An introduction to Game Design

What is meant by Gameplay?

I understand the term gameplay as being the way that the gamer can interact with the game and the way the game handles. But it goes wider than that it involves everything to do with the game such as the graphics and the storyline. For me the better the gameplay the better the game.

Who are the leading lights in Game Design?

This question is left open to interpretation and the way that I interpret this question is that the experssion Game design is "the process of designing the content and rules of a game" and that is done by the game developers, so for me that means the leading lights in Game Design are the likes of Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Konami and Eidos to name a few.

Is it a single person's responsibility?

The game design industry is such a big business that one person on there own would not be able to handle all the responsibilities that come with the job. Maybe there will be one main overseer who manages the projects, but the team of people are responsible to keep up to date with the workload that they are given. So therefore it is not a single persons responsibility it is a collective responsibility.

What's important for you, when you play?

I am sure that in previous blog entries I have said the most important feature for me in games is the gameplay. For me if you as a gamer cannot interact with the game effectively then the game does not do what it is suppose to, which is keep the interested and for me if I am unable to interact with a game then I get bored and lose interest in the game.
Also stories in a game are also a big factor for me, a good adventure game has to have a story that keeps you wanting to go on and find out more. For instance God of War a personal favorite of mine kept me wanting to go on and find out more about the character which then in turn kept me wanting and willingly playing the game.