What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy
James Paul Gee

Gee argues that computer and video games have a great deal to teach us about how to facilitate learning, even in domains outside games. Good computer and video games are complex, challenging, and long; they can take 50 or more hours to finish. If a game cannot be learned well, then it will fail to sell well. (For more publications from this group, click here.)

What Can Education Learn from the Video Game Industry?
A Soapbox Panel organized by the Institute for the Advancement of Emerging Technologies in Education
AEL, Charleston, West Virginia

Imagine a school assignment so intriguing that students make it a top conversation topic and organize parties around it. In other words, imagine school grabbing the kind of attention and time that video games do. The panel includes a high school student and game player who bravely kept the academics grounded in reality.

The use of computer and video games for learning
Alice Mitchell and Carol Savill-Smith
Learning and Skill Development Agency, UK

There are many claims about the usefulness of computer games for learning. Computer games can stimulate users and encourage the development of social and cognitive skills, but frequent use can exacerbate negative psycho-social tendencies, be addictive and have health implications. This review of the literature about the use of computer and video games for learning synthesises the key messages from past research studies and makes some recommendations concerning the planning and design of the future ‘edugames’ .

The Learning Science and Technology R&D Roadmaps
Kay Howell
Federation of American Scientists

The Learning Federation provides a detailed roadmap for research needs if simulation is to become a significant part of the future of learning. (You can download the individual Roadmaps or the Summary.)

The Game Research and Technology web site
Craig Reynolds

An extensive web site is maintained by Craig Reynolds.

Is there any redeeming value to video games?

A list of ten possible ways to improve learning through games.

FAQ Digital Game-Based Learning
Marc Prensky

An FAQ about games and learning.

GameDev.Net

A large web site for game developers. This page lists numerous articles and tutorials.

Video Games, Toys, Robotic Pets & Entertainment

A compendium of information by the AAAI about artificial intelligence and computer games.

How We Built a Hit Game-based Simulation
An article about the game, America’s Army, and how the MOVES Institute managed its development.

The University of Alberta GAMES group web site about their research.

The Wikipedia maintains lists of games and game designers.

Getting into the Video Game industry for animators and artists.

Full Body Interaction, instead of hand-centric interaction, is studied by Jonah Warren.

The complete Wargames Handbook at http://www.hyw.com/Books/WargamesHandbook/Contents.htm

This one came up last term when I was doing a project on the history of computer games and book marked it as something that might be useful for the thesis. The author seems to be a die-hard historical gamer who’s been sucked into the computer world. It’s a great site from a design perspective (i.e. what makes a game play well). It’s very thorough and goes from an assumption of the reader knowing nothing up to some worthwhile ideas. It doesn’t even try to touch on technical issues.

MARK GALLEAR’S GAME DESIGN PAGE at http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Arena/8461/index.html

Describes itself well as:

This guide attempts to give insights into what makes a great computer game. It is not about programming games but concerns itself with design issues. It includes sections on the development of different game genres. This looks at how seminal games in each genre have added to it or taken it in a new direction. Design issues such as using real-time or turn-based systems are examined in depth. Examples include a comparison of Steel Panthers and Command & Conquer. Even if you are just interested in playing games, you will hopefully find it interesting and give you some idea of what to look for in a great game.

Adventure Game Toolkit (AGT) (by David Malmberg and Mark J. Welch) (Generic Adventure Game System, GAGS) at http://www.markwelch.com/agt.htm

I came across this product many years ago in casual browsing, then found it again recently while doing research. Their package assists with the creation of text-based, adventure games with limited graphic and sound support. If my project eventually takes on the dimensions I hope and it is something I can pass on for others to salvage ideas and code from, their model might be a valuable example of one approach to doing this.

Game Architecture Design at http://people.ne.mediaone.net/melkior/gameprog/gadroot.htm

Steve Crocker thinks as I do about imposing the value of a framework and designing well thought out, easily re-used or updated code. Contains two excellent documents one on architecture and another on design. All code, mainly examples, is in C++. Also has a good collection of links to game design sites (so my collection of links to game design sites has a link to his collection — this is getting out of control! If I can get him to link to mine we can view into infinity . Page seems to be part of his homepage as a whole and you can look at his poetry, prose and recordings if you’re so inclined (I wasn’t)

Converting Boardgames for the Computer at http://www.gamesdomain.com/gdr.cgi?depart/dec98/bgmp.html

An article taken from Games Domain Review that focuses on the conversion of board games to computer from a VERY high level.

The Game AI Page: Building Artificial Intelligence into Games at http://www.gameai.com/

A brilliant site put together by someone who is really fascinated by AI and the many ways it can be applied to games. Gives a rundown on the AI strategies currently in use by commercial games, some of the theories that could be adapted to games and small freeware/shareware games that demonstrate AI concepts well (like genetic algorithms). Has a very earthy, personal tone to it that may or may not be your cup of tea (about the same as mine, so if my comments are annoying you, you might not love his site).

Project Armageddon – Next Generation RTS … for free! at http://projecta.simplenet.com/

A real-time strategy game (ala Starcraft) that has been in development since 1996. Has a very pleasing web page and seems to promise quite a game, but very little is currently available. I thought this might be another example of how to put together a web-based product with many different members. The fact that their past members list is three times the size of their current members and the fact that the game has been in production for 4 years makes me lean towards thinking this might not be the best way to do it. If I might be so presumptuous as to suggest that they are trying to follow a cathedral approach with a medium/team that desperately wants a bazaar (see The Cathedral and the Bazaar for the original paper and additional documentation).

RPGMaker.net at http://www.rpgmaker.net/

Formerly RPG Warehouse (or they assimilarted it or something). Big collection of downloads, tutorials and design suggestions for making your own RPGs. Also has tile sets which I’m especially interested in.

Pure Delusion Web Site at http://www.puredelusion.clubnet-uk.com/index.html

A new site beginning development. The 18 year old who started it seems to be recording what he’s learned, so it would be a great starting points for newbies.

Designing Games: rec.games.design FAQ at http://www.cs.queensu.ca/~dalamb/Games/design/design.html

Maintained by my supervisor (breath on nails, polish on shirt) who took it over from Travis Casey.

GameCoding UK at http://homepage.ntlworld.com/paul.gerfen/new_page_2.htm

“The purpose of this site is to gather together everything you will need on one site to write top selling games. I hope this site will meet the needs of tomorrows programmers, whether your a complete beginner or an advanced coder, there’s something for everyone. ” Pretty ambitious purpose, I don’t think he quite pulls it off, but that’s just my 2 cents. Really neat menus (for what it’s worth).

Back to the Table of Contents

Technical

42 – The Answer to you programming questions at http://www.steinke.net/42/index.html

Self-described as “a collection of tutorials and articles on various aspects of game development. Most of this site covers 2d algorithms, especially tile based techniques.” Also provides information about enemy AI, game design, graphic effects, fast sprites as well as some of the authors own programs (at least two of which are distributed with source code). The nine articles provided seem to be a good introduction to how games can be programmed using tiles, with one giving an overview as how this is implemented in classic NES game Zelda. A section on design tips give good, solid common-sense advice on how to avoid designing “features” sure to irritate long-time gamers. Because of the tight focus of the articles and tutorials, you might not find what you’re looking for (if tiles aren’t your bag baby). This is probably the whole point and I’m missing it. <!–

Big T’s C/C++ Resource Center at http://www.redrival.com/bigt/index.html

I stumbled upon this when I was going through a big AI binge over the holidays, but the site is quite a bit broader in scope. Discusses general C/C++ programming (including style), I/O, Networking, Graphics, then has some source code for older big-name games and a collection of compilers to choose from. There were definitely useful resources I found here that I’m planning to come back for. My only beef is that the page tries to get you to sign up for allAdvantage-type stuff (I guess the guy has to pay for bandwidth, BUT ) –>

The “Influence Mapping” Thread (Summary) from comp.ai.games at http://www.gameai.com/influ.thread.html

A collection of messages posted to comp.ai.games that seems to be a very reasonable approach to evaluating which force “controls” what area of the battlefield and from this allow the ai to make some tactical decisions. It is of particular interest to me, as it seems like something that would be easily implemented on my tile-based battlefield and might make the ai a bit more playable. Like any collection of message from a newsgroup, the quality of post varies, but from a first skim this looks to have a high signal-to-noise ratio.

Welcome to Gamedev.net, Game Dictionary, and Demo News at http://www.gamedev.net/

A potpourri of game design goodies, this is a frequently referred to site in the game design newsgroups that delivers with more solid technical articles and forums than I have seen elsewhere. Describes its own content as “theory, design, art, music, physics, graphics, OpenGL, news, Source Code, AI, Sound, Assembly, Discussion Forums, and more!” Nice design with a slightly chaotic feel to it.

generation5.org at http://www.generation5.org

Claims to be at “the forefront of Artificial Intelligence”. Seems to have some essays on general AI principles that I hope will be useful when I get seriously into developing the AI component of the game. Interview section looks like it might be interesting to browse through. Site is difficult to navigate as a whole.

The Ishpeckian Network at http://come.to/ishpeck/

Has a programming section with collections of resources for general game programming, Basic, C/C++, Java and code.

Josh’s Programming Page – Links at http://members.tripod.com/~sakajmh/links.htm

Collection of links for programming tutorials in C++ and game design/programming.

Amit’s Game Programming Information at http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~amitp/gameprog.html

Great site for ideas on implementing issues that come up often in games (e.g. shortest path).

An optimal pathfinder for vehicles in real-world digital terrain maps at http://www.student.nada.kth.se/~f93-maj/pathfinder/index.html

A paper on finding the shortest path.

A* Demonstraton at http://www.ccg.leeds.ac.uk/james/aStar/

Information and demo for the A* path finding algorithm.

Allegro – a game programming library at http://www.talula.demon.co.uk/allegro/

Allegro is a library of functions for use in computer games, written for the djgpp compiler in a mixture of C and assembly language

Java Games Developement Center at http://www.electricfunstuff.com/jgdc/

This was a hard one to categorize. There’s definitely some design meat on this site, but their vision seems to be first and foremost providing code, tutorials and more technical assistance, with design following from that. Regardless, if you’re into java game development, this is the centre for you (ergo the name!).

java programming source code and tutorial resource at Gamelan.com at http://www.gamelan.com/

“Gamelan’s primary mission is to serve as a central registry and directory of Java resources,” says the site also claiming “Most serious Java developers visit our site every day to keep up with breaking developments and new techniques.” I’ve definitely seen it referred to in the newsgroups, but I’m not 100% convinced that they are the centre of the caffeinated universe they claim to be — Maybe I’m just cynical though.

Cplusplus.8m.com – C++ and OpenGL programming at http://cplusplus.8m.com/

Seems useful if you’re programming in C/C++ and need tutorials or code mining. Quite a bit of advertising which is a turn-off (All-Advantage strikes again!). The rush of pop ups actually crashed my browser last time I visited.

VB Tutorial Main Page at http://markbutler.8m.com/vb-tutorial.htm

Takes a programmer with minimal Visual Basic knowledge and walks them through the creation of a tile based RPG ala Zelda, Might & Magic or Ultima.

Games Programming at http://www.cbel.com/Games_Programming/

A whole bunch of links for people who want information hard and fast. Seems to have a 3D-shooter bias.

Reliable software at http://www.relisoft.com

Technical collection (C/C++ tutorials, etc) with bias towards games and open-source.

Back to the Table of Contents

Media

FEED: Dialog on the Frontiers of Game Design at http://www.feedmag.com/vgs/q2t1.html

Came to my attention on a web page where the author had linked to it because he had been interviewed. It has a wide variety of articles on all sorts of issues that are current for game designers. It’s an interesting read that gives you a bit of insight into the industry. Obviously it isn’t going to help you develop a better game.

Gamasutra – The Art & Science of Making Games at http://www.gamasutra.com/

After seeing frequent references to this site in many of the newsgroups I was quite anxious to finally get to see this Mecca. It’s a site very focused on all professionals working in the gaming industry and combines news, articles, job searches, making connections, message forums, contests and surveys. Very slick and professional layout with some areas off-limit until you become a member (free). Seems more focused on broader topics, so if theirs something specific you need to know, you might be better off looking elsewhere, but if you want to while away some time reading, this is the place to come.

developium at http://www.developium.com/

A smaller version of Gamasutra or GameDev.net this promises to eventually link together designers, provide articles, forums, news and a thriving community. Still in the early stages of growth.

Games-JOBS.com – games recruitment jobs in USA, UK, Europe. at http://www.games-jobs.com/

Pretty self-descriptive title. Maybe this doesn’t belong under media though —

GIG — Get In the Game! at http://www.gignews.com/

Another gaming industry site with job sites, article by and for gaming professionals and lots of fun info.

Makegames.com: launch your career in computer game development at http://www.makegames.com/

This wasn’t advertised in a post, but I grabbed it from Diana (the woman behind the whole show I think)’s signature. The site looks — kind of — well, ugly. But I never judge a website by its graphics — nope, not me — never — ever. Regardless, this is the first site I’ve seen 100% devoted to careers in gaming, so worth looking at just for that. Diana is also wickedly funny.

Game Developer’s Newsletter at http://www.thegdn.homestead.com/

Their mission statement is “The Game Developer’s Newsletter is produced for you, the developer: to inspire, to encourage, to share in the knowledge and passion of creating computer games.” It brings a tear to my eye. Its links are unimplemented, maybe the back issues have more info. Seems to have good conference info.

flipCode – Game Development News & Resources at http://www.flipcode.com/

Name says it all; this is another site with “ gaming/multimedia news and information site with an emphasis on development”. “Also has daily news links to the latest happenings in the industry, interviews, tutorials, documents, (and) features”.

Perlin Noise at http://freespace.virgin.net/hugo.elias/models/m_perlin.htm

Useful for randomly generating maps. The basic idea is using combinations of frequencies to get random distributions. Interesting.

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Code Mines

GDT: Game Development Thingy – Online Game Development Projects at http://gdt.virtualave.net/

This is a site that links together people who want to work on programming a computer game. Part of their philosophy is that its open source game development for anyone, so it looks like a good location to find code or possibly distribute my code later on. Has pop up banners that are quite annoying.

Linux Games – Even Penguins Like To Have Fun at http://www.linuxgames.com/

I assume that if they’re programmed for Linux at least SOME will have bought into the open source concept.

Grant’s Home Page at http://skyscraper.fortunecity.com/apple/230/

Has Gomokuse (your guess is as good as mine, and I played it!), Checkers and Othello executables (dos/win) along with source code. Grant Castillou presents them as an introduction to board game programming. These games are the limit to his site. His request to be sent “a few bucks” leaves a bit of a sour taste.

ANTIMETA at http://www.antimeta.com/

Collection of projects Marc Lepage is working on. Minions is a RTS he is playing with. Also has YAGE, which is a dead project, envisioned to be an engine for Java turn based wargames. This promises to have some worthwhile code.

Link’s house O games at http://www.interlog.com/~mikemaz/games/home.html

Contains a collection of applet games. I actually couldn’t get them to load, but maybe I was just having a bad day.

BURKS 4 Online at http://burks.brighton.ac.uk/

Claims to be a useful resource for computer science students with tutorial and reference material along with hundreds of megs of software (including some source code). Can also be ordered on CD instead of downloading.

Game Creation Resources at http://www.ambrosine.com/resource.html

A bunch of software packages to help non-programmers create games. Some source code if you look hard.

Open Directory – Computers: Programming: Games at http://dmoz.org/Computers/Programming/Games/

A yahoo-esque collection of links. Apparently human editors look over each site. Geez, who’d do nothing but post a collection of links!?!?! <wink>

Game Developer Magazine at http://www.gdmag.com/

The website for a paper (non-e) magazine. Contains a source code section. I met the editor-in-chief (and got his business card to prove it!) at LinuxWorld, which was one of the high points along with peaking shyly at the Loki team from behind the exhibitors’ booths.

Roguelike News – Main at http://www.skoardy.demon.co.uk/rlnews/index.html

Site with dungeon generation algorithms for Rogue, Nethack, and games of that ilk.

CodeBrain.com – Free Java at http://www.codebrain.com/index.html

Focus of the site seems to be to suck you into viewing their banners, but has a wide variety of code from which you might be able to dig up some goodies.

CodeUniverse.com – Source Code Archive at http://www.codeuniverse.com/

This is code pure and simple; if you’re looking for foreplay first you’ll have to look elsewhere. The first thing that greets you on opening it up is a list of code posted with the language specified in front. You can comment on code you grab, submit your own code or look just at specific languages.

Freeciv – Open source project at http://www.freeciv.org/

Some people say that the best way to become a master programer is to read quality code. I’ve heard positive reviews of both the code and design followed by this mature product. If you’re interested in doing a management sim this would be an excellent springboard. GPL licensed.

Nethack – Open source project at http://www.nethack.org/

Another mature product for people who treat code like a good novel. Might be worth looking through. I got somewhat negative vibes from the community working on it, they seemed a bit bitter about something, but maybe that’s just me being sensitive. GPL licensed.

Back to the Table of Contents

Graphics/Artwork

The two hardest and most critical skills for a game designer (IMHO):

• Be able to see the game with no hint of artwork, music, sound, anything — the bare rules, bare mechanics, bare actions, stats, feedback loops. The skeleton, the core, the bone and sinew of it, without any dressing, as a shifting, moving mechanical construct of guy wires and rigid struts. It’s not an attack, it’s force projection, it’s territory control in a graph. And you can see it in your head, and when a feature gets proposed, you can see where it slots in — or not, and know whether the whole construct will tip over.

• Be able to see the game without any mechanics, any rules, any knowledge of how it should play — to approach it as a user experience, the magical moment of immersion, the confusion, the dazzle and colors, the sheer sense of possibility and play. The skin, the surface, the way the music will swell when you step through that door, the way that moving will FEEL, the way the possibilities unfold. To know where someone would be confused, to know where they will be led, to see the whole construct as an innocent.

And a great designer? They should be able to see both in their head at once.

Are you interested in game design or just love video games in general? Take a look at these blogs by experienced game designers, gamer reviews and industry news. If you think you’re ready to make the jump into the pool of game designers, check out the last section for career advice and introductory information on the gaming industry.

Game Designer Blogs
1. Applied Game Design – This blogger has been helping design games since 1981, and serves as a professor of game design at the Savannah College of Art and Design. The blogger’s current focus is on social networking-related game design, letting you see the potential of Facebook and Twitter for gaming.
2. Philomath Games – These introspective posts give you a good idea of the outer and inner life of a game designer. From early morning haunts at airport terminals to settling in to a new place to presenting the average game designer’s day, this site has it all.
3. Too Much Imagination – This Ubisoft producer’s blog lets you get a glimpse into the game designer’s mind after the game has been released—for instance, the latest Prince of Persia game, as the blogger reacts to reviews. Another great emphasis on the site is old-fashioned social networking—how to get your chosen gal (or guy) to be your Player 2.
4. Game Musings – This designer focuses on games for the iPhone and Facebook, and uses the blog to keep you up to date on their developments. You can follow him on Twitter, too, so you’re always in the loop.
5. Screen Play – This designer likes to tell you about his own forays into the digital worlds of games like Stalker and Fallout 3. In-between, he talks about the ups and downs of a topsy-turvy industry.
6. Psychochild’s Blog – This blogger likes to tackle game design issues head on, such as how to design with cheaters in mind and how to make the pervasive MMORPG grind a little less…well, grindy. With bite-sized summaries of longer posts and the ability to leave a comment on each one, this site really drags you in.
7. Raph Koster’s Website – This site blends gaming, art, and entertainment into one slick site. You’ll get info on virtual open mic nights, 3D web browsing, and upcoming tech conferences.
8. Designer Notes – This blog primarily features wisdom from Game Designer interviews, and also plays devil’s advocate for controversial game issues (such as why piracy might be more understandable than we think). Lots of humor and a sleek, no-frills website makes this one for your Favorites list.
9. Diary of a Graphics Programmer – Like the name tells you, this blog is all about the graphics. Get perspectives on 3D shapes, more dynamic lighting, and the math behind world-class programming.
10. Zen of Design – This site links you to cool news, and also dissects successful games to give you tips on emulating (no pun intended) their success. In-between, there’s lots of interesting news and views about the world of games.
11. Jools Watsham’s Game Design Blog – In a fun twist, this blog consists entirely of entertaining video entries. Watch as the blogger demonstrates new tech, tries out new games, or just has fun opening the box.
12. Mike Darga’s Game Design Blog – This blog focuses more on the practical end of game design, such as moving on from past mistakes and the benefits of retaining old players versus gaining new ones. The site also does detailed comparisons of one successful game to another, allowing you to see the best aspects of each one.
13. The Game Maker Desert – This site provides links to the author’s unique games, giving you an example of what Game Maker can do.
14. Agile Game Development – This site brings the game design wisdom of a 15-year veteran to your monitor. The info covers just about everything, from coding and publishing to book reviews and conference news.
15. You’d Think With All My Video Game Experience That I’d Be More Prepared for This – The design philosophy on this site is “making software is about making people.” To this end, there’s lots of advice about team management, as well as optimizing the design process.
16. Seriously…don’t play games with me! – Though not updated often, this humorous site is chock full of great pictures and amazing stories about the world of game design.
17. Low Fierce – This God of War veteran offers an amazing video podcast, and the site is chock full of wisdom, such as the perils of having double-damage power-ups. If that doesn’t win you over, the blogger’s love for Street Fighter-related songs just might.
18. Sirlin.net – In addition to news and views on the world of game design, this site offers stories from the blogger’s game design classes. Whether you want the latest in design theory or the ability to master your Zerg rush, this site’s got you covered.
19. ProjectPerko – This page is the straightforward site of an admitted “ivory-tower theorist.” As such, it delves into many theoretical aspects of game design, from what distinguishes units to technological limitations.
20. Matt Makes Blog – The focus on this site is making simple games that maximize fun while offering a minimalist presentation.
21. Tom Sennett is Here – Another wonderfully whimsical blog, this site offers links to its author’s awesome Flash games, as well as theory as to what makes a game truly great.
22. Terra Nova – This is another great site focusing on virtual worlds, such as in MMOs. The blog examines every aspect of virtual worlds, from what it takes to build them to what it takes to keep them alive.
Game Design Industry News
23. Free To Play – This site is designed to give you a thorough view of the game industry—both the good and the bad. From examining why companies failed to industry interviews to thoughts on virtual economies, this site covers it all.
24. Broken Toys – While focusing primarily on game reviews and industry news, this blog sometimes amusingly dips into the territory of game forum drama, complete with color commentary. Of particular note is his dissection of industry news from the recent E3 convention.
25. A Tree Falling in the Forest – This site offers truly in-depth posts about modern gaming and its history, as well as where the future of technology can take us.
26. Gamemaker Blog – This media-heavy site offers links to their own magazine and videos detailing all aspects of game design.
27. Game Matters – Another site that’s only updated every so often, it still provides a thorough, gripping examination of the gaming industry from within.
28. AIGameDev.com – This blog is all about the latest breakthroughs in artificial intelligence within video games. Despite the complicated subject matter, posts are made in a no-frills manner, allowing you to browse with time to spare.
29. GameDev.net – This site serves as a kind of hub to game development news from across the world. It’s easy to catch up with the blogger’s daily updates, which range from late-breaking game news to the latest soundtracks the blogger is digging.
30. Indie Games: The Weblog – This media-heavy site offers reviews of the latest games, as well as videos and editorials about the latest gaming technology.
31. GameDeveloper – The blog for the magazine of the same name, this site offers game reviews, game engine showdowns, and insightful editorials.
Gamer Reviews and News
32. DavidJaffe.biz – Humor is the order of the day on this whimsical gaming blog. In-between scathing game reviews are Disneyland anecdotes, stories about the necessity of chocolate-scented shampoo, and tales of Apple’s incompetence.
33. Only a Game – This blog focuses on narratives—what makes good storytelling in games and movies. The blog gets downright pleasantly philosophical, as it examines the possibility of impressionist games, religion in science fiction, and even the vices of game development.
34. Avant Game – This woman’s unique blog showcases interesting games, such as real-life “chases” for magical rabbits. When you’re done checking out her unique creations, you can even apply to be her assistant.
35. Play This Thing – This site features often-overlooked games that range from refreshing to downright bizarre. Whether you want to try the handicapped dating simulation or the Guantanamo Bay simulation, you’ll find something different.
36. Crispy Gamer – This is the most media-friendly of all these sites, offering videos, screenshots, and a video podcast. Wrapped around this media is a bevy of news, previews, reviews, and editorials.
37. You Got Red On You – This blogger likes to wax nostalgic about the history of gaming, as well as offering quick and dirty reviews of recent movies.
38. Warren Spector’s Blog – Warren tells all about games and game design on his monthly updated blog.
39. Clockwork Gamer – News on game design and games from gamers themselves. This blog is great because of its frequent posts.
40. Lost Garden – This site mixes design philosophy and theory with addictive Flash games. One of the deepest, most information-filled sites on this list.
41. Japanmanship – As you might guess from the name, this blogger writes from the heart of gaming—Japan. He reports on game-related cultural phenomena as well as the latest game news and reviews.
Game Designer Career Advice and Blogs
42. Graphic Designer Career Information – Whatever aspect of gaming graphic design floats your boat, this site will help you find the schools to polish your dream into a career. And if you’ve already got the skills, the site can cut right to helping you land a great job.
43. Make It Big in Games -This site is all about making you and your company shine in the big, bad world of gaming. It has lessons on dividing your company, dialing down your own expectations, and just how much money you can make from Xbox Live Arcade.
44. Gaffer on Games – This site offers often-humorous advice on how to pitch your designs and ideas on the gaming community. After you read his travails, you’ll be ready for anything
45. Design Theory – This 11-year old site gives you the low-down on every aspect of successful RPG design.
46. Adam Saltsman’s Blog – These bite-sized entries have the blogger pontificating about gravity, level generation, the repetition of mistakes, and much more.
47. Fan To Pro – The Blog of Professional Geekery – If you’re on the hunt for a gaming job, this site’s for you. It offers tips on finding and keeping jobs, as well as ways of surviving the industry with your sanity intact.
48. GameDevBlog – This site explores the more overlooked aspects of game design, such as why sports games are more important than you think in your RPG design. The blog also delves into game theory, such as which endings work better, and why.
49. International Game Developers Association – This forum offers advice for you for every stage of the game designer’s career. From finding a good school to finding a great job to the legalities of game design, it’s all here.
50. Teaching Game Design – This site offers many down-to-earth perspectives for both teachers and game designers. Samples of articles include a thorough list of different types of games, and the advantages and disadvantages of designing each one.

If you had time to read through the whole list without stopping for a game break, congratulations! Remember to add these blogs to your RSS feed so you’ll always have them at your fingertips.