Before I restarted to write this book, I was curious about how
many books on “game design” have been published and sold in Amazon.com. My
search showed 151,350 results. So why bother to write another book on game
design? I should be focusing on writing journal articles or academic book
chapters that will contribute to my academic credential. But when I flashed
back the experience of reading books on game design, I remembered how difficult
it was to comprehend books written by foreigners—I mean non-Malaysian—before having
the experience of staying in the UK and the US. When the lack of vision on how
people design games in Western world might provide enormous space for
imagination, the need to comprehend
without understanding the socio-cultural contexts in the Western world could
become a barrier to exellent game design.
I am fortunate to have the opportunity to study and work in
Western countries, but the opportunity came only after I reached the age of 27.
My world view prior to 27 years old was pretty narrow, and I believe most if
not all of my young students in Malaysia share the similar world view like
mine. I sensed the lack of vision among my students, which prompted me to write
this book for them. Therefore, I tried to include examples and concepts which I
think suitable for Malaysian students who study game design.
Perhaps, I should write it in Malay...
