by Stacy Jones on Jun 23, 2011
Have you ever wondered how a virtual world is created? A lot of work, research and design goes into the crafting an MMOG world and this week The Secret Worlds (TSW) Lead Content Designer Joel Bylos has posted a new blog that details the extensive process from research to design.
Bylos explains in the blog four points of design: identifying, research and design, building flow and prototyping and production. Bylos touches on the method of designing the flow of a game and how it can be easy to fall into a design that makes the gameplay feel too linear, but Bylos notes that a light touch can make it feel less intrusive and play on a players curiosity to explore.
Flow can be intrusive (a one way corridor which a player is forced to walk down) or subtle (a flickering light off in the distance which draws the curious player to investigate). It is one of the strengths of a good content designer to understand where to be heavy handed and where to use a light touch.
Check out the full blog on the official TSW website.