Game Data Science
“We have all met the designer who refuses to even consider insights from data,
because ‘Picasso didn’t need analytics.’ But art and data are not in opposition,
and fighting blindfolded is as foolhardy as it is poetic.”
– David Helgason, founder of Unity Technologies
Click here for a free chapter introducing Game Data Science
Game Data Science
Game data science, defined as the practice of deriving insights from game data, has created a revolution in the multibillion-dollar games industry – informing and enhancing production, design, and development processes. Almost all game companies and academics have now adopted some type of game data science, every tool utilized by game developers allows collecting data from games, yet there has been no definitive resource for academics and professionals in this rapidly developing sector until now.
Games Data Science delivers an excellent introduction to this new domain and provides the definitive guide to methods and practices of computer science, analytics, and data science as applied to video games. It is the ideal resource for academic students and professional learners seeking to understand how data science is used within the game development and production cycle, as well as within the interdisciplinary field of games research.
Organized into chapters that integrate laboratory and game data examples, this book provides a unique resource to train and educate both industry professionals and academics about the use of game data science, with practical exercises and examples on how such processes are implemented and used in academia and industry, interweaving theoretical learning with practical application throughout.
Read the foreword by David Helgason, founder of Unity Technologies
Get the labs and exercises for the book here
“Through their book, Magy, Truong, Alessandro and Anders — authorities in their fields — introduce data science in and for game development in a holistic and comprehensive manner. Game data science can serve both as an excellent academic textbook and as a practical guidebook for industry professionals. I will definitely use it as a reading companion for my AI and games classes; you should too!”
Georgios N. Yannakakis, Professor/Director, Institute of Digital Games | co-founder, modl.ai, co-author of Artificial Intelligence and Games
“We need more books like this. We’re only beginning to understand all the methods, tools and opportunities in using algorithms, behavioural science and data to analyse, personalize and tailor virtual experiences and worlds. Game Data Science takes an important first step in this direction!”
Julian Runge, Duke University and RWTH Aachen University.
Game Data Science 