Whats the difference between being a game designer and being a game developer?

Question

Many people are unsure of the positions in the game industry. Some people will credit the developer, some people credit the designer. But what do each of these jobs do and what separates one from another?

Answer 1

Designers and developers can, and sometimes are the same individual, specifically on small teams or projects.

If they are treated as two separate roles then design can focus on gameplay, feel, monetization strategy, visual or the general direction of the game. These are often experience or UX designers, artists or producers that set the goalpost for what is expected and acceptable from the technical implementation.

Developers often refers to the individuals doing the work-on-the-ground. Implementing the designers' vision through graphics, code and tools and are usually technical artists, coders or engineers. It can also refer to the team or company in general as in: "The developer of Mortal Kombat is Netherrealm Studio."

If everyone is doing their job properly than good design and development become hard to distinguish and the two roles complement each other. If someone messes up their impact usually becomes more exposed as players are more likely to clock something they don't like. In most cases, cross-function communication is key to success in any role.

Answer 2

So, in this industry hiring teams and managers will usually ask for one thing from a person, but expect another. The big reason for this is the lack of clarity for what they are even looking for. Who makes the games, the designer or the developer?

A game designer needs to be a game developer to a certain degree, but the game developer doesnt have to be the designer. The generic answer is that the designer is the intermediary between the design, development, and art teams, but that also is just a single function of the job, and does not entail what makes a good game designer. The game designer is the arbiter of the story, gameplay, and direction of the game. They are the people who set up the structure of how you see, feel, interact, and play the game. In effect a real jack of all the trades that make the game you play.

The developer on the other hand is the executor. These people make the plan manifest itself into the gaming engine and onto your tv screen. When they concoct an idea, its how to, not what if. They, in effect, take the ideas given by the designer and find the best path possible to break it down into smaller parts that hopefully ends in the functions and methods used to create the mechanics that make the game idea into an experience.

So who to credit for the game, well if your excited about the new gameplay that was merged in with a unused genre before or those amazing camera positions or storytelling, thats the designer. If your amazed about the 60 frames per second and that amazing smoothing motion on the camera that makes everything seem seamless, thats the developer.