What is a GDD?

GDD is an abbreviation for Game Design Document. It is a material made to guide the development team of a game.   

GDD is essential to the video game industry. Games like Halo, God of War or Zelda have large documents with hundreds, sometimes thousands, of pages to instruct programmers, artists and developers in these projects.  

Blueprint metaphor

Game Design: A Practical Approach is a very interesting book written by Paul Schuytema, a well known game designer. In this guide Schuytema compares the GDD with a blueprint’s house.

Would you start building a house without planning?

Probably you say “I wouldn’t”. A house without a blueprint may have dozens of structural problems. In the worst scenario all the building collapses and goes down because you didn’t plan the construction.

Something similar happens with games: before you get your hands dirty it is important to have a starting point to establish the foundation on which you will build.

In GDD we have the product scope, the players objective, technical specifications, narrative elements and concept arts. It is also recommended to add market information like target audience, similar products available and other analysis to show what makes the game unique and commercially interesting.        

Board Games need GDD?

Video game market is billionaire in number of players and money. The investment in technology, art and marketing to create and promote a game like FarCry 6 is proof that this industry is one of the most profitable in the world. 

Board games industry  has less players, investment in marketing and money. Because of that, the number of professionals in a project is smaller than we find in a video game one. In general a game designer responsible for a board game accumulates many tasks during the development: create the mechanics, conduct playtests, establish narrative plots, write the rulebook, etc.

In many ways, board games are a “handmade” product. 

Similar to a handmade sweater, a board game reveals the talent and personality of those who created it. For that reason it is possible to identify an “Alexander Pfister supporter”, a “Stefan Feld hater”, a “Vital Lacerda lover” or anything similar.

Products full of personality are special, but also can have a slow process of development.

A modern division of labour is fundamental to accelerate production and increase efficiency in any economic activity because less time means saving money and more profits. It is another form to say “time is money”. 

In my personal opinion, GDD is a good mechanism to create a professional work space for the development team. All the members can cooperate with their talents to implement the idea proposed by the game designer and avoid communication problems and misunderstanding.     

GDD Model

There are many models of GDD on the internet, but we developed one most appropriate to our Board Games. You can find the model in this link. 

If you are a game designer at the beginning of your career a GDD is an excellent tool to show your ideas in a workable way. A well-organized GDD is a good complement for your sell sheet and can impress your audience.