Maker Comics: Design a Game!

by Bree Wolf, Jesse Fuchs, Bree Wolf (Illustrator)

Overview

Inside Maker Comics: Design a Game!, the next volume of First Second's DIY comic series, you'll find step-by-step instructions for six tabletop game design projects!

Siblings Shen, Shondra, and Shontoya arrive at Ludum Omega Summer Camp with a passion for games, and Professor Zephyr is excited to teach this year’s students all about the art and science of game design! What makes a game fun? What kinds of games are out there? How can designers turn an okay game into a great one?

With Maker Comics: Design a Game! as your guide, you’ll play and modify classic games and learn how to build and test a prototype of a new game that’s all your own!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250750525
Publisher:	First Second
Publication date:	11/15/2022
Series:	Maker Comics Series
Pages:	128
Sales rank:	1,160,758
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	9 - 13 Years

About the Author

Bree Wolf is an artist, writer, and game designer in Portland, Oregon, who has created the card game Tiny Swords and the board game Tiny Swords SMAAASH. Bree loves every single cat, especially blobby green ones.

Jesse Fuchs is a game designer and developer with a strong interest in traditional card and dice games. His dice-and-chips metagame, Tic-Tac-Totum, was selected as an Indiecade finalist in 2010. Jesse is a faculty member at the NYU Game Center.

Editorial Reviews

A Junior Library Guild selection

"This is seriously high-quality instruction. A perfect pick to help kids 'get their game on.'”—School Library Journal

From the Publisher

01/01/2023

Gr 4–8—Gaming summer camp is held in the distant future in a galaxy far, far away. Young campers arrive at Space Station Ludum Omega to take a crash course in game design. Camp Professor Zephyr introduces the latest installment of the "Maker Comics'' series by stating that "anyone can make a game with even the simplest of materials." A diverse cast of humans, aliens, and robots learn about the basics of game development with no more than paper, pencils, playing cards, dice, and scissors. Siblings Shontoya, Shondra, and Shen are competitive gamers in class and with each other. Despite ongoing family drama, Professor Zephyr encourages them to focus on game theory and activities. Lessons are split into topics (e.g., mechanics and probability) and each day the students play a game that illustrates the concepts learned. By the end of camp, the gamemakers have built and tested their first game prototype. This title introduces complex gaming concept fundamentals through instructional scaffolding. The graphic novel format allows readers to engage in challenging learning experiences alongside the characters. Each lesson includes step-by-step instructions with clear illustrations. The digital artwork features panels of various sizes and splash pages that highlight plot conflict. Camp harmony and strife are symbolized by cool and warm color schematics. A glossary, printable game board, and a playtest feedback form is included in the back matter. VERDICT This is seriously high-quality instruction. A perfect pick to help kids "get their game on."—Rita Baguio Christensen

School Library Journal