How do you design and scope a puzzle game with no dialogue and no player character that's drawn entirely by hand?

Indie designer Jason Roberts faced these challenges and more in the course of creating Gorogoa, an IGF award-winning game that fellow developers can study to see how Roberts joined his artwork with a custom-built Java engine to create something striking.

As part of GDC 2014's Experimental Gameplay Worshop, Jason Roberts described how he went about building the game to be solvable no matter what language you speak by showcasing how its design relies on natural discovery in lieu of guided tutorials.

It was an intriguing talk, and if you missed it in person you can now watch it for free over on the GDC Vault's YouTube channel.

About the GDC Vault

In addition to this presentation, the GDC Vault and its new YouTube channel offers numerous other free videos, audio recordings, and slides from many of the recent Game Developers Conference events, and the service offers even more members-only content for GDC Vault subscribers.

Those who purchased All Access passes to recent events like GDC, GDC Europe, and GDC Next already have full access to GDC Vault, and interested parties can apply for the individual subscription via a GDC Vault subscription page. Group subscriptions are also available: game-related schools and development studios who sign up for GDC Vault Studio Subscriptions can receive access for their entire office or company by contacting staff via the GDC Vault group subscription page. Finally, current subscribers with access issues can contact GDC Vault technical support.

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