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Next Level
Making Games That Make Themselves
Brief Description
How generative systems are reshaping the way games are made, how we experience them, and what this reveals about creativity itself. In video games, creativity isn’t just seen, it’s played – from exploring endless landscapes to diving into character details and immersing ourselves in unpredictable narratives....
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See moreHow generative systems are reshaping the way games are made, how we experience them, and what this reveals about creativity itself.
How generative systems are reshaping the way games are made, how we experience them, and what this reveals about creativity itself.
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Description
How generative systems are reshaping the way games are made, how we experience them, and what this reveals about creativity itself.
In video games, creativity isn’t just seen, it’s played – from exploring endless landscapes to diving into character details and immersing ourselves in unpredictable narratives. Yet these elements are often the result of procedural generation – the creative use of algorithms to design game content. These generative systems lie behind some of the biggest hits in video game history, from genre-defying titles in the 1980s to the most famous blockbusters of today.
Next Level demystifies the techniques that are often as mysterious as their creations. Written by game designer and creative AI researcher Mike Cook, this book takes us on a tour of generative systems past and present, exploring how they work, the artistic uses they have in some of our favourite games, and how these algorithms didn’t just revolutionise how we design games – they changed how we think about creativity itself.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781399423397
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Format: Hardback
Date Published: 07 May 2026
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Bloomsbury Sigma
Illustration: Black and white illustrations throughout
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 28.0mm
Width: 160.0mm
Height: 236.0mm
Weight: 460g
Pages: 288
About the Author
Mike Cook is an AI researcher, game designer and writer from London, where he is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Informatics at King’s College London. He is best-known for his research into automated game design – building AI systems that can design games from scratch. His AI systems have won numerous awards.
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