Contents -- Introduction -- Chapter 1 Introduction to Video Games -- The Importance of the Interface -- Real-Life Game Development -- Working with a Team -- Listen to Others -- Ask Questions -- A Career in Video Games -- The Publisher / Developer Relationship -- Chapter 2 Planning Menu Flow -- Why Is Planning So Valuable? -- Creativity in Planning -- Getting Approval -- Interface Planning Helps Game Design -- Game Design Goals -- Possible Game Goals -- Breaking Down Your Goal into Specifics -- How Priorities Affect Decision-Making -- Charting Methods -- Button Types -- Sliders -- Toggle Switches -- Lists -- Input Text -- Drop-Down Menus -- Other Variations -- Common Menu Screens -- Simplicity versus Depth -- Planning for HUD -- Creativity versus Conventional Methods -- Chapter 3 The Look and Feel of Your Interface -- Define a Look -- Create a Mock-Up -- Working with Logos -- Define a Color Scheme -- Express Yourself in the Design -- Research and Inspiration -- Make Lists -- Search for Images -- Thumbnails -- Work Quickly -- Push for Variation -- Creativity versus Standards -- Using Photographs -- Illustrations -- 3D Solutions -- Pre-Rendered 2D Art -- Involve the Programmers -- Combining 3D and 2D -- 3D Challenges -- Don't Get Too Attached to Your Ideas -- Summary -- Chapter 4 Basic Design Principles -- Getting Back to Basics -- Really See Your Design -- Using Color -- Creating Color Harmony -- Finding Complementary Colors -- Using More Than Two Colors -- Subjective Color -- Balancing Color Strength -- Warm and Cold Colors -- Color on a Monitor or TV -- Creating Digital Colors -- Visual Organization -- Unity and Variation -- Negative Space -- Movement -- Eye Movement -- Balance and Weight -- Unbalancing Your Design to Create Tension -- Odd Numbers -- Dividing an Image -- Intersections -- Summary -- Chapter 5 Console or PC? -- Bad Conversions.

Console Development -- Console Hardware Manufacturers -- Developer Approval -- Concept Approval -- Technical Approval -- Console Game Cost -- Effect on the Interface -- Handheld Development -- PC Development -- Minimum Requirements for PC Games -- The Controller -- Getting the Timing Right -- Limiting Buttons -- Displaying Navigation Information -- The Mouse -- Keep the Design Simple -- Image-Based Interfaces -- Resolution -- PC Game Resolution -- Front-End Menu Resolution -- Standard TV Resolution -- PAL versus NTSC Television -- TV Color -- Interlace Flicker -- Color Variation -- Summary -- Chapter 6 Button States -- Controller Button States -- The Standard Button State -- The Selected Button State -- The Pressed Button State -- The Active Button State -- The Active-Selected Button State -- The Disabled Button State -- PC Button States -- Other States -- Animated States -- Workload -- Saving Time -- Audio -- Summary -- Chapter 7 Creating a Focal Point -- The Most Important Element -- Size Variation -- Color -- Value -- Movement -- Summary -- Chapter 8 Using Text in Your Interface -- Using Text Wisely -- Type Anatomy -- Serif versus Sans-Serif -- Ascenders and Descenders -- Uppercase and Lowercase -- Points and Picas -- File Size and DPI -- Kerning -- Thicks and Thins -- Scaling Fonts -- Font Choice -- Theme Fonts -- Multiple Fonts -- Know Your Fonts -- Creating a Game Font -- Icons in Fonts -- Font Effects -- Summary -- Chapter 9 Technical Requirements and Tricks -- File Sizes -- Limited RAM -- Disk Space -- Load Time -- Online Content -- File Compression -- Using Palettes -- Using Programmer Art -- Texture Size -- Scalable Objects -- Tiling Textures -- Alpha Channels -- Localization -- Source Files -- Summary -- Chapter 10 Tools of the Trade -- Tools for Creating Mock-Ups -- Asset Management -- Adjusting Game Properties -- Using Custom Tools.

Plug-Ins -- Stand-Alone Software -- In-Game Tools -- Advantages of Using Custom Tools -- Disadvantages of Using Custom Tools -- Commercial Tools -- Advantages of Using Commercial Tools -- Disadvantages of Using Commercial Tools -- Middleware -- Commonly Used Commercial Software -- Features of Good Tools -- The Ideal Situation versus Reality -- Software or the Artist? -- 3D Tools -- Summary -- Chapter 11 Using Animation -- Movement -- How Animation Works -- Frame Rate -- Interface Frame Rates -- Key Frames and Tweening -- Interpolation -- Animation Principles -- Squash and Stretch -- Anticipation -- Ease In and Ease Out -- Follow Through -- Arcs -- Exaggeration -- Designing Transitions -- Consider Experienced Users -- Properties That Can Be Animated -- Translation, Rotation, and Scale -- Transparency and Color -- Using Effects -- Overlaid Animations -- Particle Systems -- Other In-Game Effects -- Summary -- Chapter 12 Icons, Icons, Icons -- Use Text Sparingly -- Budget Constraints -- Using Icons Instead of Text -- Image Choice -- Standard Icons -- Non-Game Standard Icons -- Every Pixel Counts -- Photo Reference -- Summary -- Chapter 13 Designing the HUD -- Screen Space -- In-Game Information -- Pop-Up Menus -- Dynamic Content -- Combining Information -- Legibility -- Eye Movement -- Ease of Use -- Making HUD Look Cool -- Game-Play Adjustments -- Graphic Information Display -- Standard Elements versus Non-Standard Elements -- Summary -- Chapter 14 Designing an Interface -- Nomad Design Goals -- The Rough Sketches -- Temporary Art -- Re-Do's -- Nomad Colors -- Using Color as a Tool -- Creating the Art -- Breaking Up the Art -- Selected Rows -- Photoshop Techniques -- Step-by-Step Art Creation -- The Ship Information Panel -- The Trade Dialog Box -- The Big Change -- Summary -- Chapter 15 Creating an Interactive Mock-Up -- The Ideal Situation.

Realizing Your Vision -- Experimentation -- Commercial Tools -- Why Flash? -- Introduction to Flash -- Using Frames -- Animation in Flash -- Playback Speed -- Using Scripting -- Creating Buttons in Flash -- Putting Scripts on Buttons -- Seeing Your Button Work -- Publishing Files -- Flash Summary -- The Sample Flash File -- Actions on Frames -- Actions on Buttons -- Summary -- Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J-K -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- Q-R -- S -- T -- U -- V-Z.