Mastering the Art of Game Design: Creating a Game Design Document

You’ve got your great game idea and a passion to get it done, but what’s the next steps? Where do you go next with your project idea?

Depending on the size of your project, a Game Design Document could be the next best step for you!

What is a Game Design Document (GDD)? A GDD is an outline giving the reader a basic understanding of how your game will play

Subjects to include within your GDD are:

🎞 Title and Overview: Give a working title and a brief overview about your game. Think of it as an elevator pitch

💡 Game Concept: Here you can provide a more detailed explanation about your game, including the Core Gameplay Loop and perhaps a few mechanics that set your game apart from others in a similar genre

📖 Story/Setting: A brief overview about your characters storyline and world setting. How much does the world affect our characters? Are they at odds with the game environment or is it just a setting they reside in during gameplay?

🔧 Gameplay Mechanics: Detail a few of the fundamental gameplay mechanics here, such as player controls, basic level objectives, player interaction in the world (Jump, open doors, level interaction, etc) Add any unique mechanics that set your project apart from others

🪤 Level Design: For a basic GDD, I will just do some quick Level Descriptions or blockouts. Once I start to flesh out the GDD, I will get really into the details about each level. How to the puzzles work? Where are loot sections and encounter areas for each level? Each game is different on how to detail your level

🖼 Visual Style: Describe the art style of the game, is it stylized and cartoony? Is it realistic, dark and creepy? List any references or inspiration and either place them in the Doc or start a PureRef board. General art cues will help define the games ambience and emotional draw from the player

🎸 Music and SFX: Give an overview on the mood or atmosphere you want to create with audio. List background music, sound effects, voice acting, User Interface, etc

🗺 User Interface: Get a good basic beginning list going with Menus, HUD and any other in game elements you can think of. Include mock-ups if possible

🤺 Character Design: Describe any characters, game play specific abilities and any major storyline inclusions. Include some visual concept art

🗡 Ingame Items: Any power-ups, weapons, clothing or other collectables in the game should be listed with detailed descriptions. Describe how they are obtained and their effects in game

🕹 Gameplay Progression: Describe how the game, levels and story progress through the game for the player, including ant rewards or achievements

📈 Timeline and Milestones: Since this is an early GDD, it is a good idea to lay out a rough milestone calendar. This will help you stay on track early in development

The GDD is a living document, it will change and grow over time during your development.
How to write a game design document – John French

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