Appendix H: Required Playing List

You Cannot Design Games You Do Not Play

I cannot teach you to design games if you have played five of them. I cannot teach anyone to write novels if they have read three. I cannot teach anyone to cook if they have eaten in two restaurants. The prerequisite for craft is fluency, and fluency requires sample size.

This list is approximately fifty games the book expects you to have some experience with. It is not a "best games ever" list — several of the games on here are not particularly fun, and one or two I would actively argue against. It is a list of games that teach something specific about design, and that I refer to often enough in the text that not having played them will hurt your learning.

A few ground rules.

You do not need to finish every one. You need to have spent roughly 2–5 hours with each, enough to understand what the game is doing. For some games (Tetris, Pong) that is ten minutes. For others (Dark Souls, Baldur's Gate 3) that is closer to 20 hours to get the point. Budget accordingly.

You do not need to play them all before starting this book. Play as you go. When Ch. 11 hits, if you have not played Celeste, go play Celeste for three hours, then come back. The book will be better, and so will the Celeste playthrough — you will be noticing what the game is doing while playing it, which is the whole point.

Budget hints. A lot of these games are on sale somewhere on a rotating basis. Steam sales, GOG sales, Humble Bundle, Game Pass, PS Plus Extra library — use them. Ballpark: about a third of this list is free or under $5. About half is $5–$20. The rest is full-price AAA, and you only really need two or three of those.

Emulation, legally. For pre-2000 games, Nintendo Switch Online's classic libraries, Xbox Game Pass classic compilations, and GOG re-releases cover most of what you need. You do not need to dig up ROMs.

Play These First — The Foundations (10 games)

These ten are the cornerstones. If you play nothing else on this list, play these. The book assumes direct experience with all ten.

1. Celeste (Maddy Makes Games, 2018) — ~6 hours for the A-side run

Celeste is on the spirit of this book's cover. Play it for: craft, flow, accessibility. Notice the assist mode — turn it on, play the final level with it. Notice the narrative woven through the platforming. Notice how every screen is a tiny level. This is the book's anchor for Chapters 1, 2, 8, 11, 13, 17, 29, 32, 33, and 40. Playing it is non-negotiable.

2. Dark Souls (FromSoftware, 2011, or Dark Souls Remastered, 2018) — ~8 hours to reach Anor Londo

You do not have to beat it. You have to play until you understand why dying is a teaching mechanism, why the world is interconnected, and why the combat rewards attention. The book uses Dark Souls as the anchor for Ch. 13 and 26.

3. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo, 2017) — ~10 hours, first Divine Beast

Play until you complete the Great Plateau and at least one Divine Beast. Notice: emergence, physics, systems interaction, curiosity-driven exploration. Anchor for Ch. 9.

4. Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo, 1985) — ~1 hour

Play on NES original, Switch Online, or any legitimate reissue. Play World 1-1 three times. Level design 101 is in that level. The book refers to Ch. 17's teardown of 1-1.

5. Tetris (any version, ideally Tetris Effect or NES Tetris) — 30 minutes

Play enough to understand the escalation of speed. Rules and replayability from almost nothing.

6. Portal (Valve, 2007) — ~3 hours, one sitting

The cleanest environmental-tutorial game ever shipped. Play it in one sitting. Do not look anything up. Notice how every new mechanic is introduced silently.

7. Papers, Please (3909, 2013) — ~4 hours

Narrative and mechanic unity. What the verbs themselves mean. Anchor for Ch. 15 and Ch. 33.

8. Into the Breach (Subset Games, 2018) — ~5 hours, one successful run

Perfect-information tactical design. Notice how reading the board is the entire game. Anchor for Ch. 7 and Ch. 29.

9. Undertale (Toby Fox, 2015) — ~6 hours, Neutral ending

Subversion as craft. Do not look anything up. Do not get spoiled. Play it ruthlessly in a week.

10. Stardew Valley (ConcernedApe, 2016) — ~10 hours, end of Year 1

Sustainable game design. One person shipped this. Notice what it does and what it quietly omits to keep scope in check.

To Understand Each Genre

Two to four games per genre. Sample each; you do not need all of them.

Platformer

  • Super Mario World (Nintendo, 1990) — 2D platforming pinnacle
  • Celeste (already listed)
  • Ori and the Will of the Wisps (Moon Studios, 2020) — lush, forgiving precision
  • Super Meat Boy (Team Meat, 2010) — frustration as feature

Action-Adventure

  • Hollow Knight (Team Cherry, 2017) — best modern metroidvania
  • The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Nintendo, 1998) — Z-targeting; the 3D template
  • Breath of the Wild (already listed)

RPG (CRPG, JRPG, ARPG)

  • Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian, 2023) — modern CRPG
  • Disco Elysium (ZA/UM, 2019) — writing as system
  • Final Fantasy VII (Square, 1997 — or the Remake, 2020) — JRPG canon
  • Diablo II (Blizzard, 2000) — ARPG loot loop

Shooter

  • DOOM (1993) (id Software, 1993) — via any modern source port
  • Half-Life 2 (Valve, 2004)
  • DOOM Eternal (id Software, 2020) — modern fast-combat

Strategy

  • Civilization VI (Firaxis, 2016) — turn-based 4X
  • StarCraft II (Blizzard, 2010) — RTS
  • XCOM 2 (Firaxis, 2016) — turn-based tactics

Simulation

  • The Sims 2 or The Sims 4 (Maxis) — life sim
  • Factorio (Wube, 2020) — automation
  • Rimworld (Ludeon, 2018) — story-generator sim

Puzzle

  • Portal (already listed)
  • Baba Is You (Hempuli, 2019) — rules-as-puzzle
  • The Witness (Thekla, 2016)
  • Return of the Obra Dinn (Lucas Pope, 2018) — deduction mystery

Roguelike / Roguelite

  • Hades (Supergiant, 2020) — narrative roguelite
  • Slay the Spire (Mega Crit, 2019) — deck-builder roguelite
  • Spelunky 2 (Mossmouth, 2020) — platformer roguelike
  • The Binding of Isaac (Edmund McMillen, 2011) — twin-stick roguelike

Narrative

  • Disco Elysium (already listed)
  • Firewatch (Campo Santo, 2016)
  • What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow, 2017)
  • Gone Home (Fullbright, 2013)

Fighting

  • Street Fighter 6 (Capcom, 2023) — modern competitive
  • Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Sakurai/Bandai Namco, 2018) — party fighter
  • Guilty Gear Strive (Arc System Works, 2021) — anime-fighter craft

Rhythm

  • Beat Saber (Beat Games, 2018) — if you have VR
  • Crypt of the NecroDancer (Brace Yourself Games, 2015) — hybrid
  • Hi-Fi Rush (Tango, 2023) — rhythm-action

Horror

  • Resident Evil 4 Remake (Capcom, 2023) — survival-horror with action spine
  • Alien Isolation (Creative Assembly, 2014) — stealth-horror
  • Silent Hill 2 (Konami, 2001 — or the 2024 Remake) — psychological horror

MOBA

  • Dota 2 (Valve, 2013) or League of Legends (Riot, 2009) Pick one. Play enough to understand the map and why balance is so hard here. 20 hours minimum; these are demanding.

Card / Deck-Builder

  • Slay the Spire (already listed)
  • Marvel Snap (Second Dinner, 2022) — fastest card game
  • A few matches of actual Magic: The Gathering (paper or Arena) — TCG grandfather

To Understand History

Eight to ten games from different eras. A couple of hours each is enough; you are sampling, not mastering.

1. Spacewar! (Russell et al., 1962)

Runs in browsers (PDP-1 emulators exist). Twenty minutes. See how much was already there.

2. Pong (Atari, 1972) or Pac-Man / Ms. Pac-Man (Namco, 1980)

Play on anything. Observe simplicity + escalation.

3. Zork (Infocom, 1980)

Free in many places, including browser. An hour of poking will teach you about the roots of all interactive narrative.

4. Super Mario World (Nintendo, 1990)

Two hours. Notice how much better SNES-era platforming is than NES-era.

5. DOOM (id Software, 1993)

via Doom Classic Complete, source ports, or console re-releases. Notice pacing, music, exit signage.

6. Myst (Cyan, 1993) or Myst IV: Revelation (2004)

If Myst feels impossible, that is the point. The original CD-ROM phenomenon.

7. Deus Ex (Ion Storm, 2000)

It has aged badly in some ways, brilliantly in others. The template for "multiple solutions to every problem."

8. Half-Life 2 (Valve, 2004)

If you do nothing else historical, play this. A master class in silent pacing that informs modern design.

9. Minecraft (Mojang, 2011)

You probably already have. If you have not, play the survival tutorial plus a week of messing around. Sandbox design's modern anchor.

10. Hollow Knight (Team Cherry, 2017)

Representative of contemporary-craft indie design. Use as a measuring stick for modern work.

Controversial But Instructive

Games that generate real design debate. Play them specifically because you have opinions.

  • Dark Souls — the "no easy mode" argument. See Ch. 11 and 33.
  • Death Stranding — is it a game? The medium's edges.
  • Everything — what counts as play?
  • The Beginner's Guide — meta-narrative ethics.
  • Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy — difficulty as philosophy.

You do not need to finish any of these. Play until you have a reaction, then argue with it in writing.

Games That Founded or Redefined a Genre

If you want to understand a genre, play the game that created it. Eight genre-defining titles:

  1. Rogue (1980) — roguelike's founder. Play in browser.
  2. Magic: The Gathering (paper or Arena) — the trading card game grandfather. Play ~5 matches.
  3. Dota (Defense of the Ancients, 2003; then Dota 2, 2013) — MOBA template.
  4. Minecraft (2011) — the modern sandbox standard.
  5. Papers, Please (2013) — mechanic-narrative genre in one game.
  6. Hades (2020) — roguelite with narrative made mainstream.
  7. Slay the Spire (2019) — deck-builder roguelike as its own genre.
  8. PUBG / Fortnite — pick one — battle royale.

Free and Affordable Alternatives

For readers on tight budgets.

  • Spacewar!, Rogue, Zork, early Maher-era titles: free, browser-playable, dozens of ports.
  • Itch.io indies under $10: A Short Hike, Celeste Classic (free!), Baba Is You demo, Downwell, Minit, Night in the Woods. Many itch.io indies teach the same lessons as AAA counterparts at a fraction of the cost.
  • Game Pass / PS Plus Extra: on a rotating basis include Hollow Knight, Slay the Spire, Undertale, Stardew Valley, Hi-Fi Rush, Disco Elysium. If you have either subscription, you have probably covered a third of this list already.
  • Nintendo Switch Online: NES and SNES classic libraries include Super Mario Bros., Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda, Super Metroid, and many more historical titles.
  • Demos: many Steam games ship demos now (especially during Next Fest). Hades, Baba Is You, Slay the Spire, Balatro all have or have had generous demos.
  • Free-to-play but watch the hook: Fortnite, League of Legends, Dota 2, Genshin Impact, and many mobile games are free. They are ALSO the best live case studies for Ch. 33's ethics discussion. Play with your eyes open.

How to Study a Game (Not Just Play It)

Playing a game for enjoyment is one thing. Playing a game to learn design is a slightly different activity, and you will get more out of this list if you practice it.

After every significant session — call it 90 minutes or more — spend 15–20 minutes writing brief notes. Not a review; you are not rating the game. You are answering six questions:

The Six Questions

  1. What are the verbs? List them. Compare to your list from a different game.
  2. What is the core loop? What do you do most? What are the inputs to that loop, and what are the outputs?
  3. Where did you get stuck? What specifically stopped you — a skill you had not built, a tutorial that failed, a rule you did not understand, a piece of art that was unreadable?
  4. Where did you feel flow? Where did time disappear? What was happening right before that moment?
  5. What is the UI doing that you barely noticed? Where is your attention being directed silently? What feedback is the game giving you in audio, color, animation?
  6. How is the difficulty tuned? Is it linear? Stepped? Is there a difficulty selection? Adaptive? Fair? Frustrating?

Do this twenty times over a year, and you will have essentially a personal textbook of close design readings. Nothing in this book will replace that habit.

A Note on Time

Let me be honest: the full list is roughly 200–300 hours of playing. That is a semester's entertainment budget. It is also about what a working designer accumulates in a few months of normal life.

Spread it over a year. Or two. Play the ones you want; come back to the book when a chapter references a game you have not played, and catch up then. Not everything has to be done up front.

And if there is a genre on this list you genuinely cannot stand — you play Dota 2 for three hours and hate it, you bounce off Dark Souls at the first knight and never want to return — that is also a useful result. The lesson is not "I am a bad designer." The lesson is "I do not want to design for this audience." Which is, itself, one of the most valuable things a new designer can learn.

Not everyone is supposed to design MOBAs. Not everyone is supposed to design Soulslikes. The genres you bounce off teach you what you do not love, and by process of elimination, where you can actually do your best work.

Play broadly. Play carefully. Write notes. Then come back to the desk and make something.

Appendix: Study Pair-Ups Worth Doing

Some of the strongest design insights come from playing two games back-to-back and comparing. Six pair-ups worth scheduling:

1. Super Mario Bros. → Celeste. Thirty-three years apart. Both about jumping. Play World 1-1 of Mario, then Chapter 1 of Celeste. What has the craft of 2D platforming learned in three decades? (Answer: input-forgiveness is everywhere in Celeste — coyote time, jump buffering, dash-correction — whereas Mario is pure and unforgiving. Different design philosophies, both correct for their era.)

2. Dark Souls → Sekiro. Same studio, similar combat language, radically different demands. Dark Souls rewards patience and dodge-rolling. Sekiro rewards offensive pressure and parry timing. Play the tutorials of each. What changed when FromSoft swapped "evade" for "deflect" as the defensive verb?

3. Diablo II → Diablo Immortal. The same series, twenty-two years and one monetization model apart. Play Act 1 of each. Observe how the loot and progression feel different even when the numbers are similar. Where does the free-to-play design surface? (See Ch. 33.)

4. Portal → The Witness. Two puzzle games built around a single mechanic. Portal is linear; The Witness is nonlinear. Both teach without text. One is three hours; one is sixty. Which approach do you want to design toward?

5. The Legend of Zelda (1986) → Breath of the Wild (2017). Same world-exploration DNA, thirty-one years apart. Legend of Zelda gives you a sword and a world; Breath of the Wild gives you a paraglider and a world. Play the opening hour of each. What has open-world design learned, and what has it lost?

6. Hollow Knight → Celeste. Both 2018 peak-craft indies. Both 2D. Both from small teams. Different problems solved — metroidvania navigation vs. single-screen platforming. Both worth studying as contemporary design benchmarks.

Pair-play teaches what solo-play cannot: the alternative is visible. You see what a design choice costs, because you have just experienced a different choice in the same space.