Following on from my previous reflective blog entry that covered the development team's collective thoughts on mobile game development, I'm beginning a number of blog posts that cover system design of the game. The standard company process for system design is to create a system design document that is based on a modified template produced by Chris Taylor. I will attempt to cover the key points of that system design document here in this blog as a mirror of the team effort to produce the document.
Platform selection
Selection of device and programming platform is a major consideration for our team due to the fact that the company has specialized in development of games for PC's and consoles. The game and engine programmers in the team all have DirectX and Windows development experience.
In reaching a decision, the team has decided to propose that we develop our mobile game for the Microsoft Windows Mobile platform. It has been recognized that this is not the dominant platform, but the following considerations have made this the best choice for us at this point in time:
- Windows Mobile platform supports DirectX[2]: We have a significant investment in DX development and can thus realize a reduced time-to-market for the game relative to the same development being performed on a different platform (learning curve, education, purchase of new toolsets, etc.).
- Windows Mobile devices, in general, have a higher hardware specification than equivalent devices from Symbian aligned manufacturers[2]. This allows us to develop a richer gaming experience with either 2d or 3d scenes, with larger screens, more detail and colors.
- Established marketplace: A number of online distribution channels (i.e. AvantGo) exist as a mechanism for publishing and selling the game. As a game company we already have a publisher for our products, but in the event that we wish to sell directly to the market it is reassuring to know that existing sales channels are available.
[1] Taylor Chris, Design Document Template, http://www.ihfsoft.com/designdocuments.htm
[2] Wilson Frank-Lee, Graphics with DirectX in Windows Mobile 5.0 Games, http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/Aa454886.aspx
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