Quickstart Guide to Game Design

Very good, with a few caveats. The core material is strong.

I picked this up after getting stuck on a project and it turned out to be exactly the right book at the right time. Some terminology is introduced without much ceremony; I had to look a few things up along the way. The examples are small enough to type out and experiment with, which is exactly what I want from a book like this. Some of the diagrams are dense and I had to reread a few sections, though that may just be me. Worth picking up if you already have the basics. Set realistic expectations and you will get a lot out of it.

This is the one to get if you are serious about game development.

This is the third book I have read on game development this year, and it is comfortably the best of them. I found myself making notes in the margins, which is always a good sign. I appreciated the honesty about what the book does not cover — it saved me from expecting things that were not there. I particularly liked the way the author builds up from simple cases before introducing the harder material. I have already recommended it to two colleagues and will recommend it to more.