6 thinkers, books, and ideas connected to this field.
American game designer and professor at Carnegie Mellon — author of The Art of Game Design — who created the 'lenses' framework for game design analysis.
Hidetaka Miyazaki, president of FromSoftware and director of the Soulsborne series (Demon's Souls, Dark Souls, Bloodborne, Sekiro, Elden Ring) — the games that invented the 'punishing but fair' action RPG subgenre.
A book exploring the relationship between games, play, and reality — referenced in the Lenny's Podcast context.
Japanese video game designer and creator of Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong, and Star Fox — widely considered the most influential figure in video game design history — who reframed games as experiential art rather than technical challenges.
Jesse Schell's 2008 textbook on game design — presenting 113 'lenses' (analytical perspectives) through which to analyze and improve games — the most comprehensive and widely used game design textbook.
A tabletop roleplaying game setting referenced in jb3.1, set in a world called Amborea described as under starlight. Likely a small-press or indie RPG product featuring distinctive mythological, astronomical, or fantasy themes.