I just got my contributor’s copy of The Game Design Reader : A Rules of Play Anthology, by Eric Zimmerman and Katie Salen; I also just got Game Development Essentials : An Introduction.

Game Design Reader
This is, of course, a companion to their excellent Rules of Play : Game Design Fundamentals, which is currently the definitive textbook on game design from a theoretical point of view (as opposed to from a practical, industry-centered point of view).

At first glance, it looks like a great resource to have on the shelf. Among the stuff the book includes:

• Some foundational ludological and anthropological material by Sutton-Smith, Huizinga and Caillois (including the definitions I pondered here).
• Costikyan’s “I Have No Words & I Must Design”
• A host of material on game design patterns, including Doug Church’s “Formal Abstract Design Tools,” Mahk LeBlanc’s “Tools for Creating Dramatic Game Dynamics,” and “Games and Design Patterns” by Bjork and Holopainen
• “New Games Journalism” pieces like “Bow, Nigger” and a Tom Chick “Shoot Club” article
• A lot of MMO pieces, though I suppose that at this point it’s all the usual suspects: “Lessons of Lucasfilm’s Habitat,” “Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds, Spades: Players Who Suit MUDs,” Castronova’s “VIrtual Worlds: A First-Hand Account of Market and Society on the CYberian Frontier,” and my own “Declaring the Rights of Players”, which is in heady company indeed.

I’ve barely scratched the surface… the book is 923 pages including the lengthy index.

Game Development Essentials : An Introduction
I think I got this copy because I sent in a profile and answered a questionnaire for the second book in the series, Game Development Essentials : Game Story & Character Development. At a glance, this is easily one of the most colorful game design texts I have ever seen, and Jeannie Novak, the author, is a smart thinker on the subject of games, so I am looking forward to digging into it.

I’m midway through Synthetic Worlds, Ted Castronova’s book, and I will let you know what i think when I finish it. I also have here a manuscript of T. L. Taylor’s upcoming book, which centers on EverQuest, and it’s fascinating.

I know one thing, though — all these books at $50 a pop sure must make more money than mine discounted to $15.