Game MDA; what is it?

Whenever one would design a game; whether it may be a company or an individual developer, one source that they could go to for influence and ideas would be to look at other games. However, it's important to identify the aspects that made that game good and what is it that made the game as it is. It's really all about looking at a game and seeing what makes it tick as it is. 

That's where the MDA framework or model comes into play. 

Game MDA Framework

This framework was designed by Robin et al and was made to assist developers, scholars and researchers in defining and decomposing the mechanics, dynamics and aesthetics of games and their designs.  the three parts of  a game analyzed by the framework are;

Mechanics: which describe specific components of a game under data and algorithm. 

Dynamics: which describe the input and output behaviour of Mechanics on the player, and their run-time. 

Aesthetics: describes the desirable emotional responses by the player when he/she interacts with the game.

While the MDA framework is widely used, it has its errors. In accordance with a written Source, The framework focuses too much on game mechanics and in addition isn't well suited for all types of games. Also, it doesn't focus on the narrative aspect of a game, which to me is the most important part of a game. 

Due to this, a new framework was introduced that expands the MDA into the Design, Play and Experience framework. This framework maintains aspects from the original MDA but also integrates additional design aspects into layers. 

Another framework; the DDE framework, which stands for Design, Dynamics and Experience is a framework that addresses the weaknesses of the MDA. 

In collusion, the MDA framework is used to help game developers design their game as best as possible. 

Other sources: Explaining the MDA Framework, Formal Approach to Game Design and Game Research.