The designer and the engineer must be able to work by drawing with a stick in sand. Everything beyond this is a conflation of their work with the embellishment, commercialization and industrialization of their work.
[…] People are learning the tool, not the craft. I see people all over talking about how they can't just switch because they know Unity […]. "Game design" is a skill. Unity is not a skill, it's a tool. The ability to carry a skill to another tool is something that modern software companies are actively trying to stop you doing. Do not let them.
– Harley, aka. Qxoko https://qxoko.io
Overemphasizing tools is common in design and engineering. Tools, their customization and implementation are discussed more frequently and readily than the psychological and social patterns that enable design teams to create works of quality.
Conflating tools with skills may be a result of approaching a discipline with a focus on results and applicability – focusing on learning how to get the job done rather than understanding its context and greater implications.
The designer and the engineer must strive to be independent of any tool. Their work is intellectual and social. They must be able to express their solutions using any tool available to them.
