Book Review

Game Developer's Marketplace: The Definitive Guide to
Making It Big in the Interactive Game Industry

Anyone who's harbored idle fantasies about creating the next Myst would probably be drawn to this title while browsing at Barnes & Noble. None of the topics covered in Game Developer's Marketplace focus specifically on designing text adventure games or the history of such games, unfortunately -- despite the tome's hefty length -- but it's useful for gaining valuable insights about the the industry as a whole, especially if you're considering computer game development as a career choice.

The book is divided into four major sections; the first, focusing on the planning basics of game design and a brief history of computer game and video game companies, is of the broadest interest to all fledgling game programmers. So, even if you consider game development more of a time-consuming hobby than a potential career choice, you'll find useful tidbits in these first seven chapters. Of these, chapters 5 through 7 will be the most interesting for interactive fiction fans considering game development for fun and (possibly, but not probably) profit.

Chapter 5, "Refining Your Design,"tries to come up with some simple answers to questions like "What makes a game successful?" Its discussion of problem-solving and the role of puzzles in a game is good food for thought; while you may not come away with any earth- shattering insights, it will probably help you better consider your audience's needs and interests when you plan your game's puzzles along with their overall difficulty and various outcomes.

I turned to Chapter 6, "Storytelling, Design Details, and Interface Design," right away because of the title. The focus on graphical game interfaces is annoying -- for IF-only developers, anyway! -- but the chapter does touch on some good issues that any good programmer worth his or her salt should consider. These range from how well a work of fiction can be adapted to an interactive game to how to give your characters depth.

Chapter 7 is devoted entirely to tips for successful game design. This is the only chapter where I found a specific mention of text adventures; it also touches on all kinds of other specific game genres and gives a very general overview of the design challenges of each.

In the second major section of the book, the authors turn their attention to how one can gain financially from an interest in computer games -- namely, how to get a job with a big-name entertainment company or how to pursue venture capital to fund your own startup. I liked the job-hunting tips in Chapter 9 the most; this practical advice would apply to just about any industry, but the chapter also includes capsule descriptions for the many different staff positions that play a role in developing a commercial computer game -- many of which, I have to admit, were new to me.

The third major section is a bit scattered, but is meant to address market research and legal issues that affect game development, from the demographics of game players to intellectual property rights. Finally, the resources section in Part IV -- listing software utilities and contact information for game publishers, among other tidbits -- is reproduced in electronic form on the book's enclosed CD.

The book's overall tone comes across as very casual and laid-back, a friendly approach that -- like a lot of other Coriolis Group Books -- could stand to use much more tightening and editing, but which makes for an easy read.

-- Lauren Meckler

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