In game development, understanding player behavior is the key to tuning fun mechanics, creating compelling art direction, and smoothing out programming hiccups that might manifest as roadbumps to the player experience.
It's a complicated process to understand the human mind, and in game development, it's usually bundled under the field of "User Experience" (otherwise known as UX). One expert in the field, Celia Hodent, wants to take the time to educate you on the best practices for augmenting human psychology into your UX practices in her December 3rd GDC Masterclass.
Hodent's instruction will go beyond her numerous GDC talks---she'll be taking the day to teach you what she's learned about human psychology in a classroom setting, mixing one-on-one instruction and exercises with the professional insight she's picked up as a consultant and working at Ubisoft, LucasArts, and Epic Games.
As an attendee, here are some of the takeaways you can expect to gain from Hodent's course:
- Learn how to significantly improve the experience of the game you are developing as perceived by your target audience.
- Improve usability and engagement.
- Understand the main characteristics and limitations of the human brain (in terms of perception, attention, memory, motivation, and emotion), and how they impact game development.
- Learn what makes a game engaging (in terms of motivation, emotion, and game flow) and how to foster these components in your game.
- Have a clear and concrete understanding of what having a UX mindset and developing a UX strategy entail.
- Course includes a complimentary copy of The Gamer’s Brain: How Neuroscience and UX Can Impact Video Game Design
But that's not all. Hodent wants to make sure you have the best tools to apply what you've learned when you return to the field, so she'll be including a copy of her book The Gamer’s Brain: How Neuroscience and UX Can Impact Video Game Design.
Space is limited--only a handful of talented game designers will be able to participate in this exceptionally useful class. Register today and claim your seat before it's too late!
For more information on the GDC Masterclass program, be sure to visit our website or subscribe to regular updates via Facebook, Twitter, or RSS.
