The Team behind Game Development

The process of making a video game is as much an art as it is science and was once primarily managed by a single programmer. In the early 1980s, during the home computers and game consoles era, the programmer handled all aspects of the development, from programming to graphic design. Sometimes the process could take as little as two months.

As video games increased in popularity and consumer expectations of commercial games increased, a typical game project became highly specialized. The entire process of designing a game requires a team of skilled artists, game designers, writers, programmers, producers, and publishers.

Games are costly, with a multiplatform game's budget typically skirting the $30 million mark. High-profile games usually cost more, exceeding the $40 million mark. And it is the publisher's responsibility to pay the game developers' staff–whether internal or external.

Typically, the publisher is a company that publishes the video games they have developed within their organization or is outsourced to an external developer. Like how book publishers operate, video game publishers oversee the manufacturing and marketing of the product. They own the game's intellectual property, and depending on their size, they also oversee the distribution of their games or contract it out to distribution companies.

The producer could be external or internal. Internal producers manage the development team and practically oversee the hiring process, developers' team, schedules, and progress reports. The external producer works closely with the publisher. Their job description includes contract negotiation, public relations, quality assurance, and budget management. Some external producers may double as project managers and project leads.

The game designer serves as the visionary of most games. They are responsible for creating a concept for the game. At the beginning stage, they decide which category the game falls within. Generally, the genres a game might fall under are six in number: simulations, strategy, shooting, fighting, adventure, and RJA (Run, Jump and Avoid).

From designing the gameplay to defining the structure and rules of the game, the game designer is crucial in the entire development process. Some designers double as writers and contribute significant material to the game's commentary, dialogue, and plot. They also participate in developing the narrative for a cutscene. There might be multiple designers on a larger project, focusing on a different aspect of the game like characters, graphics, dialogue, or user interface.

The programmer, or software engineer, is in charge of the codebase development of a game. A typical game project will have more than one programmer. Their responsibilities vary from managing the game tools, developing network communications, and designing the user interface. They write scripts for the events and interactions and build a unique base engine.

The complete physics of the game, the simulation of the opponents' AI, and the integration of sound effects, speech, and music are all within the ambit of a programmer. A level designer works closely with the programmer to create multiple levels, missions and challenges. They create these by writing a unique set of programs.

Writers provide the game with a comprehensive and imaginative story complete with characters, plot, and setting. They furnish the game with purpose and ensure it is as entertaining and rewarding as the players. A team of writers would compile information on the players' objectives and guiding rules into a game manual. By this time, the team would have organized a game design document that involves every detail of the development process and guides the members.