Many developers hope their games will be good enough to foster a community of professional players, but as audiences for eSports grow many game makers still puzzle over how to design a game that's as entertaining to watch as it is to play.

At GDC 2015 MIT Game Lab research scientist Philip Tan joined Blizzard Entertainment developer Ryan Schutter to shed some light on the topic by breaking down how they worked with Starcraft II community modders to rapidly iterate and improve the game, as an eSport, by improving the viewer interface.

Their talk was notable because it recounted their experiences working in tandem with a vibrant modding community, and offered up guidelines for how other developers could do the same. Tan and Schutter also shared some interesting insight into how tournament organizers, fans and game developers can coordinate to make an eSport better for everyone involved.

The session is worth watching because it offers rare insight into a common but underserved aspect of eSports design -- the viewing experience -- and now you can watch the entire talk for free over on the official GDC 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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