I am a game designer. And I have a glaring weakness: math.
Every time I balance games, I try to balance off of feeling alone. And of course, it does not always work. When this happens, I usually take a look at games with similar systems (resources, in-game economy, etc.) and retrofit their system into my game. Now, I know this is not the most elegant approach, but it has served me well so far.
Why am I telling you this? To me, a game designer should have a deep understanding of systems (whether it is designing or reading them) and all forms of interaction concerning those systems (whether it is system – system or user-system interaction). So, if we are talking about tried and true game formula, I do believe that any reasonably good game designer can design them.
If, on the other hand, we are talking about new, innovative game concepts, I doubt ANY good game designer can pull them off. Let’s take me as an example again. If I were to design a new, innovative in-game economy, I would miserably fail, since I lack basic and profound understanding of math.I am a game designer. And I have a glaring weakness: math.
Every time I balance games, I try to balance off of feeling alone. And of course, it does not always work. When this happens, I usually take a look at games with similar systems (resources, in-game economy, etc.) and retrofit their system into my game. Now, I know this is not the most elegant approach, but it has served me well so far.
Why am I telling you this? To me, a game designer should have a deep understanding of systems (whether it is designing or reading them) and all forms of interaction concerning those systems (whether it is system – system or user-system interaction). So, if we are talking about tried and true game formula, I do believe that any reasonably good game designer can design them.
If, on the other hand, we are talking about new, innovative game concepts, I doubt ANY good game designer can pull them off. Let’s take me as an example again. If I were to design a new, innovative in-game economy, I would miserably fail, since I lack basic and profound understanding of math.
![Same old, Same old]( "Same old, Same old")
I am a game designer. And I have a glaring weakness: math. I am also a trained musician.
Every time I balance games, I try to balance off of feeling alone. And of course, it does not always work. When I get stuck, I usually take a look at games with similar systems (resources, in-game economy, etc.) and retrofit their system into my game. Now, I know this is not the most elegant approach, but it has served me well so far.
Why am I telling you this? To me, a good game designer should have a deep understanding of systems (whether it is designing or reading them) and all forms of interaction concerning those systems (whether it is system-system or user-system interaction). So, if we are talking about tried and true game formulae, I do believe that any reasonably good game designer can design them.
If, on the other hand, we are talking about new, innovative game concepts, I doubt any good game designer can pull them off. Let’s take me as an example again. If I were to design a new, innovative in-game economy, I would miserably fail, since I lack basic and profound understanding of math.
Now, what I do have, is a deeper understanding of music. So I think I could pull off a new rhythm-based game concept that is innovative and truely unique more easily than an innovative in-game economy. It would take me some time to figure out how to get music working in a game context, but the ideas are already flowing, just because i mentioned it.
Most games today are no witchcraft and – from a game design standpoint – are nothing more than systems that react to one another and to interaction. Mainstream games often use tried and true mechanics, which makes it easy to find a reference, when in need of one. Even indiegames have reached a level where there are many examples for off-key mechanics that are not necessarily mainstream but still commercially viable. So, if you are a good game designer, you’ll extract what you need from others. But to truely innovate, you need to be more than just a good game designer. You need to be a game designer that is inspired by other things than game design.
![]()
![]()
