Welcome!

An exploration of what fun is, and why games matter.

Widely considered a classic.

Used in dozens of university-level programs on game design all around the world.

A go-to text for gamification, educators, trainers, and interaction designers.

Raph's new book: POSTMORTEMS

The first volume of a set of collected essays, Postmortems is an inspiring historical look back at the development of virtual worlds and MMORPGs, including behind the scenes design essays on MUDs, Ultima Online, Star Wars Galaxies, Privateer Online, Metaplace, My Vineyard, and more. Foreword by the legendary Lord British himself, Richard Garriott.

10th anniversary revised edition in full color!

For the tenth anniversary of the release of the original book, O'Reilly has published a fully revised edition. There are changes in most every page, bringing the book up to date with the latest science and theory. And it's now in glossy full color!

English 2nd edition from O'Reilly, Foreword by Will Wright

Japanese from O'Reilly, Foreword by Masaya Matsuura

China 2nd ed from Southeast University Press

Korean 2nd ed. from Banyangjangbon

Taiwan 2nd ed. from GoTop

Russian 2nd ed. from DMK Press

About the author

Raph Koster is a veteran game designer who has been professionally credited in almost every area of the game industry. He's been the lead designer and director of massive titles such as Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxies; and he's contributed writing, art, soundtrack music, and programming to many more titles ranging from Facebook games to single-player titles for handheld consoles.

Koster is widely recognized as one of the world's top thinkers about game design, and is an in-demand speaker at conferences all over the world. In 2012, he was named an Online Game Legend at the Game Developers Conference Online. Visit his blog at www.raphkoster.com.