1. New to Game Development Chas. Boyd Principal Program Manager Microsoft Corporation

2. Game Creation for the New Breed This is a unique moment in the history of game development. Never before has it been so easy to create a new game, distribute it to 100s of millions of potential users, and get paid. Here is what you need to know to create an entertaining app for the Windows 8 marketplace, including the basics of planning, game design, development, and distribution.

3. Agenda Preproduction = Market Analysis, Concept Development, Process Setup The New Opportunity Range of PCs Market analysis, platform lifecycle, scale of opportunity Concept Development The Breadth of the Genre Basics from Chris, 3 types, Be open minded, Be playful visual style: limbo, braid, osmos, etc. Resurgence of innovation in gameplay, visuals, and the definitaoin of game itself gameplay: osmos, minecraft, powdertoy, skywalk The Game Development Process prog, design, art, biz Sources of Inspiration/Creativity Demo scene, customer feedback, arcades Resources Gamasutra, Crawford, GDC, forums and blogs

4. Three Presentations Today Step by Step through Game Development  How to set up the game<- You are here  How to code it  How to optimize it

5. The Game Development Process Pre-Production Customer Identification Ideation/Creativity Production Game Design Art Coding Biz

6. Me Education: Aeronautical Engineering Microsoft DirectX since DX3 Favorite Games: Space War, Battlezone, Tailgunner, Rogue, Gauntlet, Diablo Original Doom, Heretic, Hexen, Everquest, World of Warcraft, Left 4 Dead

7. You want to make money

8. The Opportunity Chapter 1/4

9. 1,250,000,000 Windows PCs world-wide 525,000,000 Windows 7 PCs sold by Jan 1 400,000,000 new PCs to be sold in 2012 >500,000,000 estimated Windows 8-capable

10. Game Revenue $70,000,000,000 game revenue 1,000,000,000 gamers $21,600,000,000 mobile phone & tablet game revenue

11. Windows 8 PC Spectrum

12. Varying Across the Spectrum User situation Session duration Input methods Network quality Display size Processor performance Graphics feature level RAM available Size of app package

13. Constant Across the Spectrum Processor core count Display resolution (Pixel density) Display quality and color range

14. The Gap: 20min playtime -couch (or commute) Touch or accelerometer input Multiplayer via WiFi Photo-real graphics 1GB download There are very few titles that leverage the power of the PC in the situations of the tablet

15. The Biggest Opportunity

16. Platforms have Cycles Early Phase: Immature tools, middleware infrastructure Small installbase Few participants Mature Phase: Stable Tools, rich middleware Large installbase Large field with dominant players

17. Platform Lifecycles Metro-style apps constitute a new platform It is going to be huge Unless you are a household brand, visibility is critical Get Out There Early

18. Market Data Tons on the web: NPD, Nielsen, Distimo, Flurry, etc. Other Apps Most stores make some info public Valve Steam Survey Skewing towards casual over time

19. Concept Development Chapter 2/4

20. Title Categories Toy Puzzle Game Types of gameplay: Play-through once vs Evergreen? Extensible via add-ons?

21. Source Material Gameplay Design: Existing Toys, Puzzles, Arcade Games Resources: Gamasutra, GDC, Forums, Casual Connect, Local groups,

22. Source Material Art Design: Demo Scene -pouet.net, scene.org Photographs -definition of photoreal Art Styles Roman mosaics, pointillism, greek urns, heiroglyphics, oil paintings, wood cuts, shadow puppets, tissue paper cut-outs, blueprints, etc., etc.

23. Innovation There is an opportunity to innovate like never before Flexibility of the Hobbyist + Investment of the AAA shop There is now a renaissance in game design

25. Exploit the limitations of the medium

26. Don’t over-reach Start with a small project and iterate to improve Store telemetry feedback can help

27. Think of a good name for your game

28. Setting Up Shop Chapter 3/4

29. The Game Development Process Pre Production Customer Identification Ideation/Creativity Production Game Design Art Coding Biz

30. Game Design Role Organize the results of that creativity in gameplay Implement key algorithms, at least on paper, but ideally in some kind of code or script Getting to operational is the first step Use dummy objects, placeholder assets

31. Artist Role Organize the results of that creativity in visual styles Prototype visual effects for the key elements Make sure you have the tools you need Experiment to find easy ways to create the visuals Write down the list of steps involved They may form the seed of your art pipeline Make sure visuals don’t get posted online without your approval

32. Software Dev Role Set up the build machine(s) Converge on the language to be used Install the current dev bits Get a codebase up and running e.g. based on a sample app To unblock gameplay development

33. Biz Role Validate that the market exists Make sure the planned monetization strategy is aligned with the expected use scenario Sign up for the store Sign up for facebook and twitter accounts Look into a domain name and hosting Look into becoming an LLC

34. Business Details Chapter 4/4

35. Existing relationship Subscriptions Consumable purchases Use your existing commer ce Time-limited trials Feature-differentiated trials One- time purchas e Persistent purchases Expiring purchases In-App purchas es & DLC Choice of ad services Ad- supporte d Purchases roam across devices and CPU architectures

36. Source: The Windows Phone Developer blog, March 2011 10% conversion 70× downloads 10× revenue Trials matter

37. Source: Distimo, August 2011 72% of revenue comes from apps that feature in-app offers 48% of revenue is solely from in-app offers In-app offers matter

38. Discoverability on Windows Scale Metro IE Integration Web Traffic (e.g., search, social)

40. Windows 8 Store: Global Reach & Transparency Commerce in 200+ markets at launch Store & apps in 100+ languages at launch Local currencies in 70+ markets at launch App submission in 40+ markets at launch Many market-specific catalogs Predictable Concise Clear Safe Fair

41. Best Economics Revenue sharing for new app: 70% to start Revenue sharing after app grosses $25K: 80% You control the pricing of your app: $1.49 - $999.99

44. Monetization: Best Practices One app for both trial and full functionality Tell users about limitations of the trial Register callback for license changes Encourage additional purchases Increase engagement = grow game value over time

45. Success Factors A Great Concept Innovative and appealing to the chosen audience A Polished Implementation Excellent user experience from discovery on Good Visibility Getting the word out via effective media Appropriate Business Model Pricing, trial vs in-app purchase vs DLC vs ad-based

46. Additional Resources Keep an eye out for help: Friends, relatives may have useful skills e.g. tester Crowd-funding may be what you need Kickstarter or similar sites

47. Time to Act Biggest opportunity. Ever. Windows 8 Consumer Preview is now available. Check out the store. Go build great games. http://dev.windows.com

48. Q & A

50. Agenda

51. General Guidelines Chapter 1/4

52. Q&A

53. Choose 1 core color and up to 3 more secondary colors. The core color should be used on the first walk-in slide. RGB 255 190 0 RGB 255 242 0

57. Beautiful Imagery Chapter 2/4

58. Use Full Screen Images to Capture your Audience Copy the gradient and caption text from this slide to your full screen image. Your Caption Here

59. The Power of Images

60. Using Tiles Chapter 3/4

63. Using Icons Chapter 4/4