Hello Unity!
I’m still trying to improve my leader abilities. I lack some knowledge in the Design Doc area. How exactly do you guys form out your Design Docs, and what is the layout etc. ?
Thanks for any tips, advice, links and stuff!
Hey, thanks a lot for that link. Really informative, I will get reading right away!
There is even books on this topic!
Avoid design documents if you’re still in the design phase though. They name is deceptive.
If you’re still designing then whiteboards, maps, drawings ect are the way to get stuff done. You can’t start locking your game away into categories if you don’t yet know how it’s truly going to work and the only way to know/communicate that before coding it is to draw it out.
I would agree with Cameron. Start with your inevitable pile of notes and sketches. Sit down with your team and brainstorm a bit. Then, prototype a very, very quick prototype (which Unity is amazing at). Doing this, you’ll see what works, what doesn’t and you’ll come up with some great new ways to do things. This will also give the other developers (programmers and artists) ideas on how they want to approach things. Take more notes throughout this process and start laying out the basics of the design document. THEN, start fleshing out the design document.
The biggest thing to keep in mind about a design document is that it will never be finished. Accept this. You will be changing it and adjusting it during the development process. Keep a couple pages open in the beginning to note “versions” of the document and the changes you’ve made. Then be sure to inform your team of those changes.
I know. We already have sat down, discussed all our notes, and compiled a Concept Document. Now we want to create the Design Document, so we can hire outside programmers and artists. 