Game Design TheoryCreativity 101

Paul Taylor 2010

Unlocking your creativity and locking it in your cage

Based on Chapter 6 of The Art of Game Design

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Why?

• Becoming a designer will require you to use your creativity on demand.

• It is easy to dream, but far more difficult to create something on demand

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Inspiration• Your Ideas are driven from the

experiences you have had over your life

• When you are trying to generate good ideas, it is important to know the problem

• Having found the problem do not jump to the first solution, this is the creative bit...

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? Overused ?

Going slightly schizophrenic

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To understand your creativity you will need to separate yourself from it a little, and learn to negotiate with it.

To this end we :consider your subconscious to be a different

personNow to meet your subconscious....

He/She is:

• Mute– only talks through imagery and emotions

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Impulsive

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• Emotional

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Playful

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Irrational

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Living with your Subconscious in a professional way

In the same way you manage any of your relationships, you must treat your

subconscious well to work together.

Pay Attention!

• To gain any good ideas from your friend you must listen!

• How?You must pay attention to what your subconscious

offers– thoughts– Ideas, suggestions– Feelings– Emotions– Dreams

Remember the Ideas

• Remember it can be really difficult to get your subconscious to refresh you on an idea it once had

• Writing everything down is a great way to keep your ideas

• You do this when brainstorming in a team, so really you are just doing it more often.– Pictures, notes, dot points, however you

remember best

Look after your subconscious’ appetite

• To be creative it needs to have things to eat– Playing different games– Watching Movies– Going somewhere new– Doing a new activity– Reading an interesting book

These are just some of the ways you can feed your subconscious

Watch out for Junk Food

• Your subconscious will eat whatever you give it

These are some of the Junk foods you need to keep away from your subconscious!

• Dealing with school• You Being Hungry• Being Tired• Outside Pressures

Your subconscious is nocturnal

• When you sleep well, your subconscious is awake.– Whilst you think during the day, your subconscious

does all its great work when you are asleep

Don’t push your friendship!

• Ever had a friend that just wont shut up or leave you alone. The one that just keeps talking?

• Don’t be this person to your subconscious . If you don’t give it time to rest, pretty soon your relationship with it will fail

Overall it is a very personal thing

• Not everything is relevant to you• There will be other things not covered that

will be relevant.• This is a learning exercise, its only through

experience that you can manage and improve your creative abilities

But are all ideas good?

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Next Week...

• The destruction of your ideas