How to make a Game in a Week?

Day 1 – Core Rules

Core Rules
What are the Fundamental Aspects of this Game?
Why are they Fundamental?
What are the Win conditions?
What are the Loss conditions?
How can you design rules to be inherently Fun?
How will they create Engagement?
Who will they Appeal?
How will you transcribe these Rules into a Story?
How will you transcribe these Rules into a World?
How will you display these Rules through the Characters?

Main Themes
What are the Themes of your Game?
How do they transcribe its Rules?
How are they implemented in the Story?
How are they implemented in the World?
How do they become game mechanics?

Characters
Who are your Characters?
What are their Goal?
Which Skills do they possess?
How can they use them?
When can they use them?
Under which Conditions?
Which Items do they need?

Day 2 – Character Models/Sprites

6 Basic Profiles
You’ll want to define 6 base Profiles.
Having 6 Profiles will help you balance Diversity & Consistency.
It’s also enough for you to create intermediate/hybrid characters.

Roles
Leader
- Is your Character Dedicated?
- Is she strategic?
- Is she caring?
Solver
- Is your Character Focused?
- Is she knowledgeable?
- Is she persistent?
Protector
- Is your Character Reliable?
- Is she dependable?
- Is she sturdy?
Sponsor
- Is your Character Entrepreneurial?
- Is she resilient?
- Is she parsimonious?
Advisor
- Is your Character Benevolent?
- Is she calm?
- Is she empathetic?
Enticer
- Is your Character Fun?
- Is she enthusiastic?
- Is she fervid?

Physical
If you’re modelling the bodies yourself the easiest way is to Start with the Thickest body and to Sculpt the 5 others out of it.
Once you’ve got your base mesh you can scale the base proportions to Stretch or Shrink it.
Any physique can go with any Role.
- Petit
- Muscular
- Busty
- Slender
- Slim
- Curvaceous

Behavior & Environment
What are the Core Rules regarding the Characters?
How should they React?
According to which Criteria?
- Class & Profession
- Relationships
- Events
- Other Characters
- Rewards

If you want to know more on Character Profiles.

Day 3 – Environment Models/Sprites

3 of everything
Depending on the Scale of your Game you may not be able to create 3 models of every type of asset.
It’s better to start with a small scale project, especially if you’re going for 3D.
Maybe consider starting with a 1-Room game.
Or a House.
Regarding Natural environment, you’ll generally use procedural generation for efficiency purposes.
It can be used for Humanoid environments as well.
Depending of the parameters of your Program & the level of Erraticness of your Settings.
Multiple modifiers allow you to define the appropriate level of randomness you want to work with.

Nature
Which Landscapes define your Game?
Which Aspect of the Game do you want to display through the Landscapes?
How would their Atmosphere be?
How would the Wildlife be?

Civilization
What are the Landmarks of your World?
How do they define the dynamics of this World?
Where are the Settlements?
What kind of Settlements are they?
Are there Capitals?
Which Organizations administrate your World?
What are their Rules?
What are their Symbols?
What are their Items?
Which Accessories do they use?
Which Accessories do they look for?
Which Accessories do they grant to the Players?

Day 4 – Characters’ Behavior

Non Playable Characters
What Types of Non Playable Characters can the Players meet?
What are their Roles?
What are their Functions?
Do you have a Class system?
What is their Class?
- Do they have multiple Classes?
What is their Profession?
- Do they have multiple Professions?
What’s their main Goal?
- Do they have other Goals?
What are their Behavior traits?
- What are their Strengths?
- What are their Weaknesses?
What are their Quirks?
Where can you find them?
Are their actions Location-specific?
How are they specific to the location?

Behavior
How are their Behavior affected by their Environment?
How do you design your Non Playable Characters’ Intelligence?
What’s the structure of their Behavior tree?
What’s the structure of their State Machine?
How many types of Behavior do you need?
What should they be able to do?
Which States can they adopt?
How do they move?
How do they interact with their Environment?
What’s the most efficient way for them to Move?
What’s the most efficient way for them to Act?
What’s the most appropriate way to Act?
How do you create a Coherent Behavior through their Actions?
How do you parameter their Behavior?
How efficient should they be?

Character Controllers
What are the Core Rules in term of Movement?
What are the Core Rules in term of Combat?
How do the Character’s Possibilities evolve through the Story?
How does the Environment limit the Characters?
- Physics
- Opponents
- Resources
- Status
Which Characters can perform which Action?
Which Skills is associated with which Command?
How do you use Items?
What are the Core Controls?
- How Clear are they?
- How Ergonomic are they?
- Are they easy to memorize?
How do you build additional Controls on top of them?

Day 5 – Combats

Quest Board
Did you build an Arena?
Can you be a Mercenary?
Can you perform Assassinations?
Can you sponsor Assassinations?
Are there Wars?
Are there Battles?
Can you engage in the Military?
Can you contract with the Military?

Diversity of Fights
Are they Usual enemies?
What makes them Unusual?
Is there a Multitude of enemy?
- How mix is it?
- Did multiple enemies form an Alliance?
Is there a Stronger 1 in their group?
Do they display an Unusual Behavior?
- Are they Normally Pacific?
- Do they use a Different way to Fight?

How do you make a Fight Fun?
How do you make it Interesting?
What are the Stakes?
How do you make them Clear?
What are the different Options?
How do the Fighters relate to each other?
What are the origins of these relationships?
How do they link the Combatants?
How does the Players win?
What are the handicaps?
What are the rewards?

What are the Core Rules of Combat?
How do you pace an Action sequence?
What defines an Enemy?
What’s an Aggression?
How do you gauge Hostility?
Is there a Neutrality situation?
Do some Characters have a sense of Justice?
Can you ask for Assistance?
How does Combat rhythm the Story?
How frequent is it in your World?
How does it define your Characters?
What are the core combat Skills?
Which Items are necessary for a Fight?
What are the main Controls?

Day 6 – Exploration

Enticement
How do you create an Adventure?
How do you use Action to pace Exploration?
How do you upkeep the feeling of Discovery?
How can the Player feel freedom?
How do you create a sense of Free movement?
Where would the Players Want to go?
Where would the Players Need to go?
How many types of Environment should your Game contain?
What makes them Unique?
Why would your Players want to visit them?
What do they expect from this World?

Quest Board
How is your Board Organized?
When do new quests become available?
Do they depend on the Main quest?
Which sort of contract can you find?
Which Items are put on the Board?
Can you go on an Artifact recovery?
Or a Collect?
Can you go Racing?
Can you solve Mysteries?
Can you escort people?
Which kind of people?
How does it help you discover the World?
Would the Players find it amusing?
How do you preserve the novelty?

Diversity of Encounters
How many types of Environment does your Game contain?
What are the specificities of each Environment?
What makes them Unique?
Why would your Players want to visit them?
What can they find in them?
What do they expect from this World?
How do you respond to these Expectations?
Through which decisions?
With which Creatures?

Day 7 – User Interface

Simplicity
You want to have the Core Information on 1 page.
- Status
  - Afflictions/Alterations
  - Class/Role/Statistics
  - Skills – Combat & Exploration
- Inventory
  - Items
  - Equipment
- Core Rules
  - Map/Mini-Map (if you need 1)
  - Active Quests
    - other Quests available
Then you can have Sub-Menus for each Category.

Enjoyment
How do you make it Visually pleasing?
How do you develop a sense of Aesthetic?
- Which Kind?
How do you Design it?
- Which genre is your Game?
- Which Setting did you choose?
Does it look Reassuring?
Does it feel Comforting?
Does it exude a sense of Peace?
Are there No danger in your menu?
How do you create a sense of Flavor through the Interface?
How do you display elements of the Story in the Interface?
- Which elements?
- How do they help the Story to unfold?
- How do they help the Player to understand the Story?
How can you integrate your Interface in the World?

Customization
Create Blocks of Information.
Movable Blocks.
Of Different Size.
Of Different Colors.
All of them will be Specific to the Block’s function.
A Customizable Interface creates a sense of Character.
It helps the Player to appropriate herself the Game.

Alternative, Daily Plan

If you’d like a more Progressive Process.
Which is implementable on a daily basis.
The Estimate time is 5 hours.

Story & Game Design – 1h 30min
Characters
Environment
Core Rules & Storyline
User Interface

Arts – 1h
2D
Characters sprites
Environment sprites
User Interface
- Text Boxes
3D
Characters models
Environment models

Programming – 2h
- If it is not a video Game
  - add 40′ to Story/Game Design
  - 60′ to Art
  - 20′ to Music
Characters
- Physics
- Controls
- AI
Environment
- Physics
- Interactivity
Core Rules & Storyline
- Levels
User Interface

Music – 30min
Characters’ Themes
Environments’ Atmosphere
Core Rules & Storyline
- Scenes’ Themes
- General Rhythm
User Interface ?

Extra time – Game testing

If you can put more time into your Project, here’s what you can do.

You’ll need a group of testers.

This is a Collective Game
Who are you testing your Game with?
Are they willing to play this Game?
What do they expect?
When did they start playing?
Is it their 1st Game?
Do they seem to understand the Core mechanism?
Do they accept them?
How do they react to the Trails you propose them?
Which Trails do you propose them?
Would you enjoy them?

Their Suggestions
How can your Players help you enhance the Game?
What do they enjoy?
What do they dislike?
What confuses them?
What enthusiasms them?
- Even if they can’t tell why.
What would they like more of?
What would they Modify?
How would they modify it?
Ask them for Procedures.
How would they implement these Procedures?
How detailed can they be?