Mackenzie Chapman

ENG 106-R48-44889
Brittany Biesiada
November 4, 2014
Blog
As I was reading the topic Salen and Zimmerman-Rules of Play, Game Design and
Fundamentals, Chapter 4: Design, I realized how much of what was being said is true in games I
play today. Design is something that seems simple, but in reality, is in-depth. As they author
spoke about design, he brought up the topic of semiotics. Semiotics, as he says, is, the study of
how meanings are made. These semiotics then have concepts: a sign represents something other
than itself, signs are interpreted, meaning results when a sign is interpreted, and context shapes
interpretation.
Signs usually represent something other than itself. This means, when playing a game, a
certain mark, or symbol, may mean something more than just a simple X or O (as for tic-tactoe). Then, the players interpret these signs as that specific meaning. These signs all have a
specific meaning. Each player must know the meaning of these signs and symbols. Lastly,
these signs mean these specific things within a specific context. Following back to the example
above, an X and an O do not mean the same thing when they are on the street corner than
they do when playing tic-tac-toe.
These aspects of design are important to remember when creating your own game. You
must tell the players what the certain symbols and signs mean within your game: the context,
meaning, representation, etc. In our instructions, we must label and describe the specific signs
within our design. Design is very intricate and we should not let our players be confused when
they begin to play a game. We need to have a context for our game so they players will

understand signs, understand the concept, and have fun while playing it. Design is much more
important than what everyone makes it out to be.