Interactive Fiction (or IF) - IF refers to computer software that allows you to create text adventure games where the player can make choices to determine the plot of the story. Some software allows the author to add images, but IF centers primarily on text and the ability of the author to tell a good story rather than the visual format common in most video games. This is by far the simplest method to design a video game and there are several game design engines available for creating IF, some of which I have listed below (Wikipedia article on IF).

• ADRIFT a simple, yet powerful IF game designer (WIN), $18.95 
• Adventure Book CYOA (Create Your Own Adventure) creator
• Adventure Builder text adventure authoring system (DOS/WIN) $20 to distribute
• AGT Adventure Game Toolkit for creating text adventures with graphics and sound (DOS) freeware
• http://markdamonhughes.com/ has designed Aiee! (design text adventures without programming experience) and Game Scroll for interactive fiction.
• ALAN for creating interactive fiction (Amiga/Unix/DOS) (need to learn language)
• CAT Creative Adventure Toolkit: adventure authoring utility for writing text adventures on your PC (WIN)
• Game Book Player This application allows you to write fighting fantasy-like game books and has lots of neat features. (free)
• HUGO http://www.generalcoffee.com/hugo/gethugo.html a programming language and authoring system for interactive fiction (WIN/DOS/Linux) 
• Inform a design system for interactive fiction (WIN/MAC/Amiga) (free for all uses) 
• Legendary Tales Editor text-based gaming environment which allows anyone to create or enjoy independent adventure modules set in any medieval, swords and sorcery fantasy setting (WIN) (free, register for greater access, free as well)
• MechaniQue easy to use programming language for IF (JAVA) (in Dutch/or German, free, must learn language)
• M.u.C.e.S Multichoice Creation System (MuCeS) allows you to create any type of multiple choice text adventure (free)
• PAWS IF authoring system (Various) (free, Python language)
• QML Quest Markup Language free XML-based Choose-Your-Own-Adventure game system
• Ren'Py a programming language and runtime, intended to ease the creation of visual-novel type games (free, uses Python)
 
• Scribe development system for interactive fiction (free, need to register)
• StoryHarp Audio adventure Authoring System adds the dimension of voice to interactive fiction development (WIN95/NT) (free, basic)
• http://www.sudslore.org/ adventure game system which combines the content and feel of a text adventure game with the point-and-click style of Windows (WIN) (free)
• ThinBASIC Adventure Builder Interactive Fiction creator (free)
• WinPAW windows version of the Professional Adventure Writer (PAW) (WIN) (free, basic)

Isometric (overhead tile based) - This is a very common format for RPG (Role Playing Games) like the early Ultima, Final Fantasy, and Warcraft games and is a relatively simple way to design an image-based video game. These games consist of any number of tiles which together form the world that the character explores. Games are usually designed in multiple levels and much of the world remains hidden from the player until they move into that area. Simple interactions can take place between the character and others in the game as well confrontations with "monsters, often revealed in a separate "battle" scene. (Wikipedia article)

• http://markdamonhughes.com/ has developed  (1) Delver shareware single-player overhead-view tile-based computer RPG construction kit written in Java (JAVA), and (2) Hephaestus computer role-playing game system with loadable adventures. With the compiler, you can write your own adventures in a simple yet powerful scripting language, and share them with anyone else who has Hephaestus (JAVA)
• Byond create online games and applications using a simple programming language (rpg-free)
• Explorations RPG System independent role playing game engine (not free)
• RPG Toolkit Development System for the Creation and Play of your own RPG Games (WIN) (free)
• RuneSword RPG game and construction set (Win95+) (free-violent?)
• Official Hamster Republic RPG Construction Engine create your own role-playing games with no programming experience (DOS) (free, basic)
• QuestMaker for making graphical adventure games (DOS) (free)
• SKClone RPG game maker (WIN) (free, but seems pretty basic)

2D (console-style, point and click) - The next level of game design for games usually viewed from the side, where the player can interact with objects/characters in the game by pointing and clicking the mouse. Often these games are platform games where the character jumps on a variety of levels like Donkey Kong. More sophisticated games can consist of animated adventures such as Bug! Lucas Arts and Sierra are the companies most often associated with this type of game. Many puzzle-based games fit this genre as well. (Wikipedia article)

• Adventure Game Studio make your own point and click adventure games without programming; recently rewritten, now supports the standard Sierra interface as well as the LucasArts interface. Very nice. (WIN) (free, need to learn scripting language)
• Adventure Maker free toolkit to create point-and-click software for Windows and PSP without programming (Win/PSP) Free, but cannot execute unless $139
• My Adventure Game simple tool for creating graphic 2D adventures (free)
• IndianaJava system to create and run 2D graphic adventure games (JAVA) (free for noncommercial use)
• Clean Game Library complete development system for 2D games (platform games, side scrollers), using the functional language Clean (Win, MAC, Linux) (Have to learn CLEAN programming language)
Game Editor design 2D games for PCs and mobile devices $95)
• Lassie Adventure Studio http://lassie.gmacwill.com/lower.php?section=news&page=index freeware adventure game creation tool for building classic Lucas Arts-style games with Macromedia (now Adobe) Flash and Shockwave
• LucasHacks the ultimate SCUMM hacking resource including the new SCUMM Revisited, 2D adventure games (WIN) (free)
• Play Basic a game programming language designed to take the learning curve out of 2D game making (learning edition is free, retail version $20)
• Point & Click Developers Kit 2D point and click adventure game developer (free)
• SCI Studio create games for Sierra's SCI engine (WIN) (free)
• Scrolling Game Development Kit 2D, "GameDev" complete game development system whose features can be used by experts and beginners alike (free)
• SLUDGE (Scripting Language for Unhindered Development of a Gaming Environment) is the box of cogs that will be available so that anyone (within reason) can use it to make an adventure game. (WIN) (free)
• Sphere RPG engine specialized for making 2D, console-style RPGs, similar to Final Fantasy and Phantasy Star (WIN) (free)
• VERGE a 2D role-playing game creation system (DOS) (free)
• Visionaire2d (English Version) software that enables you to create your own adventure game without even having experience in a programming language (free or 30 euros to distribute)
• Wintermute Engine a set of tools for creating and running 2d and 3d graphical adventure games (WIN) (free, LOTS of games)

3D (first person perspective) - Myst in particular was the game series that put this genre on the map. The setting is usually designed with a 3D animation program such as Bryce or Maya and then imported into a game design engine. Usually the perspective is first person and the player can quickly become immersed in extraordinary worlds of reality/fantasy. Game development is very time-consuming but the end result is often worth it. (Wikipedia article)

• 3DCakeWalk allows for the development of commercial quality games with all of the "state of art" features you will find in today's leading games, uses Python language, $35/$100 pro.
• The 3D Game Maker point & click 3D game creator (Win), $35
• 3D Game Studio produce 3D realtime applications - demos, adventures, role playing, action, advertising, or racing games - without programming skills (WIN), Lite C is available for free, to distribute $29, Gamestudio $99, Pro $199
• 3D Rad a programmable, user-friendly, 3D real-time engine (WIN), $159
• Adventure Game Engine engine for creating graphical first-person adventure games with full support for inventory, save/load games, inventory, puzzles, conversations, full motion video, cutscenes (WIN) (Purchased)
• Alice create your own scripts that control the motion of 3D objects for games, training simulations, etc (WIN95+) (free, can be used to teach youth computer programming)
• Antiryad Gx easy multi platform 3D game creator tool (free)
• Blender free and fully functional 3D modeling/rendering/animation package, including games (Unix/Windows/BeOS) 
• Crystal Space free (LGPL) and portable 3D engine written in C++ (WIN/MAC/DOS/LINUX) 
• Dark Basic BASIC language that lets you create fast full-screen DirectX and Direct3D games with incredible ease. You can write a 3D game in minutes! (WIN) pro is $70
• Multimedia Fusion create exciting interactive applications with a mouse-driven interface. (WIN) ($369, $149)
• Ray Game Designer Previously commercial (now freeware) 3D Game building system for Windows 3.x and Windows 95. It allows you to create games based on a RayCaster engine without any knowledge of coding: you only use a point-and-click interface and your favorite drawing tools (free, but looks complicated, basic)
• Reality Factory suite of applications that have been created in order to enable people that are NOT programmers to make advanced, 3d first and third person games for PC's running Windows (WIN) (free, looks excellent!)
• http://www.huntfor.com/3d/links.htm an extensive list of free 3d models and software
• http://www.3dlinks.com/objects_free.cfm more free 3d models as well as links to all things 3d

Online Video Games - As the name implies, these games are accessible via the internet with player interactions from a multitude of settings. One drawback in the development of nonviolent games is the inability to control all of the interactions of the players. However, the genre holds some incredible possibilities simply because of its ability to reach so many people.

• Cycon Online Gaming -COG- Engine Open Source project aimed at simplifying the creation of online video games with no programming experience necessary (free, need to learn Language?)
• Realm Crafter create your own multiplayer online RPG ($100, $165)

• Game Maker allows you to make exciting computer games, without the need to write a single line of code (WIN)  (Free - lots of resources)
• Golden T Game Engine game programming for JAVA programmers (free)
InterAx create games in an easy to use yet powerful visual environment without programming or scripting. (WIN95+) ($20)
• ToonTalk - Making Programming Child's Play build and run all sorts of computer programs (WIN) ($15)

Graphics, Music, and Other Resources - A good game idea will only go as far as the quality of expression in sound and image. Most of the following resources are free and are a definite asset to any good game designer.

Card Game Resources - Card games are a great, tangible way to develop a game that can reach a lot of people, as can be seen by the popularity of such games as Magic: The Gathering. the following are some resources that we have researched:

• Self Publishing Resources for designing a variety of original games.- Excellent site!
• Your Trading Card Maker - First and foremost, Your Trading Card Maker is dead easy to use. Installation is brief and mostly uneventful. Launch the software. Read the simple user interface - it's presented in the order required to make a card. ($29.99)
• Yugioh Card Maker - Online resource for creating yugioh type cards (free)
• Open Source RPG CCG - What you can do with the card template: The cards can be used as a visual resource for your table top games, as a portable version of favorite RPG game or to create your own cards for the Rules Set.
• Card Template - Simple card template for MS Word (doc form). Credit to Chris Thompson for design.

Board Game Design Resources - How many Opoly games can there be? Only time will tell. The following are some excellent resources for board game development.

• Self Publishing Resources for designing a variety of original games.- Excellent site!

• Making Your Own Board Games - excellent site with lots of resources and links to pdfs of other games (free).

• All a-board - Lesson and information how to make your own board game using Microsoft Office Suite.

Game Design Readers - We strongly encourage prospective game designers to read information on game design and to explore the way games have been developed over the years. Below are some pdf documents that are worth checking out.

• Video Games As Change Agents For Peace and Addendum (pdf)
• The Basics of Game Design: Chapter 1 (pdf)
• A Theory of Fun (pdf)
• Educational Video Games: A Review of the Literature (pdf)