So, I'm not a professional game designer whatsoever, actually I'm on the business/finance end of a small company. I've always had a curiosity with game development, however, and had an idea for a game. I asked a close friend of mine to join me in making this idea become a reality but we weren't sure where we should start. While I have a very basic understanding of programming (from my youth) and how things should be structured (again very basic), we knew we didn't want a technical book - we already had a couple software engineers for that. What we really needed was a resource that would help us avoid some of the typical mistakes/pitfalls that novice designers tend to make. What would be even better is to find a book that would give us the tools and perspective from a philosophical vantage as well as explain 'why'.The Art of Game Design: A book of lenses is exactly what we needed.This book is not technical, it doesn't get into the specific details of how a game should be structured or coded. Rather it explains the different facets of the design process and how they fit together, starting with the Designer and the experience the Designer creates. From there it flows into what makes a great game, such as what should the interface include, how about including puzzles, interest curves, transmedia worlds to name just a few.The final few chapters deal with the management and financial pieces of the game development process, which was also very interesting to learn about. I think the parts that I enjoyed most were the ones about the psychology of game playing and what the player feels during gameplay. This is really what gaming is all about, how you feel and what the experience is while you're playing and even after you've completed the game.Overall, this is a very complete book and I would recommend it to everyone who wants to really understand the process of designing games. It was funny, after reading the book, many of the principles explained can not only be applied to game design but to other real world situations and interactions with others.And just to say it, I very rarely give five stars but this book deserves each one.