Arcade Berg aka. "Learning Game Design with Arcade Berg"

Ideas doesn’t make good games alone

I love new concepts in games. New, fresh ideas. I love playing them and I love creating them even more. One game I've made even got nominated for Best Game Concept in the Swedish Game Awards 2006.

Indie Games especially often show off interesting concepts.

However, a great idea or a new feature doesn't in any way guarantee a good game.

If you want to test your skills as a designer and prove to people that you're good, my challenge to you is to take a common type of game, like a 2D Side Scrolling Platformer or an FPS and without introducing anything really new; make the game kick ass!

Now that's something that's really, really, really hard! Just polish and tweak it like a fanatic, untill the game is as fun as it can be. Make it feel good, tight and smooth.

New Super Mario Bros. for the Nintendo DS for example. It didn't really introduce anything new but it's one of the best platformers from recent years. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare didn't actually bring anything new to the table. Yet, it's loved by pretty much everyone for being one of the best shooters ever.

How did Nintendo and Infinity Ward to it? Probably using Voodoo and Black Magic, but I bet there's a crazy amount of design work and play-testing involved as well!

Never underestimate the work it takes to actually make a great game.