Chapter 5: The Game Production Cycle

Overview

Some games are developed in six months. Others take many years . No matter how long projects last, each one goes through well-defined phases that have become standard across the industry.

This chapter looks at nine development phases and describes the tasks that accompany them. Some game projects may not incorporate all of these phases. For example, console games typically do not get patched. It's also possible for the activities of one phase to continue while part of the team begins work on the next one.

1. Concept Development

2. Preproduction

3. Development

4. Alpha

5. Beta

6. Code Freeze

7. Release to Manufacture (RTM)

8. Patches

9. Upgrades