The importance of a paper prototype can allude people from time to time. Why do we need a paper prototype? Well not only is it useful for helping other members of a team conceptualize what is being created, but it can be tested. A paper prototype can be played with and readjusted. It can help us figure out what works and what doesn’t. Others can play it and tell you what mechanics fall flat. Some might just focus on the look of the game, but the physicality of the prototype is not just a visualization. A prototype’s purpose is interactivity. Only focusing on the end goal and not the process can cause a game to fail when you thought the idea was completely perfect and never make changes.

Within the process of creating a game, there is a vision. The vision is the game concept, planning and building. Mark Barrett supports this with his in depth explanation of what the vision is. He explains that the vision starts as just a description of the game and some art to help envision the look of it. This is the production of a game concept and the first part of the vision. After the game concept, a plan for it’s execution can be thought up. It should be simple and easy to understand mock ups. Once the basic game exists, this leads to his next point of core mechanics and fleshing out the game. Without core mechanics, the game is unplayable. A narrative with no mechanics can heavily impact a game. For example, pokemon without battles is missing a core mechanic. It would have a story, but it wouldn’t be the same. A game needs to have balance. If there is only a focus on the core and nothing else, it leaves a boring concept that doesn’t challenge the player.

There is always a concentration on balance with games. There is a prototype to find balance. There must be balance between the core mechanics, secondary mechanics and narrative. Everything must fit together properly for a perfect game, but of course a perfect game does not exist. So, with all of this importance on balance, is it fair to say that balance is more than just the pieces fitting together? It’s the combination of these parts that best fit with what the target audience wants. In the end, if the target audience likes it, it’s perfect in the creator’s eyes.

Works Cited

Fullerton, Tracy. Game Design Workshop: a Playcentric Approach to Creating Innovative Games. CRC Press, 2019.

GDC. “Hitchhiker’s Guide to Rapid Prototypes!” Online video clip.YouTube, 6 September 2017. Web. 19 February 2020.