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<blockquote data-quote="Puddles" data-source="post: 8202306" data-attributes="member: 7026093">Here's a few of mine that I would add to the list <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />: (most that I have picked up from others).Game Design is an Iterative ProcessYou write rules, you test them, you tweak them, you repeat this again and again until the deadline looms and you run out of time to do any more! Usually your rules will start off with a lot of fat, and this process is about trimming them down to the core essentials.Don't Be Afraid to Murder Your DarlingsAs a designer, it's easy to get overly attached to certain mechanics or rules. Often these are rules that are quite convoluted in the pursuit of realism. You should have no sacred cows, and when something isn't meshing with the rest of the rules, or players are struggling to understand the point of the mechanic. It might be time to remove it.The Shorter Rule is the Better RuleIf there are two ways of doing something mechanically, or of wording a rule. Go for the shorter one.Use Language Like A Computer CodeI don't mean to not use natural English, I am very much a fan of natural English than game jargon. What I mean is, apply a consistency to your use of language that means you could input it into a computer without crashing. For example, if in your game, each character has a 'Movement Characteristic' that defines how far they can move in a turn. Always refer to it as a &quot;Movement Characteristic&quot;, and refrain from calling it something else like their &quot;Speed&quot;, &quot;Movement Rate&quot;, &quot;Move Value&quot; or anything other than the defined game term.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Puddles, post: 8202306, member: 7026093"] Here's a few of mine that I would add to the list :): (most that I have picked up from others). [B]Game Design is an Iterative Process[/B] You write rules, you test them, you tweak them, you repeat this again and again until the deadline looms and you run out of time to do any more! Usually your rules will start off with a lot of fat, and this process is about trimming them down to the core essentials. [B]Don't Be Afraid to Murder Your Darlings[/B] As a designer, it's easy to get overly attached to certain mechanics or rules. Often these are rules that are quite convoluted in the pursuit of realism. You should have no sacred cows, and when something isn't meshing with the rest of the rules, or players are struggling to understand the point of the mechanic. It might be time to remove it. [B]The Shorter Rule is the Better Rule[/B] If there are two ways of doing something mechanically, or of wording a rule. Go for the shorter one. [B]Use Language Like A Computer Code[/B] I don't mean to not use natural English, I am very much a fan of natural English than game jargon. What I mean is, apply a consistency to your use of language that means you could input it into a computer without crashing. For example, if in your game, each character has a 'Movement Characteristic' that defines how far they can move in a turn. Always refer to it as a "Movement Characteristic", and refrain from calling it something else like their "Speed", "Movement Rate", "Move Value" or anything other than the defined game term. [/QUOTE]

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