A Game Designer without technical skills will hardly survive in the modern industry.

He always needs programming assistance with prototypes, is not adaptable to changes, and can’t collaborate effectively with peers. But a technical mindset should be the bread and butter of Game Design. It will make you talk with programmers like one of them and boost your design thinking and problem-solving skills. This week I’ll show you 4 effective tips so you can improve your technical skills and become a more efficient and skilled Modern Game Designer.

Do your best to apply them, and your approach to problems will never be the same again.

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Here’s what you need to actually improve your Technical Skills:

• Identify The Problem And Divide It Into Smaller Ones
• Focus On Programming Logic And Not Coding
• Embrace A 50:50 Theory-Practice Learning Approach
• Use Technology As A Tool, Not A Replacement

Without further ado, let’s jump right in.

#1: Identify The Problem And Divide It Into Smaller Ones

Problem-solving is at the core of any Game Design activity.

Learning how to approach and solve problems is the best skill you can commit to learning. It extends beyond technical effort since you need to master it also for solving Game Design problems. The most common mistake people make in problem-solving is at the root of it, which is solving the wrong problem. As soon as they find a problem, they jump right into searching for how to implement a solution.

That’s a totally wrong approach, so let me give you a more effective one.

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Ask yourself why and find the smallest problem you can solve.

The first problem you encounter is not likely to be the root one. So start by asking yourself why that happens and keep your eyes open to find a smaller problem behind it.

If you do this about 2-3 times, you'll have some small problems connected somehow. Now you can take each one and find a concrete solution to them. You'll find that it's much easier to solve those smaller problems one by one than the bigger one. Let me give you a quick example.

Imagine you need to make your player push a box on the ground.

You can split this into 3 parts:

• A positional condition (the player near the box).
• An input condition (the player presses the button).
• A behavior (the box needs to move in a direction).

This is way a lot easier to grasp.

Use this mindset, and you'll solve every problem you'll face.

#2: Focus On Programming Logic And Not Coding

Coding is a way to implement a solution you’ve already found through logical reasoning.

Writing code is like learning a language but easier. It always boils down to understanding the basic principles and then seeing as many different patterns as possible.

Understanding programming logic is another thing and means solving problems considering how computers work. When a programmer has a problem, the last thing he does is jump on a computer and code. He does it when he already has a solution in mind he needs to implement and test.

So what do you as a Game Designer need to do if not coding?

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Understand the logical building blocks of how computers “think”.

Of course, machines don’t “think” (for now and at least as far as we humans frame the term thinking). Yet, they have for sure a specific way of operating with information.

These operations are called Algorithms. An Algorithm is a set of instructions that, given a certain input, always gives you the same output. Frame it like a cooking recipe, except we can mess it up; computers won’t.

Building an Algorithm means creating a set of instructions for solving one or more problems. The solution of all the 3 parts of the “push a box feature” in the previous chapter is an example of a simple algorithm.

Learning this takes time and effort, so how do you make it more efficient?

#3: Embrace A 50:50 Theory-Practice Learning Approach

Theory will make you a master, but Practice will make you start.

Contrary to what many people say and believe, the thing that makes you a master of your craft is studying. This does not mean that Practice is not important; it just has a different role.

A professional athlete needs Practice to keep himself trained and make actions 100% natural. Yet, real mastery comes from a better understanding of the craft. On the other hand, when you start learning something, Practice has a more crucial role because it makes you understand the implications of Theory.

So what do you need to do to learn effectively?

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Apply everything you study and then try to break it.

Many people fall into the Tutorial Hell pit. They get stuck into watching endless tutorials without actually learning anything.

And that’s bad, but do you want to know what’s even worst? Doing the exact opposite, which is jumping right into the Engine and “start doing something”. That’s a bad choice too, because you’re trying to learn something without having a mental model of it, making you overwhelmed and frustrated. The solution is a 50:50 Learning Approach where you understand the basic principles (50% Theory) and then use them (50% Practice). You learn something small and then apply it right away.

This establishes a learning loop with small incremental steps. And as a bonus tip, if you want to put yourself to the test, try to ask a “what if” question when you’re practicing and experiment with it.

Theory and Practice are two sides of the same coin.

#4: Use Technology As A Tool, Not A Replacement

Technology is meant to enhance your work, not replace it.

Yes, I know, some works (a lot actually) are replaceable by technology, and in some cases, this is also a good thing. Of course, AI is the first thing that comes to mind, but it’s not the only one. Technology will entirely replace us only if we want to suicide by making it happen. But that’s a whole other rabbit hole we’ll probably discuss in the future.

The point here is that we need to think about technology (AI included) as a tool to enhance us. Technology doesn’t behave on its own, so at least for now, how we use it makes a huge difference in our relationship with it.

And among all the bad uses of technology, there’s one thing you must avoid.

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Don’t delegate learning to a tool.

Making technology replace our learning efforts is like sending a bot to the gym to lift weights for us. It’s among the stupidest things you can do in your life.

Learning means reconstructing knowledge in your head, and whether you want it or not, this takes effort. And that effort is not part of learning; that effort IS learning. That’s why keeping watching tutorials doesn’t make you learn; you’re not making the effort to dive deeper into the material.

So the next time you find yourself doing something that feels like learning, ask yourself: “Am I making any effort?”. If not, change your approach right away.

Remember that a Modern Game Designer never fears technology because he keeps himself in charge.

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Key Takeaways:

• Ask yourself why and find the smallest problem you can solve.
• Understand the logical building block of how computer “thinks”.
• Apply everything you study and then try to break it.
• Don’t delegate learning to a tool.