Key Takeaways
- Making a game usually follows a step-by-step process, starting with planning and continuing all the way through post-launch support.
The best games strike a balance between creativity and technology, bringing together art, storytelling, and coding to create something players love. - Strong teamwork ensures clear roles, aligned goals, and better overall results.
- A degree in entertainment and multimedia computing gives you the creative and technical foundation to contribute to real projects.
If you have ever asked how video games are made, the short answer is through a structured workflow that blends creativity with engineering discipline. Teams follow a repeatable game development process so ideas can be tested early, improved quickly, and delivered at quality.
For students who want to turn a gaming passion into a profession, understanding the video game development process is the best first step. It shows you where your strengths fit, from coding and art to narrative design and production management. Let’s break down the process into clear steps you can follow, so you can see where art, design, and code meet to build the worlds you love.
How Are Video Games Made?
Every project begins with a core concept. It then moves through design, building, and polishing until the game is ready for players. The workflow keeps large teams aligned and keeps small teams focused.
Concepting sets the creative direction. Here, designers explore themes, player goals, and the “core loop” that makes the game fun. The team drafts a high-level vision that can be prototyped fast.
To give you a clearer picture of how we guide students through this creative process, Mr. Rogelio Jr. O. Badiang, Program Chair of Entertainment and Multimedia Computing, shares: “Our faculty are full-time professionals in the game industry, bringing with them extensive practical experience in game development. Their firsthand knowledge of current tools, workflows, and industry standards ensures that our students not only learn the fundamentals but also gain insights into real-world production environments.”
Once the concept is clear, pre-production starts. Pre-production is the process in game development that turns that vision into a plan. Writers map story beats, artists create mood boards and concept art, and engineers prototype mechanics in an engine like Unity or Unreal to test feasibility.
Here’s an overview of the game development process from plan to post-launch:
1. Planning
Every great game starts with a clear vision and solid groundwork.
- Brainstorm the game’s core concept.
- Identify the target audience.
- Define what makes the game fun and unique.
- Set project goals, budgets, and timelines.
2. Pre-production
This is where ideas take shape, laying down the creative and technical blueprint.
- Writers draft storylines, dialogue, and lore.
- Artists sketch characters, environments, and style guides.
- Engineers build prototypes in engines like Unity or Unreal.
- Teams test early mechanics to see if ideas work.
3. Production
The largest and busiest phase, where the bulk of assets and systems are built.
- Artists create final 2D or 3D assets.
- Level designers build environments and missions.
- Programmers code gameplay systems, AI, and interfaces.
- Audio designers compose music and sound effects.
- QA testers start catching early bugs.
4. Testing
Games go through rigorous testing to ensure they’re fun, balanced, and stable.
- QA teams run extensive bug checks.
- Playtesters provide feedback on mechanics and balance.
- Developers fix glitches and refine controls.
- Gameplay is polished to feel smooth and engaging.
5. Pre-launch
With the game nearly ready, it’s time to generate buzz and fine-tune performance.
- Marketing teams start promoting the game.
- Trailers, demos, and press previews are released.
- Optimizations are made for performance across platforms.
- Final quality checks ensure the game is ready.
6. Launch and Post-launch
The game is released to the public.
- Developers monitor player feedback and reviews.
- Patches and hotfixes address bugs or performance issues.
- New content, downloadable content (DLCs), or updates keep the game fresh.
Whether the team is five people or five hundred, the same steps apply. Clear milestones help everyone see progress and risks early.
The Blend of Storytelling, Visual Design, and Technology
Every successful game balances three key elements: story, visuals, and programming.
Stories bring meaning to gameplay. Visual design makes the world believable. Programming makes it all work. Together, they transform simple ideas into immersive experiences.
Without this blend of art and science, games would be flat and uninteresting. It’s this balance that makes titles like The Last of Us or The Legend of Zelda unforgettable.
Teamwork is the Backbone of Every Game
The video game development process isn’t a one-person job. Teams often include hundreds of specialists, each contributing unique skills to the final product. Even smaller indie games require collaboration, where communication and teamwork are just as vital as technical knowledge.
Here’s why teamwork is crucial in every bit of the development process:
- Clear Vision and Alignment: From planning to production, teams need a shared understanding of the game’s goals. Designers, artists, writers, and programmers must work from the same creative blueprint so that the story, visuals, and gameplay feel cohesive.
- Division of Labor: Games are made of many moving parts: art, coding, sound, and storytelling. Breaking down tasks across specialists allows progress to happen faster and at a higher quality.
- Problem-Solving Together: Unexpected bugs, technical limitations, or gameplay imbalances are common. A strong team can pool ideas and quickly adapt to challenges.
- Player-Focused Polish: Testers, developers, and designers must work closely to refine the game. Feedback loops within the team help make gameplay smoother, controls tighter, and visuals more immersive.
- Sustaining Long Projects: Game development can take years. Strong teamwork helps maintain morale, keeps deadlines realistic, and ensures that everyone contributes to the final vision.
The teamwork skills built in game development don’t stay within the industry. They translate everywhere. Graduates trained to collaborate under pressure, balance creativity with technical demands, and solve problems as a group are in demand across fields like animation, fintech UI, simulation, and training software.
In short, learning to build games also means learning how to build solutions, and that’s why teamwork will always be the backbone of every great project.
Fun Facts About Popular Video Games and How They Were Made
Looking for quick proof that small ideas can grow into giant hits? These stories show how creativity plus smart execution can resonate worldwide.
- The original Easter egg: Atari’s Adventure hid a secret developer credit, a practice that later became common across games and media.
- Minecraft’s museum-worthy influence: Beyond sales, Minecraft inspired nationwide learning events and exhibitions, showing how a simple block mechanic can support design education and systems thinking.
Pokémon’s humble spark: The franchise began with the creator’s childhood hobby of collecting insects, evolving into one of the most iconic series in gaming history.
Choose Mapúa MCM as Your Entry Point to Game Development
When you understand how video games are made, you see a clear path from your interests to real careers that reward creativity and discipline.
And if you want structured training that mirrors the real workflow, a focused undergraduate program is the most direct route. Mapúa Malayan Colleges Mindanao’s BS Entertainment and Multimedia Computing builds both creative and technical skills. You learn game and interactive media design alongside programming, pipelines, and testing that studios expect.
Start shaping worlds today. Explore the Mapúa MCM’s game development program and see how your ideas can become playable, testable, and launch-ready.