Building a Game Pitch

Book excerpt: Based on the PocketGamer MasterClass Building a Pitch: From Concept to Document (2021), a decade’s worth of industry experience and numerous industry-level pitches for a variety of organisations, including Mediatonic, Epic Games and GDC, this book will equip you with methodologies, best practices and insights around video game pitch design. It will guide you through a step-by-step process from initial conceptualisation and idea validation to communicating your pitches on paper clearly and effectively –as well as illustrating why such a process can be highly valuable. In a day and age where video game development is more competitive than ever, the value and importance of "lightning in a bottle" pitches has never been higher: foundational visions capable of delivering video games that stand apart from the crowd as industry-renowned titles, generating immense critical or commercial success which (after the awe has abated) usually triggers the same internal question –"why didn’t I think of that!?" As such, this book will cover: •How video game pitches can determine the success potential of a video game •How to conceptualise unique and compelling ideas for a video game •How to validate your ideas to better determine whether they are capable of becoming "lightning in a bottle" experiences –or even worth prototyping •How to structure, format and write a video game pitch in a manner that not only helps you better expand upon and understand your own pitch but also makes it easier for others to understand and buy into This book will be of great interest to both seasoned and early-career game designers, students studying game design courses and start-up founders seeking investment.