GAME DESIGN 101 WITH HALUK DIRIKER
Those who want to be Game Designers but are waiting for someone to guide are here? Get ready to enter the game design world accompanied by Haluk Diriker, one of the Anima School trainers!
We talked with our trainer about the game designer adventure starting from Age of Conan and briefly about the game world. It's never too late to enter the world of Game Design! We look forward to welcoming you to our training, which will begin on October 12.
Can you tell us a little about yourself, how did you start working in the game industry?
I started the game industry in 2006 at Funcom, Age of Conan as an Artificial Intelligence Designer. At that time I was mainly working as a programmer. Funcom, on the other hand, was looking for programmers who were prone to design. At first, they sent a test with both design and programming questions, and then I was called for an interview. It was a bit of an exciting process since there were not many game developers in Turkey at that time. Honestly, I was confident that they would hire someone from countries with more established industries.
Which project are you most happy to work on so far?
Age of Conan. When you first enter the sector, it feels like a dream to take part in such a big project, especially at that time. Of course, the project had many flaws, as in every project. However, the happiness I experienced on the evening of the first day of the game was so high that it would not be wrong to say that I have never experienced such happiness in my career.
What does a Game Designer do?
Game designers are roughly called experts who design the rules of the game and the player experience accordingly. Although it may seem like an expertise based on generating ideas at first glance, it actually contains much more than that. Since games are complex projects with different branches, everything from audio to visual, from systems to dialogue affects the experience of the player. So as the rank rises, the topics that the game designer must master broaden. If you ask me, for a designer to consider himself/herself a senior, s/he needs to have a good understanding of at least one branch other than his own. So far, I've had to give ideas and direction in every corner of the games, from character animations to network topologies.
Which games design you liked the most? Why?
Actually, there is no such game as my favourite. It is very difficult to compare a strategy game with an action game. It's even hard to rank within their own genres, because there can be so many different action games. For example, how can you compare Street Fighter and Dark Souls series? I think both are very well designed games. When it comes to strategy, I like Civilization or Crusader Kings a lot.
It is much easier to find a common denominator when answering the question why. In my opinion, these games are all games that are true to the experience they promise, have deep and complex systems that do not break their consistency, and visual and audio content that complement them. In order to achieve all these, it is essential to know your target audience and your project well.
Which game engine do you prefer? Why?
Lately I generally prefer to use Unreal. I think Unreal offers a better experience for non-programming branches. You can make very complex game systems using Blueprints, a node-based scripting language, without writing a single line of code. At the same time, I find the visual and sound placement, level design and tools used to place elements more advanced compared to other engines.
Of course this is my personal preference. While working professionally, it is more correct to choose the engine according to the project and personnel. For example, Unity is used more widely because more Hyper-Casual and Casual games are made in Turkey.
Why should we choose Anima School Game Design education?
Our tutorial at Anima School teaches the fundamentals of game design while also introducing two of the most widely used engines, Unreal and Unity. Our aim is to show how games can be designed and produced in different genres and platforms in a hands-on way. So if you're interested in how to design games, whether it's PC strategy or Hyper Casual, we provide a tutorial that can provide you with the essentials.
What advice do you have for those who want to enter the gaming industry?
Preparing a portfolio for themselves is the most important breakthrough they can make. Visual arts professionals are more familiar with this, but programmers and game designers can build their portfolios by doing demo projects.