(6) A Fill In Design Document Template

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A Fill In Design Document Template

Following is a sample design document that you can use for your own designs but remember these are just guidelines that you don’t have to follow exactly. If you don’t think a section applies to your game or it is missing something, don’t think twice about changing it.

General Overview

This is usually a paragraph or two describing the game very generally. It should describe the game genre and basic theme, as well as the objective of the player briefly.
It is a summary of the game.

Target System and Requirements

This should include the target system—Windows, Macintosh, or any other system like consoles—and a list of requirements for the game.

Story

Come on, this isn’t any mind breaker, it is the game story. What happened in the past (before the game starts), what is happening when the player is starting the game, and possibly what will happen while the game progresses.

Theme: Graphics and Sound

This section describes the overall theme of the game, if it is set in ancient time in a land of fantasy or two thousand years in the future on planet Neptune. It should also contain descriptions or at least hints of the scenery and sound to be used.

Menus

This section should contain a small description and objective of the main menus, like Start Game or the Options menu.

Playing a Game (Game Play)

This is probably the trickier section; it should describe what happens from the time the user starts the game to when it starts to play, what usually happens, and how it ends. It is like you were describing what you would be seeing on the screen if you were playing the game yourself.

Characters and NPCs Description

This section should describe the characters and the NPCs as well as possible. Their names, backgrounds, attributes, special attacks, and so on.
NOTE : NPC stands for Not Player Characters or Non Player Controlled. I’ve seen both descriptions being used to describe what an NPC is, but they basically say the same thing, so just pick the one you prefer.

Artificial Intelligence Overview

There are two options for this section, either give an all-around general description of the game artificial intelligence and let the programmers pick that and develop their own set of rules, or describe just about every possible reaction and action an NPC can have.

Conclusion

This is usually a small paragraph with, obviously, a conclusion to the game. It may feature the motivation to create the game or some explanation why the game is as it is done.

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