The Game Producer's Handbook - Dark Publications

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Product Description
Get a behind-the-scenes view of what it takes to succeed in the game industry with this unique guide written specifically for producers. This book serves as an ideal reference for students who want to acquire the knowledge and skills to succeed in this burgeoning industry, and in the future of entertainment. For veterans in the game industry, this book includes several valuable lessons that can help enhance their professional skills. Avoid the pitfalls behind some of the most common mistakes made in video game development. Get tips on how the financial aspects of a project govern a game producer's decisions. Learn what production techniques are used by top game developers. You'll even learn how to produce an excellent game soundtrack and will discover why the music is as important as the graphics. Excellence defines careers in the entertainment software industry. Use this one-of-a-kind guide to achieve that excellence.

Customer Reviews: Read 4 more reviews...

Review from Gamasutra.com by Brad Kane May 16, 2005
19 out of 21 found this review helpful

If there were a Hitchhiker's Guide to game production, this would be it.

It's not easy to describe the work of a producer. In practical terms, the producer is the person ultimately responsible for the planning, development, and delivery of a game. Involved in all aspects of production, a producer holds the broadest possible view of a project, and orchestrates its unfolding at the highest level.

Yet producing is also much more than that. In many ways, producing is the most complex and versatile job in the entertainment industry, and those involved in production often claim that their jobs vary as much from day to day much as they do from project to project.

So how does one approach a field this large, this complex, and this rewarding? There's no single answer, but the The Game Producer's Handbook is a good place to start.

The Game Producer's Handbook is a comprehensive, pragmatic guide to the producer's role in game development. Drawing on his own experience as producer of the Myst franchise, Dan Irish presents a complete A-to-Z of game producing, focusing on the processes and practices that make for a successful producer and a smoothly-run production.

Welcome to the World of the Producer

The book opens with the legendary question: "What exactly does a producer do ?" Verdict

A producer and his or her team, says Irish, are responsible for ensuring that a game is developed to spec, on schedule, under budget, and at an acceptable level of quality. The producer is the central hub connecting the development team, the publisher, and the production staff - and by extension, any studio executives, contractors, marketing coordinators, or other parties who might get involved along the way.

This translates into a great many responsibilities over the course of a production cycle. From developing design documents to planning tools acquisitions, a producer must coordinate all major activities associated with a project, and balance a wide palette of tasks that can vary from the ordinary to the wholly unexpected.

Exploring these various areas of responsibility, and detailing the best practices for handling them, is the primary focus of this book.

The Biggest Job in the Industry

Using specific examples and techniques, Irish addresses every major aspect of production, supplementing the general discussion of each topic with sample documents, checklists, and professional testimony. The result is a comprehensive overview of all facets of a game producer's job.

Here is a general summary of the areas focused on in the book.

Best Practices. Generally speaking, the author outlines many of his best practices for game production - tips and tricks which help streamline a production and bring about efficiency and success. Examples include weekly leads meetings, conservative use of overtime, daily delta reporting, building slack into the schedule, and using postmortems to continually improve efficiency.

Design Documentation. Irish places great emphasis on the importance of creating clear and comprehensive design documents. Included are tips on creating a concise executive summary, delivering a clear and passionate presentation to a publisher, creating adequate technical documentation, and regularly revisiting all design documents over a game's life cycle.

Scheduling. Scheduling and resource allocation are in many ways the heart of a producer's job. The author discusses at length the processes that go into creating manageable schedules, setting realistic milestones, and tracking the interaction between human resources, production assets, and deadlines. Specific techniques for linking information via Microsoft Project and Microsoft Excel are also included.

Budgeting. The discussion on game development financials covers the management of global and departmental budgets, the differences between fixed and incidental costs, and the finer points of financial modeling, such as a Profit and Loss statement. Irish also offers techniques for identifying and managing calculated risk.

Legal. On the legal side of production, the book offers a wealth of information on working with contracts and outlines steps to ensure that all bases are covered when entering into a legally binding agreement with a third party. (A point-by-point explanation of a typical studio contract is especially useful for anyone involved in contract negotiation.) The author also offers pointers for working with contractors, attorneys, and unionized employees, including both SAG and non-SAG actors.

Audio Production. Perhaps one of the most important aspects of game development, the book addresses the various areas of audio production in which a producer might be involved. These include choosing music, interviewing and hiring composers, managing sound effects assets, and wrangling voiceover work, as well as licensing and/or developing a sound engine.

Tools. Since a producer is ultimately responsible for the tools that his or her team uses to make a game, the author includes an overview of some key applications used by a typical development house. These include programming tools such as OpenGL, CGI packages such as Maya, and industry-specific tools such as Valve's "Source" engine. The book also addresses the pros and cons of using a proprietary toolset.

QA. The QA process, though often relegated to a secondary position in the production pipeline, is emphasized as a critical component of the development process. The author discusses the importance of establishing an organized, methodical approach to QA, and encourages fixing issues as they arise rather than at the end of production. Irish also presents breakdowns of a typical QA hierarchy and of common QA practices.

Marketing. Lastly, Irish addresses the relationship between producer and marketing department, and the importance of factoring marketing needs into the budget and schedule. He discusses the merits of a strong demo, the importance of good screen shots, and the wisdom of planning for accessory products such as a soundtrack or a strategy guide.

The author also addresses the degree to which producers must understand the game industry per se in order to successfully manage a game's development. This includes the specific technological and financial constraints of today's market, as well as a discussion of the inherent challenges of straddling the fence between production and design.

An Indispensable Handbook

It's worth noting that this book has added relevance outside the game industry, particularly in animation production and digital filmmaking. Leveraging middleware or working with game testers are of course industry-specific considerations, but the general nature of production is the same throughout the entertainment industry, and the material in this book has much to offer for production professionals in related sectors.

Irish also recognizes that the manner in which a producer approaches his or her work impacts the quality of a production. At several points in the book, he examines the habits and attitudes that allow a producer to be successful, and ties these back to producing and production management.

If there's one genuine critique of this book, it's that the author over-emphasizes the degree to which his material applies to "producers." Irish does address the full scope of the production hierarchy, from Executive and Associate Producers down to PAs and Interns - but the general emphasis on the producer could lead less experienced readers to miss out on material that is applicable at levels of the command chain.

Yet overall, what Irish delivers is a great guidebook for professional game production, covering every major aspect of the field in enough detail to be useful and accessible, while paying fair due to the habits and behaviors that characterize a strong producer. Appropriate for experienced professionals and up-and-comers alike, The Game Producer's Handbook is an excellent text on the overall art and science of producing games, and the book is highly recommended for anyone with an interest in this topic.

5 out of 5 stars
PROS
Outstanding all-around guide to the art and science of producing games.
Comprehensive yet specific approach addresses all areas of game production.
Author balances pragmatism and efficiency with passion and integrity.
CONS
Focus is largely on producers, but the material is applicable at all levels of production.
Book is conceptually well-organized, but needs clearer visual organization - e.g. clear indications of main sections and sub-sections.
Readers might benefit from a bundled CD-ROM containing sample documents and other digital resources.

5 out of 5 stars

Inside Scoop on Producing Games March 28, 2005
10 out of 14 found this review helpful

First, what this book is not. It's not a book on how to design, program or play games.

Instead it is a book that attempts to answer the question "what does it take to be asuccessful video game producer?"

Here is a behind-the-scenes view of what it takes to succeed. It is about today's video game business. In the early days game production was usually a one man show. One man produced, designed, programmed, tested, sold, even designed the box. But not now. Now a major game project cost perhaps $15 million, this book is on what it takes to put together a $15 million development effort. It covers what needs to be done in all the areas, not how to do them, it's what needs to be done and how to put together a team that can do it.

The author was Executive Producer at Relic Entertainment responsible for a major game, and now consults to some of the biggest players in the business.

4 out of 5 stars

Great overview on the industry August 28, 2005
4 out of 5 found this review helpful

I'm not a game designer, but I'm interested in the process of how games are put together. Since this book is written from the point of view of the producer--the person charged with organizing much of the , it gives a great picture of how the different parts of the team come together. Irish talks about working with artists and programmers, designers and composers, and how the input of these different people fit into the final product. Even if you're not looking to be a producer, you might find this book interesting as a big picture of the "birth of a game."
[...]
The only overt problem with the book is that it has more than a few typos. Also it references a non-existent bibliography in one chapter.

5 out of 5 stars

A Must have for Game Developers September 18, 2006
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

This a great resource book that gives you the insight into the game industry. The best part about this book is that its easy to pick up and hard to put down. The breath of information in this book is invalueable. It has chapter devoted to the commonly used tools and software that are used in today's game industry.

If you are looking to start your own company, this book should be next to your business plan.

5 out of 5 stars

Artist on the run for the big picture. December 19, 2006
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

The book is very insightful of the anonymous role that bares the title "Producer." Producers ARE the backbone of development. They have to set the ground rules on game design and what actually gets developed for the consumer release. Without a good producer the development process will either never end or the game would fall apart to garbage, literally in one day. Producers seem to be the understated person in the development team. Many coworkers have snickered and have said things like "Of course he has a stupid big smile on his face. He's getting paid well to do nothing but order pizza." The obscure, daunting task of keeping together a big developing team, the assets, the budget, marketing, etc. all in line is an under appreciated feat. But somebody has to do it!

I recommend this book to all people working on a team, and all the hopeful talents who want to partake in the videogame industry. Videogame development is a physical and mentally tasking process. Producers do carry the burden of easing the shell-shock of how a "cool" job is actually hard work by planning and organizing the development schedule. I feel the book gives a good recap of what is expected from producers. If it feels like something is missing (was that piece copyrighted) this is a good book to check, hence the name The Game Producers Handbook. Good producers could very well become great producer after reading this book. Leadership skills are essential. The book covers quality traits of a good producer briefly, which I appreciate, very to the point. If a person needs more self-help material on leadership I recommend a purchase of a Forbes magazine. But my favorite tip from Handbook, and it just common sense: when having a meeting have a written agenda and mind the allotted time because dev-time is a lot of money. Finally it has been written, thanks Dan.

Another section of the book worth reading and following is the process of how to deliver, or pitch a game idea to get the production green light. It would have been nice to see the initial documents. I think everyone that has purchased this book was hoping to find the answer to how to get "my" game into development. For example, what exactly does the proposal document look like? Is it typed in formal-unbound report format? How much written is enough for a game proposal? What is too much and too confusing to read?

Lastly, developers who are uncertain of the role of a producer may benefit by understanding the producer is your work-friend, not the pizza boy. Or the guy that cuts out your work because he (hates) you:-P Understanding the various roles in a game team makes better teams. Your producer already knows this. This book is sure-fire recommend to all my coworkers. I believe the more your aware of the process of making a video game, makes you a more valuable employee. Many work blindly to the task at hand, and do a great job. But I like to see the big picture. But hey that me.

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