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Game Development vocabulary · Gameplay & Game Design

Game design document

Meaning in game development, with examples

nounCore term

In game development, game design document means: A document that describes the planned game in detail, including its concept, mechanics, story, levels, characters and controls, so the whole team builds the same game.

In Turkish: oyun tasarım dokümanı, GDD

How it is used

Usually called the GDD. Modern teams keep it as a living document in a wiki and update it often, instead of writing one huge file at the start. Designers write it; the rest of the team reads it and asks questions.

Example sentences

  1. Before you add a new weapon, check the game design document for the damage rules.

  2. Our game design document is just a wiki now, and each feature has its own page.

Common collocations

  • write a game design document
  • update the GDD
  • living document
  • one-page design document
  • game mechanicA single rule or action that a game is built around, such as jumping, crafting, stealth or a cover system. Several mechanics together make up the gameplay.
  • core loopThe main set of actions a player repeats again and again in a game, for example explore, fight, collect loot and upgrade, then explore again.
  • level designThe work of creating the spaces a game takes place in, such as maps, missions and stages, and deciding where players go, what they meet and how hard it is.
  • prototypeA quick, rough version of a game or feature made to test whether an idea is fun or works, before the team spends time on final art and polish.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Gameplay & Game Design

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