The Illinois of Art, Chicago	Scriptwriting for Games
	Instructor: Lindsay Grace

 

Writing Mechanics Resources:

Diction: Choosing the right word can help you to be a better writer. Like every industry, the game industry has many words, acronyms, and phrases that reference specific concepts related to game design. Some of these terms we use in our every day speech, such as RPG and PC (Player character). The benefit of using industry specific terms is in their efficiency. It is much faster and easier to refer to an FPS than to a game that simulates the experience of carrying a gun and shooting enemies from a first person perspective. Review the following resource for game industry diction:

IGDA Glossary of Game Writing Terms: http://www.igda.org/writing/WritersGlossary.htm

Grammar: Choice of word order, sentence structure and related work assure that your writing is not only clear, but also exciting and engaging. Basic grammar is required for understandable writing, while clever use of grammatical standards allows a writer's work to "pop." The following links may help you with specific grammat questions:

Purdue's OWL writing basics site: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/

Presentation: Standards for presentation of game writing documents varies by game company and by writer. You will be provided with a sample presentation for each of the relevant assignments.

In case you forgot why this is important, High Voltage offers the following inspiriation on their job board for a game designer:

"Writing documents including: design documents, concept/sales documents, flow charts of game and menu systems, outlines of all major art, sound, and programming requirements."

"Applicants should send three samples of design work and/or game writing.

For example: Write a compelling five-page document selling a game idea to mindless money-grubbing suits. Build a fun level for a published game (Quake, Starcraft, whatever). Write a document painstakingly detailing two new Street Fighter characters for the programmer who is writing the code and the artist who needs to build them. If you really want to impress, write a one-page document that convinces anyone who reads it that a game titled ?Car Washer? would actually work. Warning: Unpublished pen-and-paper RPG material is everywhere; don't bother unless it kicks ass."

 

 

 

 

 

Provided by Lindsay Grace for students of the Illinois Institute of Art, Chicago. These documents may be used by others when properly credited. Please email lgrace at aii edu for more information.