Thematic Elements
The fictional environment in which a game occurs
What is the setting?
Real-time, turn-based, or a mixture of both. These terms dictate the order in which players take actions and how those flow together
What is play sequence?
The amount of challenge for a player to complete a game objective.
What is difficulty?
These related terms convey the number of players meant to participate in a game.
What is single-player vs. multiplayer?
A legal protection for creative, literary and artistic works.
What is copyright?
An imaginary person or being who is controlled by one of the participants, the gamemaster, or the game itself.
What is/are a character(s)?
The process of creating the spaces in which players work to achieve objectives.
What is level design?
A description of the relative strength of different game attributes.
What is balance?
These types of play has players either playing together or playing against one another.
What is cooperative vs. competitive?
Type of law that protects useful inventions that are novel and not obvious to people in the field.
What is a patent?
The plot of the game created by the developer.
What is the story?
The process of developing effective methods to communicate between players and games.
What is interface design?
The capability of a game to support or appeal to a broad range of strategies or skill levels.
What is depth?
These terms dictate the sequence in which players take actions.
What is turn-based vs. real-time?
A protection for words, symbols, sounds or colors that distinguish goods and services of a business from those of others.
What is a trademark?
The speed that information is transmitted to and actions are made by a player.
What is pace?
One type of gameplay requires a thought out approach, while the other is based on random events.
What is strategic vs. chance?
A contract between you and the rights owner that allows you to use the rights in a specific way in return for a fee and possibly other terms.
What is a license?
The age or maturity level of the players for which a game's content is appropriate, determined by elements such as language and violence. The characteristic of being able to play a game multiple times while continuing to have fun.
What is replay value and age appropriateness?
Chess is an example one type of game, while Settlers of Catan is an example of the other.
What is abstract vs. thematic?
Items of information or technology that provide the owner with a competitive advantage
What are trade secrets?