Designer

Many development projects have a lead game designer who is responsible for the creation of the game script. The designer could be one of the most misunderstood of any of the key positions and is often left completely off the team. This leaves room for everyone from the producer to a programmer clamoring for the title.

It is the designer who makes many of the decisions related to the creation of important aspects such as puzzles or the levels in an FPS. Like a screenwriter for a movie, he is responsible for the overall feel of the game. Communication is a very important aspect of the job as he works with the other team members throughout the duration of a project.

In the beginning stages of a game, the designer spends most of his time focusing on writing short scripts and working on the beginning storyboard sketches. A typical storyboard displays the action of a game, albeit in a very simple manner. Depending on the basic talents of the designer, the storyboards may even include stick figures and basic shapes to convey their messages. They are a sort of rough draft that will later be transformed into the game itself.

After the decisions have been made on the game concepts, the designers begin working on a blueprint for the game, called a design document. The design document is discussed thoroughly in the next chapter as we begin working on our FPS. Simply put, the document details every aspect of a game and will evolve as the game is being developed

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