What is the First Phase of Game Development?
What is the first phase of game development? This article will give you a brief overview of what this phase entails and how it relates to your business. The first step in any game development process is conceptualization. This means that someone has an idea for a video game and they communicate their vision for it with other members on their team. Once they have agreed on the details, they start work on making the actual product come to life.
What is video game development?
The first thing to know about video game development is that it’s a term used for a process by which you can manage and develop games. That means anything from the idea, concept art, sound design all the way down to programming and testing your final product.
In this article we will talk specifically about the first phase of video game development, which is pre-production. This phase is all about planning and building the game’s foundation. It can be broken down into five main steps.
A lot of thought and effort goes into creating a video game, but if you have a plan and know what to do in each stage of development, it will make the process much easier.
The rest of this article is dedicated to explaining the most important things you should know about each pre-production stage and why they are crucial for your game’s success.
The Stages of Game Development
In today’s market, many developers are turning to creating mobile games as they have become extremely popular and profitable. In order to create a successful game for the smartphone or tablet market, you must first understand the phases of development that are required before even writing one line of code. These stages include: concept, design, prototyping, testing and lastly implementation.
The Concept Stage
This phase is the most critical stage of game development because it involves creating an idea for a new product or taking your existing one to the next level. This will involve meetings with producers in order to determine if there are any market opportunities within their company for this new game. If there are, then the next step of development will begin with creating a design document for your new product.
The Design Stage
This is where you’ll create all of the visual aspects of your mobile or video game including storyboards, character concepts and user interface designs. This includes everything from how it looks to what users can actually do within the game. When this is all completed, it will be handed off to your programmer so they can start creating a prototype for you.
The Prototyping Stage
This is where you’ll actually see how everything works in your game and whether or not it’s fun. This is done by creating a simple working version of your game and taking it through a series of tests with real users. If the game is not enjoyable, then you will need to go back into your design phase until users enjoy playing what they see.
The Testing Stage
This stage is all about verifying that everything works as intended and whether or not it’s fun for users. It can be done through a process called alpha and beta testing. Alpha tests usually consist of internal employees who are close to the development team while beta tests include real users that finish playing your game once they download it onto their mobile device or computer.
The Implementation Stage
Now you can add all of the finishing touches including any remaining programming, adding voice overs and sound effects, and finally submitting your game to the app store or other digital marketplaces.
It’s important to understand these stages of development so you can properly budget your time and resources into creating a successful mobile or video game. By following this guide, you’ll be well on your way to releasing a product that will be enjoyed by gamers all over the world.
Why is a Game Design Document (GDD) so important in video game development?
A GDD is a blueprint to building video games that includes every aspect of what you want your final product to be. It can range from just an overall concept, all the way down to specific control schemes and how many frames per second each scene will have.
Production Process
The first phase of game development is the production process. This is when the game is created, and it involves a lot of work from artists, programmers, and designers. They all have to come together to create a functional game that can be played by users.
The production process usually starts with creating concept art. This is where the team decides what the game will look like and how it will play. They create sketches and prototypes to help them visualize the game.
After the concept art is complete, the programmers start creating the game engine. This is the software that will power the game. It takes a lot of work to get everything working correctly, but it’s worth it since it will help speed up future development.
Once the game engine is ready, artists create all of the art for the game. They use concept art as a guide to make sure they are on track with what was envisioned by the team.
Finally, designers start creating levels and scripting events that happen in-game. The design document is their bible, and they make sure everything in the game is as close to it as possible.
Once all of these pieces are complete, the game is ready for beta testing. This is where players get to try out the game and give feedback on what works and what doesn’t. The team takes this feedback and uses it to improve the game before release.
The final phase of game development is the post-release phase. This is where the team continues to update and improve the game based on feedback from players. They also work on new content for players to enjoy.
Post-production
Post-production is the final stage of game development where all other phases are combined to make a finished product. For video games, it typically lasts until the code has been finalized and developers start preparing for manufacturing; at which point post-production ends and pre-distribution begins (e.g., beta testing).
FAQs
What is the first stage of game development?
We have outlined the four phases of game development in this article. In a nutshell, you can think about them as follows: idea, prototype, alpha and beta. So what is the first phase? Well that depends on your project’s size and complexity.
What is a game developer salary?
This is a question that is often asked by people who are interested in becoming game developers. The answer, however, is not straightforward because it depends on various factors such as the experience of the developer, the location of employment, and the type of company. Generally speaking, though, game developers can expect to make a salary that is above average.
According to a report by Gamasutra, the average salary for a game developer in the United States is $92,000. This number is based on data from 2014 and it is likely that the average salary has increased since then. In Canada, the average salary is reported to be $80,000 while in Europe it is around $74,000. The best paying countries for game developers are reported to be the United States and Canada while Sweden is considered to have the highest average salary of $86,000 per year.
These numbers can help aspiring game developers decide if they want to pursue a career in this field based on factors such as cost of living in different locations.
Conclusion
Thanks for reading! This article is just a brief overview of the first phase of game development. If you want to learn more, I suggest checking out some of the excellent resources listed below. Happy developing!