Chris Kohler
Culture

Clive Thompson Talks <cite>Dungeon Maker</cite>

Clive Thompson’s column on the front page today uses XSeed’s new PSP game Dungeon Maker as a springboard from which to launch a discussion about level design and video games: Basically, if you strip away the ghouls and enchanted magikal attacks, it’s a game about … architecture. Yet here’s the thing: In a way, all […]

Dungeonmaker_030Clive Thompson's column on the front page today uses XSeed's new PSP game Dungeon Maker as a springboard from which to launch a discussion about level design and video games:

Basically, if you strip away the ghouls and enchanted magikal attacks, it's a game about ... architecture.

Yet here's the thing: In a way, all games are. That's what "level design" is, after all: Architecture and landscape design. If you listen to gamers rave -- or complain -- about their latest title, half the time they're talking about what urban theorists would call the "built environment."

The Subtle Pleasures of Building a Dungeon [Wired]