Game Design Workshop, 3rd Edition

Chapter 2

The Structure of Games

Exercise 2.1: Think of a Game

1. Think of a game, any game. Now write down a description of the game. Be detailed. Describe it as if to someone who has never played a game like it before.
2. Now think of another game—a completely different type of game. The more different this game is from the first one, the better. Describe it.
3. Compare your descriptions. Which elements were different and which were similar? Dig deep and really think about the underlying mechanics of each game.

There is no wrong answer to this exercise. The goal is simply to get you to begin thinking about the nature of games and to realize that games, no matter how dissimilar they might seem, do share some common elements. Those common elements ...