A Psychological Approach To order this title, and for more information, click here
By Katherine Isbister, Associate Professor, Department of Language, Literature and Communication, RPI; Director of the Games Research Lab, RPI; Chair of the MS in HCI Program, RPI
Games are poised for a major evolution, driven by growth in technical sophistication and audience reach. Characters that create powerful
social and emotional connections with players throughout the game-play itself (not just in cut scenes) will be essential to next-generation
games.
However, the principles of sophisticated character design and interaction are not widely understood within the game development
community. Further complicating the situation are powerful gender and cultural issues that can influence perception of characters. Katherine
Isbister has spent the last 10 years examining what makes interactions with computer characters useful and engaging to different audiences.
This work has revealed that the key to good design is leveraging player psychology: understanding what's memorable, exciting,
and useful to a person about real-life social interactions, and applying those insights to character design. Game designers who create
great characters often make use of these psychological principles without realizing it.
Better Game Characters by Design
gives game design professionals and other interactive media designers a framework for understanding how social roles and perceptions
affect players' reactions to characters, helping produce stronger designs and better results.
Audience
Game designers, programmers, art directors, and sound designers, and HCI professionals. Students will learn how to design effective interactive
characters and gain an understanding of social roles and perceptions that can apply.
Contents
About the Author
Foreword by Tim Schafer
Preface
About the DVD
I First Impressions
What
Is Covered and Why
Who Will Find Part I Most Useful
Overview of Key Concepts
Take-Aways from Part I
1
Social Surface
1.1 What Is Covered and Why
1.2 The Psychological Principles
1.3 Design Pointers
1.4 Interview:
Gonzalo Frasca
1.5 Summary and What Is Next
1.6 Exercises
1.7 Further Reading
2 Practical Questions
- Dominance, Friendliness, and Personality
2.1 What Is Covered and Why
2.2 The Psychological Principles
2.3 Design
Pointers
2.4 Summary and What Is Next
2.5 Exercises
2.6 Further Reading
II
Focus on the Player
What Is Covered and Why
Who Will Find Part II Most Useful
Overview of Key Concepts
Take-Aways
from Part II
3 Culture
3.1 What Is Covered and Why
3.2 The Psychological Principles
3.3 Design Pointers
3.4
Interview: Ryoichi Hasegawa and Roppyaku Tsurumi of Sony
3.5 Interview: Lewis Johnson
3.6 Summary and What Is Next
3.7
Exercises
3.8 Further Reading
4 Gender
4.1 What Is Covered and Why
4.2 The Psychological Principles
4.3
Design Pointers
4.4 Interviews with Gamers - Personal Perspectives
4.5 Summary and What Is Next
4.6 Exercises
4.7
Further Reading
III Using a Character's Social Equipment
What Is Covered and Why
Who
Will Find Part III Most Useful
Overview of Key Concepts
Take-Aways from Part III
5 The Face
5.1 What Is
Covered and Why
5.2 The Psychological Principles
5.3 Design Pointers
5.4 Summary and What Is Next
5.5
Exercises
5.6 Further Reading
6 The Body
6.1 What Is Covered and Why
6.2 The Psychological Principles
6.3
Design Pointers
6.4 Interview: Chuck Clanton
6.5 Summary and What Is Next
6.6 Exercise
6.7 Further Reading
7
The Voice
7.1 What Is Covered and Why
7.2 The Psychological Principles
7.3 Design Pointers
7.4 Further
Directions - Emotion Detection
7.5 Interview: MIT Media Lab's Zeynep Inanoglu and Ron Caneel
7.6 Summary and What Is
Next
7.7 Exercise
7.8 Further Reading
7.9 Answers to Exercises
IV Characters
in Action
What Is Covered and Why
Who Will Find Part IV Most Useful
Overview of Key Concepts
Take-Aways
from Part IV
8 Player-Characters
8.1 What Is Covered and Why
8.2 The Psychological Principles
8.3 Design
Pointers
8.4 Interview: Marc Laidlaw
8.5 Summary and What Is Next
8.6 Exercises
8.7 Further Reading
8.8
Acknowledgments
9 Nonplayer-Characters
9.1 What Is Covered and Why
9.2 The Psychological Principles
9.3
Dimensions of Social Roles and NPCs
9.4 Common Social Roles in Games
9.5 Design Guidelines
9.6 Summary and What
Is Next
9.7 Exercises
9.8 Further Reading
V Putting It All Together
What
Is Covered and Why
Who Will Find Part V Most Useful
Overview of Key Concepts
Take-Aways from Part V
10
Process
10.1 What Is Covered and Why
10.2 Arguments for Bringing a Social-Psychological Approach to Game Development
10.3
The Development Time Line
10.4 Building in the Social-Psychological Approach
10.5 Interview: Tim Schafer
10.6
Summary and What Is Next
10.7 Further Reading
11 Evaluation
11.1 What Is Covered and Why
11.2
The Psychological Principles
11.3 Current Evaluation Practice in Game Design: Market Research and Play Testing
11.4 Taking
Design to the Next Level with Preproduction Evaluation
11.5 A Note on Postproduction Evaluation
11.6 Evaluation Checklist
11.7
Games Usability Perspectives
11.8 Interview: Randy Pagulayan
11.9 Interview: Nicole Lazzaro
11.10 Affective Sensing:
An Evaluation Method for the Future?
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