Cartunk Entertainment (@CartrunkEnt) is formalizing its Unpubs into an annual program:

http://us4.campaign-archive2.com/?u=555654fce7a68d736c015d4ec&id=d4ddeb163f

Designer’s block: ideas for how to get things rolling

http://boardgamegeek.com/article/9701346

“Designers: Use band-aid rules sparingly. Remember, we have the power to reverse time and prevent the boo-boo from ever happening.”

— Stephen Glenn (@spielfriek)

“Too many games spread themselves thin to broaden their appeal. In a marketplace glutted with choice, specialization is key.”

— Eric Lang (@eric_lang)

“I won’t be the first to say it, but I’ll say it again as it’s worth mentioning: Only pitch to people who care to hear it. Pitch to the right publishers.”

— Grant Rodiek (@HyperboleGames)

Tips for getting your name out there and breaking into the industry:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/833475/breaking-into-industrygetting-your-name-out-there

Taking in feedback from playtesters: some tips from the BoardGameGeek design forum:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/832565/taking-in-playtester-feedback

Indie Boards & Cards will be seeking new games at upcoming conventions. What they’re looking for:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/832265/indie-boards-and-cards-gencon-pax-submissions

Tom Vasel of The Dice Tower (@thedicetower) joins the On Board Games podcast (@OnBoardGames) to discuss how companies should promote their games, starting at about 0:21:00:

http://onboardgames.libsyn.com/webpage/obg-86-we-re-all-his-vassals

Nestor Games has launched a components business called Nestorbits:

http://www.nestorbits.com/

Pieces include custom plastic meeples and interlocking foam tiles. 

“To only know publishing through Kickstarter could destroy a company that knows no other way.”

— A.J. Porfirio, Van Ryder Games (@VanRyderGames)

The Boston Festival of Indie Games is accepting submissions for its Sept. 22 event in Cambridge, Mass.:

http://bostonfig.com/game-submissions/

(No prizes, non-competitive for board games.)

“Good mechanics don’t make a good game, but poorly implemented mechanics will ruin a game without exception.”

— Brad Talton, Level 99 Games (@Level99Games)

An artist’s open offer to make inexpensive art for your game:

http://www.bgdf.com/node/6847

SEE ALSO:

http://cardboardedison.tumblr.com/post/27153390576/need-an-artist-for-your-game-cartrunk

“Any time you can make the tension in your game revolve around the guy across the table, you’ve done something essential. You’ve turned a cardboard puzzle into a shared experience.”

— Kevin Spak (@Captain_Spak) and Sam Liberty (@SA_Liberty)

Made for Play: Board Games & Modern Industry

What randomness is, why it matters and occurs in gaming, how we can interpret and analyze randomness, and when it is or is not an appropriate game mechanism for a game design:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/11133/as-luck-would-have-it-on-randomness-uncertanity-a

SEE ALSO:

http://cardboardedison.tumblr.com/post/24951789254/the-ludology-podcast-takes-a-look-at-the-use-of

Jeffrey D. Allers has posted the text of a lecture he gave some architecture students in Berlin. It’s a solid overview of the history of board games, the current industry, design process, theory and more:

http://opinionatedgamers.com/2012/07/20/postcard-from-berlin-56-lecturing-on-game-design-at-the-technical-university/

“Don’t invent just to invent a game. A good idea that you can see through to the end will come when it is ready.”

— Casey Grove, designer of The Big Fat Tomato Game

Sam Liberty (@SA_Liberty) and Kevin Spak (@Captain_Spak) discuss “What is fun?” at TEDxBoston