I announced a project to build a comprehensive Game Design Library, where I read and review books on game design and related disciplines like art, architecture, film, writing, history, sociology, psychology, and similar fields. I have also started a Game Design Book Club for people who’d like to participate by reading one book a month.
You can check out my current queue of books I own, as well as a much larger list of books found or recommended to me. Feel free to suggest any books that I have overlooked.
All of my completed reviews are listed below. A ★ indicates a personal favorite.
GENERAL GAME DESIGN
- A Theory of Fun for Game Design by Raph Koster ★
- The Art of Game Design by Jesse Schell (includes review of A Deck of Lenses)
- A Game Design Vocabulary by Anna Anthropy and Naomi Clark
- Challenges for Game Designers by Brenda Brathwaite and Ian Scheiber
GAME DESIGN DEEP DIVE
MULTIPLAYER, SPORTS, & ESPORTS
SERIOUS & AUGMENTED REALITY GAMES
VIDEO GAME HISTORY & INDUSTRY
- Videogames: In the Beginning by Ralph Baer
- Generation Xbox: How Videogames Invaded Hollywood by Jamie Russell
GAMES CRITICISM & CRITICAL STUDIES
- Shooter ed. by Reid McCarter and Patrick Lindsey ★
- The Art of Failure by Jesper Juul ★
- The State of Play: Creators and Critics on Videogame Culture, ed. by Linus Larsson and Daniel Goldberg
HISTORY& ANTHROPOLOGY
ARCHITECTURE & LEVEL DESIGN
STORY, NARRATIVE, & ROLE-PLAY
- Fundamentals of Role-Playing Game Design by Ernest Adams
- Quests: Design, Theory, and History in Games and Narratives by Jeff Howard
- Morphology of the Folktale by Vladimir Propp
PSYCHOLOGY & UX
- Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
- Universal Principles of Design by William Lidwell, Kritina Holden, and Jill Butcher
- The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman ★
Book suggestions:
Writing for Video Game Genres: From FPS to RPG
by Wendy Despain
Link: https://amzn.com/1568814178
Talking to Artists / Talking to Programmers: How to Get Programmers and Artists Communicating
by Wendy Despain
Link: https://amzn.com/149870073X
Hi I’m reading Beyond Game Design – Nine Steps Toward Creating Better Videogames. Edited by Chris Bateman.
Link: https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Game-Design-Creating-Videogames/dp/1584506717