Abstract
A short game is a (computer) game that can be typically played and finished in one session. In comparison to typical commercial games, short games feature simpler assets, easy to learn gameplay and less content. By introducing experimental game features or interesting socially- or personally-relevant topics, short games can be attractive for gamers looking for a gaming experience that can be concluded within minutes to few hours of playing. The increasing popularity of making computer games, driven by the availability of game making tools, game jams, and webpages hosting collections of short games leads to a significant number of short games made every day. Many of these games are also made in a considerably short time which requires developers to know their tools well, significantly reduce game content and asset complexity, and to follow a disciplined approach for building and assembling the parts of a game.
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Notes
- 1.
https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/41/stats Ludum Dare 41.
- 2.
http://www.gamelengths.com/ accessed January 15, 2019.
- 3.
https://howlongtobeat.com/ accessed January 16, 2019.
- 4.
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The author would like to thank Johanna Janiszewski and the anonymous reviewers for valuable comments on this paper.
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Elmenreich, W. (2019). Short Games. In: Elmenreich, W., Schallegger, R., Schniz, F., Gabriel, S., Pölsterl, G., Ruge, W. (eds) Savegame. Perspektiven der Game Studies. Springer VS, Wiesbaden. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-27395-8_4
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