #1.
    2. Phase #2.
    3. Nice to have.
    4. Year,right.
- Contents
  - ...
  - Audio Concept
    - Music.
    - Sound.
    - Music and sound-systems.
    - Formats.
  - Prototypes.
    - Answer concrete questions.
    - Might be base for further development, but this ist not a must ( throw-away prototypes ).
    - Might be “analog”.
Technical Design Document.
- Straightforward, clear.
- Game engine.
- Tools.
- Specifications if necessary ( graphics quality ).

Literature

Book Heather Maxwell Chandler "Game Production Handbook".

Resources

Online event “SkillTree” with the topic “Zentrale Bausteine für einen erfolgreichen Antrag zur Gamesförderung” ( “Central components for a successful application for game sponsorship” ) by Steffen Rühl, Steffen Rühl, LinkedIn "Steffen Rühl" and nordmedia GmbH, 2021-03-31.
Damion Schubert
Jukka Haltsonen "Guide to writing a game design document" ( PDF ).

Marketing for Game Developers

Social Media Strategy & Contents ( Twitter, Hashtags, ... )

Development updates.
Direct feedback ( Likes / Retweets and comments ).
Pre-planning of posts, equipped with suitable hashtags:
- Platform: #Steam, #NintendoSwitch, #PS4.
- Genre:
  - #shmup, #shootermup, #arcade, #retro.
  - Use proper international notation ( by Internet research ).
- Engine: #madewithunreal, #unity3d
- Special days of the week and repeated occasions: #screenshotsaturday, #throwbackthursday.
Payed influencers .
- Catapult ( indieboost.com ) - “On demand video game influencer marketing”.

Animated GIFs for Social Media Marketing ( Twitter GIFs )

Why GIFs?
- Short videos:
  - Are better than screenshots. It is more likely that users will share it.
  - Provides a better first impression of the game / gameplay.
How to create an animated GIF?
- Do a video recording with interesting game scenes ( e.g. with Bandicam ).
- It is ok to cut 2-3 game scenes to one video.
- Convert the final video to GIF, e.g. by ezGIF.
Where to publish?
- Maximal filesize for Twitter: 15 MB.
- Gyazo- “Share screen captures instantly. Take screenshots, GIFS, and replays that are ready to share. Save what's on your screen without missing a moment”.

Press Kit

presskit() ( pronounced “do presskit” ) - “Spend time making games, not press”.
What should be provided?
1. Description.
2. Screenshots.
3. Videos ( trailer, gameplay ).
4. Logos.
5. Team infos.
6. Product infos ( release, price, ... ).

Events, Fairs, Conferences, Communities

Serious Games Conference

Nordmedia "Serious Games Conference", ~~Archive.org "seriousgamesconference.de"~~.
Nordmedia "Serious Games Conference 2018".
Nordmedia "Suche" - Search for “Serious Games Conference” ⇒ Serious Games Conference 2011-2018.
Game.de "Serious Games Conference".

Events & Organisations

International Game Developers Association ( IGDA ).
game – Verband der deutschen Games-Branche e.V..
DE.Wikipedia "Gamescom", Köln ( 2009 - ).
- Gamescom.
  - Tiktok "gamescom.global".
  - Facebook "gamescom, @gamescom.cologne".
  - Instagram "gamescom".
  - Instagram "gamescomCamp".
  - Twitter "gamescom".
  - Discord "gamescom".
  - Gamescom Now "Gamescom EPIX".
  - linktree "@gamescomcamp".
  - The online event Gamescom Now.
    - 2020:
      - YouTube "Gamescom: Opening Night Live 2020 (Live, Thursday August 27 - 8 PM CEST / 2 PM ET / 11 AM PT)".
      - Event Nordmedia "FIREABEND am 27. August 2020 in Hannover. Screening der 'gamescom: opening night live'", 2020-08-27.
    - 2021:
      - 2021-08-23 - 2021-08-27 devcom.
      - 2021-08-25 - 2021-08-27 gamecom.
DE.Wikipedia "Games Convention", Leipzig ( 2002 - 2008 ).
nordmedia GmbH.
- The series of conferences Serious Games Conference in Hannover.
- The online workshop Eventbrite "Workshop zur Computerspieleförderung des Bundes", 2020-09-17.
Meetup.
- Meetup - List of "Game Development" Groups.
  - Meetup "Hannover Game Development Meetup".
    - This meetup group has its own DISCORD Server DISCORD "GameDevHannover".
    - Hannover Game Development Meetup "Mein Indie-Spiel im Live-Stream", 2021-03-21.
    - Hannover Game Development Meetup "Empowering Game Development - Richtige Tools, um dein Spiel besser zu machen", 2021-07-13 with Melina Birkner, Sven Paulse of 4Players 4Players GmbH,
The virtual event Playfestival "PLAY20 - Creative Gaming Festival" in Hamburg, 2020-11-04 - 2020-11-08.
The free virtual event for computer game developers Accelevents "Breakpoint by Backtrace. Debugging. Performance. Stability", 2021-02-24 - 2021-02-25.
- Accelevents "Breakpoint by Backtrace. Debugging. Performance. Stability" - Portal.
Global Game Jam.
- Global Game Jam "Jammer Resources"#.
- Global Game Jam "Jam Dashboard".
  - Global Game Jam "Rolf Hemmerling".
- Facebook Page "Global Game Jam".
- Facebook Group "Global Game Jam".
- Twitter "GlobalGameJam, @globalgamejam".
- 2021-01-29 - 2021-01-31.
  - Global Game Jam Online 2021.
  - Youtube "GGJ Online (2021) Keynote and Theme Reveal Video" - Topic “Lost and Found”.
  - Vimeo "Global Game Jam Niedersachsen".
  - Global Game Jam Online 2021 "GGJ Niedersachsen".
    - Global Game Jam Online 2021 "Hemmerling's Lost + Found".
  - Mixup "Global Game Jam", 2021 - “This is an early preview of MixUp and it currently works best with Google Chrome. Support for more browsers is coming soon”. It makes use of WebGL2, so you need a PC with OpenGL2 graphics card ( so no legacy business PC with Win10Pro - with Windows standard graphics drivers, which just support OpenGL1 - ).
  - Twitch "Tueddeldraht ( Global Game Jam '21 - Spiele aus Niedersachsen )". Commands ”!ggj”, ”!ggjrate”, you can´t post URLs on the chat channel.
  - My contribution:
- 2020-01-31 - 2020-02-02.
  - Global Game Jam "GGJ20 Diversifiers".
  - Global Game Jam 2020 "SAE Institute Hannover", 2020.
  - My contribution Global Game Jam 2020, Game "BicycleRepair".
  - Global Game Jam, .
  - nordmedia GmbH "Niedersachsen nimmt am Global Game Jam teil" - “Das APITs Lab unterstützt die Veranstaltungen”.
  - SAE Institute "Hannover: Global Game Jam 2020", 2020-01-31, 17:00 - 2020-02-02, 17:00.
- 2016-01-29 - 2016-01-31.
  - Global Game Jam - Hannover 2016.
- 2015.
  - Nordmedia GmbH "Corporate Media Forum", 2015-06-18.
- 2014-01-23 - 2014-01-25.
  - Global Game Jam 2014 "InnoGames GGJ 2014" - “Who Can Participate: Only InnoGames employees”.
  - Global Game Jam 2014 "SAE Institute Hamburg" - “Who Can Participate: SAE Hamburg Students only”.
  - Global Game Jam "University of Bremen" - “Who Can Participate: Anyone”.
4Players 4Players GmbH, maraquard group, Hamburg - “For Publishers. For Developers. For Gamers”.
- Staff members:
  - Melina Birkner, XING "Melina Birkner", LinkedIn "Melina Birkner", Partner Manager.
- Marquard Media Group AG, DE.Wikipedia "Marquard Media Gruppe".
- 4Players - Das Spielemagazin.
- 4Netplayers "Gameserver und TeamSpeak 3 Server mieten".
- DISCORD "4Players GmbH".
INDIE Hub ( by INDIE Hub UG (haftungsbeschränkt) i.G. ) - “We strive to create a community of indie developers and support them in connecting and collaborating with each other. To achieve this, we created a variety of opportunities”.
- Online event NDIE Hub UG "Indie Campus - Retention & Monetisation Summit", 2021-09-14 -2021-09-15.
- 4Players GmbH "4Players and Indie Hub present “Indie Campus – Cologne".
- Agora by Atypic Labs - Indie Campus - “Please join from your Chrome browser”.
- Twitch "INDIE_Hub. Indie Campus – Cologne".
- YouTube "Indie Hub UG".
GMTK Game Jam.
- Online events:
- Twitter "#gmtkjam".
- EN.Wikipedia "Game Maker's Toolkit".
Game Developers Session, Czech Republic.
1. Virtual conference Game Developers Session 2021, 2021-11-19 - 2021-11-20 - “We will be streaming whole event”.
2. Virtual conference Game Developers Session 2020, 2020-11-27 - 2020-11-28 - “Live Stream from Conference”, “For this year's edition of GDS we wanted you to decide what you want to pay for the tickets. Therefore we make the tickets 'pay what you want'”.
3. Game Developers Session 2019.
4. Game Developers Session 2018.
5. Game Developers Session 2017.
6. Game Developers Session 2016.
7. Game Developers Session 2015.
8. Game Developers Session 2014 - “Then you should attend 12th annual indie game developers conference organized this year in beautiful Prague, Czech Republic”.
9. Archive.org "Game Developers Session 2013 - konference herních vývojářů".
10. Archive.org "Game Developers Session 2012 - konference herních vývojářů".
11. Archive.org "Game Developers Session 2011 - konference herních vývojářů".

Bootcamps

Federal Business Promotion

Bundesministerium für Verkehr und digitale Infrastruktur "Computerspieleförderung des Bundes".
Die Bundesregierung "easy-Online. Elektronisches Formularsystem für Anträge, Angebote und Skizzen".
game – Verband der deutschen Games-Branche e.V. "Games-Förderung".
- The online workshop Eventbrite "Workshop zur Computerspieleförderung des Bundes" by game – Verband der deutschen Games-Branche e.V., 2020-09-17.
- General conditions:
  - No business partnership ( “Personalgesellschaft” ) like “GbR” and no single businessman ( “Einzelunternehmer” ) due to the unwanted accountability of private fortune - unwanted by the federal business promotion direction -. “GmbH” and “Unternehmergesellschaft (UG)” are ok.
  - You must have a reference ( game ) project, before you may ask for federal business promotion.

Level Designer Toolkits

The free LDtk - Level Designer Toolkit, Deepnight "LDtk - Level Designer Toolkit". Export file format “tmx”. GameJam2021 Recommendation .

Assets

See Audiovision 2/6 - Image, Video & Audio Collections, Stocks, Footage, Hosting.

Literature

Book Steve Swink "Game Feel: A Game Designer's Guide to Virtual Sensation".
- Steve Swink "Game Feel: A Game Designer's Guide to Virtual Sensation" ( PDF ).

Monetarisation

Every.to "How Free to Play Video Games are Forced to Make Addicts. A Case Study on Market Structures and Harm", Golem "Geschäftsethik bei Videospielen: Auf der Suche nach dem Wal", 2021.
Google Docs "Financing Model & Breakeven Calculation".
Patreon's business modell for it's customers ( here: game developers ) is a monthly subscription of their customers ( the game players ).
- By itch.io, the game developer publishes a monthly ( updated! ) release of the game. The game player just gets a single “key” each month to activate the current software release, he/she subscribes by Patreot. Next month, next key
- In opposite, Kickstart'S & Steam's business model is a one-time-fee for the players.