Game Design refers to the process of creating the theme, rules, gameplay mechanics, environment, story, and characters of a video game. It begins in the pre-production phase and continues throughout development, ensuring a cohesive and engaging player experience. A game designer is similar to a film director—they envision the game and oversee its artistic and technical elements to align with their creative vision. In addition to artistic and technical skills, game designers must also possess strong storytelling and literary abilities.

A game designer is responsible for structuring gameplay, defining rules, and shaping player interactions. In China, game designers are often referred to as game planners and are considered the core members of a development team. Their responsibilities include writing game narratives, designing mechanics, balancing difficulty, creating maps and levels, planning interactions, and fine-tuning numerical values to optimize gameplay balance. Game designers typically work for game development studios, which may also serve as publishers, overseeing both the creation and release of a game.

游戏设计，指在电子游戏预制作阶段设计主题和规则，以及在制作阶段设计游戏性、环境、情节和角色的过程。游戏设计师和电影导演颇为相似；设计师构想游戏，并监督游戏艺术和技术要素满足他们的构想。游戏设计除了艺术和技术能力外，还要求文学功底。

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游戏设计师，是专门从事游戏设计的职业，是游戏性的设计者，构思设计游戏规则与体系。在中国，游戏设计师又名为游戏策划，在电子游戏开发团队中负责策划、设计、甚至制作，是游戏开发小组的核心成员。他们主要负责建立一个电玩的布局、概观及游戏性（Gameplay）。这些工作通常包含编写游戏背景故事、制定游戏规则、游戏版图设计、设计游戏交互环节、编写游戏详细规格、计算游戏公式、输入和调较数值，以平衡游戏性、以及整个游戏世界的一切细节等。一名游戏设计师会为游戏开发商工作，而开发商亦可能同时为游戏的发行商。