A new book by Kotaku news editor Jason Schreier tells the triumphant and turbulent development stories behind the most popular games of all ages in his recent book Blood, Sweat, and Pixels.
Jason Schreier is one of the most prolific journalists in the gaming industry, breaking many major stories over the years. He has heard a lot about how it is difficult or practically impossible to design and ship the game. Many stories were picked up in numerous bars in San Francisco during Game Developers Conference. He put it all together, bothered people with an endless number of questions about their lives, their jobs and why it takes so much to sacrifice when it comes to making video games.
“Blood, Sweat and Pixels” consists of ten chapters, ten stories of ten games. Each chapter deals with a different aspect of what can go wrong during production. There are ten massive AAA titles: Uncharted 4, The Witcher 3, Diablo 3, Halo Wars, Star Wars 1313, Destiny, Dragon Age: Inquisition, and indie upstarts like Pillars of Eternity, Stardew Valley and Shovel Knight.
Every single game is made under abnormal circumstances. The book explains why it is so hard to make the project, why the deadlines don’t work, and what you have to expect from game production.
Even if you are not in the game industry it’s still a nice way to look at the development of your favorite title. You can grab it for just $10,75.