Game Design and Development: Code, Psychology and Analytics (Paperback)

Almost excellent. A second edition could easily push it to five stars.

I was looking for something that would bridge the gap between tutorials and proper reference material, and this does that well. The code samples assume a particular environment, which took a bit of fiddling to get running properly. I particularly liked the way the author builds up from simple cases before introducing the harder material. The author clearly knows the subject deeply and has thought hard about how to teach it. Good value for the price and worth the time it takes to work through properly.

Worth every page. I have already recommended it to two colleagues.

I bought this on a whim after seeing it mentioned in a forum thread, and I am glad I did. It is denser than the page count suggests, and I found myself slowing down around the middle. The writing is direct and does not waste space on filler, which I value in a technical book. The author is unusually honest about where the simplifications break down, which I appreciated. If you have the prerequisites, this is an easy recommendation. I will be keeping it on my desk rather than the shelf.