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Lean Game Development
Seth Sivak
DISCLAIMER
What is this talk about?
Game
Design!
Game
Development
What makes
   games
 different?
Game Development is hard
Art + Graphics
Sound + Music
Story
Gameplay
Social Connectivity
Replayability
Controls
Hardware + Platform
Team + Schedule + Budget
There are a lot of moving parts
And it has to be fun!

“30 Seconds of Fun”




                      “Interesting Choices”
How do we
handle the
 creative
 process?
Hypothesis
 Design
  Build
  Test
 Analyze
 Iterate
Twitter Logo
Hypothesis – This bird will make a good logo
Design and Build –
Test – “Do you like it?” – “No.”
Analyze – “She didn’t like it.”
Iterate – Try again…
“I don’t like this one.”   “I like this one.”
Less cartoony, more
                             professional




                                               Head back as if ready to
Cleaner lines, Simpler
                                                       sing
Develop Creative Analysis Skills
  Did we achieve the desired outcome?
  What caused the final outcome?
  What causes the desired outcome
  in other products?
  How can the desired outcome be
  reached in our product?
How do we
build a game?
Lean Game Development
Concept

Design

Production

Launch

Live Operation
Metrics vs. Creativity
Concept
Know the Market & Team
Market Research

Competitive Analysis

Team Interest
Travel and Explore   Quest and Story
Design
Find the Fun
Bush Mazes
Navigate the maze using the
least energy possible
Metal Detector Minesweeper
Use the Metal Detector to save Energy
Memory Puzzle
Hit the switch to see the pattern
                                                     3
                                            4
                                        1
                                    2


                                                Light them in order to
                                                   get the Treasure
Swipe words to clear them
before time runs out
PLAYTEST
Production
      Build the Product
Classic
Improved
Innovative
Production
                    Build the Product

                               Classic
    Innovative
                                    Improved   Innovative

                 Classic                                    Classic
Improved
                           Innovative
                                                Improved
Classic
Improved
Innovative
Classic
Improved
Innovative
Innovation requires iteration
PLAYTEST
Launch
           Test and Optimize
Price Testing

Progression

Performance

Balance

FTUE

Virality
Prepare for Launch
Predict possible problems, have solutions ready

Understand your metrics, formulate ranges

Model potential outcomes

Determine leading indicators

Practice, Practice, Practice
Launch is a Wave
Alpha

Beta

Soft Launch

Public Launch

Cross Promotion

Marketing
Live Operation
Understand your Audience
Product Management Cycle
Feature      Week 1          Week 2      Week 3    Week 4    Week 5
Feature 1    Spec            Manage      Analyze
Feature 2                    Spec        Manage    Analyze
Feature 3                                Spec      Manage    Analyze




Hypothesis          Design            Manage       Test      Analyze
Hypothesis
 Design
  Build
  Test
 Analyze
 Iterate
Lean Game Development
Concept – Know the Market and Team
Design – Find the Fun
Production – Build the Product
Launch – Test and Optimize
Live Operation – Understand your Audience
Takeaways
Develop Creative Analysis Skills
Find the Fun
Playtest
Prioritize
Prove it
Questions?

Seth@Proletariat.com
@sjsivak
http://bit.ly/sivakGDC2012
Iteration times were long.




   1985           1986
And they became longer…




   1986         1988
And budgets increased…
It was hard to reach customers
Along comes Games as a Service
And it was a short sales cycle
$120,000,000

$100,000,000

 $80,000,000

 $60,000,000
                                                 Avatar
 $40,000,000                                     Borderlands 2
 $20,000,000

         $0
               1   3         5         7     9
                       Weeks After Release
And longer…




1988            1991

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Lean Game Development

Editor's Notes

  1. Game development is hard
  2. A lot of moving parts and they need to be interesting!
  3. A lot of moving parts and they need to be interesting!
  4. Interest requires iteration
  5. Think critically about your feelings
  6. Iteration is awesome, but it takes time
  7. Think critically about your feelings
  8. Not creative all the way through
  9. You can choose not to use this, and go all art.
  10. Interest requires iteration