Toy & Game Design

Toy & Game Design at a Glance

While “cave-children” probably didn’t build and smash LEGO forts or shave their Barbies’ heads, historians believe that they still played with primitive toys. The evolution in toys can be mapped as below :

  • Before the 20th century children had few toys and those they did have were precious; eg. Egyptian children played with toys like dolls, toy soldiers, wooden animals, marbles, spinning tops and knuckle bones (which were thrown like dice).
  • The industrial revolution allowed toys to be mass produced and they gradually became cheaper.
  • John Spilsbury made the first jigsaw puzzle in 1767. He intended to teach geography by cutting maps into pieces, but soon people began making jigsaws for entertainment.
  • Many new toys were invented in the 20th century–with the arrival of an affluent society, plastic and metal toys became much cheaper and much more common. In the 1950s Lego became a popular toy.
  • Skateboards were first sold in 1958. Barbie dolls were invented in 1959 and Action Man went on sale in 1966.
  • At the end of the 20th century, computer games started becoming very popular.

Toy Designers perform the following tasks on a regular basis :

  • Toy designers often create the toys from the ground up – this means sketching or CAD drawings of the original concept and creating a prototype
  • Toys must be intricately designed, mainly because there are many safety regulations involved and the toy must meet certain standards after repeated and harsh treatment
  • Toy designers may work with a whole team or alone to create a new concept
  • They may be responsible for estimating production cost as well as retail price to get the production of the toy approved through their company
  • So, the toy designer may wear a number of hats, from creativity and business to marketing

The most obvious attribute for someone who works as a toy designer is a love for toys. If you’re considering this field, you should be excited about toy development and the ideas surrounding improved play for all ages.

The core skills and specifications that an individual must have include the following :

  • Good spatial and visual awareness
  • Well developed creative and technical skills.
  • Proficiency in computers especially with designing software
  • Superb interpersonal and communication skills

Toy & Game design graduates can work in the following roles :

  • Toy maker
  • Toy engineer
  • Toy creator
  • Game developer
  • Toy Designer
  • Game Designer

Links to Follow :

Following are the best companies/studios in India to work in this discipline :

  • Pink Elefant
  • Ankama Studio
  • Arkane Studios
  • Cyanide Studio
  • Darkworks DTC
  • Eden Games
  • Etranges Libellules
  • Eugen Systems
  • Eversim
  • F4 Fandango Games