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• Game platforms have distinct characteristics affecting game development.
• Game platforms include arcade, console, computer, online, handheld, mobile, and tabletop.

Arcade

• Stand-alone systems in public venues like malls and amusement parks.
• Typically played standing up, with controls consisting of buttons, joysticks, or a combination.

Console

• Usually played at home and connected to a TV set.
• Proprietary, meaning hardware manufacturers such as Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo control software development.

Computer

• Played on desktop computers and laptops.
• Complex development process due to non-standard setups and system varieties.

Online

• Played on a computer platform or console connected to the Internet.
• Supports thousands of simultaneous players, requiring game information to be stored on multiple servers.

Handheld

• Lightweight, portable consoles with a built-in screen, controls, and speakers.
• Convenient due to their small size.

Mobile

• Games designed for mobile devices like smartphones, tablets, and portable media players.
• Offers wireless multiplayer gaming due to wide range of connectivity features.

Tabletop

• Played on tables and includes board, card, and dice games.
• Consist of pen-and-paper games like Dungeons and Dragons.

Time Intervals

• Affect the pacing of the game, influencing if it's played reflexively or reflectively.
• Turn-based games allow each player to take a turn, with unlimited time for each turn, common in traditional board and card games.
• Real-time games have no time interval between turns and are popular online due to real-time communication.
• Time-limited games are a compromise between turn-based and real-time, limiting the time for each player's turn and even used in single-player puzzle games.

Player Modes

• Correlate directly to the number of people playing a game.
• Impact how a game is played, including single player, two-player, local multiplayer, LAN-based multiplayer, and online multiplayer.
• Single-player games involve only one person, with additional players being AI or NPCs.
• Two-player mode (head-to-head) involves two players competing against each other, or teaming up.
• Local multiplayer involves all players in the same space, sharing the same screen and using separate input devices, common on consoles.
• LAN-based multiplayer allows players to share the game on a local network without sharing the screen or input device.
• Online multiplayer involves players connecting via the Internet, allowing thousands of simultaneous players, such as in MMORPGs.

Goals

• Games serve various purposes like entertainment, social interaction, education, recruitment & training, health & fitness, consciousness & change, aesthetics & creativity, marketing & advertising
• Entertainment games provide enjoyment, stress relief, and boredom alleviation through role-play, physical movement, and problem-solving.
• Social games encourage interaction among players, whether in two-person games or massively multiplayer online games (MMOs).
• Educational games teach through in-game knowledge acquisition, covering subjects such as geography, math, and reading.
• Recruitment & training games, including simulation games used by military, government, and corporations, train personnel and build leadership skills.
• Health and fitness games promote psychological therapy, physical rehabilitation, and exercise, encompassing exergames and medical games.
• Consciousness and change games raise awareness of social issues like poverty, human rights, and climate change.
• Aesthetic and creativity games are designed to elicit creative expression or artistic appreciation from players or share artistic ideas
• Marketing and advertising games promote products or services, including advergames and advertainment.

Genres

• Categories are based on subject matter, setting, screen presentation/format, player perspective, and gameplay strategies.
• Action games involve quickly destroying enemies while avoiding destruction, focusing on player reaction time and reflexive actions.
• Platformer is an action sub-genre that focuses on moving quickly through an environment, jumping, dodging, and collecting items.
• Shooters is an action sub-genre that focuses on combat between a player and other characters, often with guns and other weapons.
  • First-person shooters (FPSs) give the player a first-person perspective, with visible weapons and other characters.
  • Third-person shooters allow players to see their characters along with the game world, providing a wider perspective.
• Racing uses first or third-person perspectives, where players attempt to move a vehicle (usually a racecar) as quickly as possible.
• Fighting includes two-person games where players control a figure on screen and use moves to attack and defend, often viewed from a side perspective, often lasting 90 seconds.
• Adventure games revolve around unraveling stories, exploring worlds, collecting items, navigating mazes, decoding messages, and solving puzzles.
• Action-adventure is a hybrid genre combining quick movements with puzzles and story elements.
• Casino involves gambling themes found in on-ground casinos and online gambling sites.
• Puzzle focuses on solving puzzles or series of puzzles without controlling a character, with little or no story.
• Role-playing games (RPGs) are like adventure games with strong storylines and player-characters that improve.
• Simulations (sims) replicate systems, machines, and experiences using real-world rules.
• Vehicle Simulations operate complicated machinery such as jet fighters, ships, or tanks, used for entertainment and military training.
• Sports and participatory simulations engage the player as a participant within the simulation, reproducing real-world rules.
• Process simulations (construction & management) involve real-world systems and processes of building and creating.
• Strategy games originate from classic board games and involve managing a limited set of resources to achieve a goal.
  • Turn-based strategy (TBS) focuses on resource management and discrete decisions.
  • Real-time strategy (RTS) incorporates a real-time interval with constant time pressure and emphasis on micromanagement.
• Massively multiplayer online games (MMO) enable hundreds or thousands of players to interact simultaneously, including MMORPGs, MMOFPSs, and MMORTSs.