The Plaid Hat Podcast (@PlaidHatGames) discusses the growing pains that face an up-and-coming game publishing company:
Some features of great games, and tips for how you can add them to your games:
http://hyperbolegames.com/2013/06/03/the-great-game-molecules/
What can we learn from the board game Kickstarter campaigns that fell the furthest short of their goals?
http://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/19963/kickstarter-analytics-biggest-losers
Be sure to check out the rest of the series of “Kickstarter Analytics” posts here:
The Designer, Indie & Small Publisher’s Guide to Gen Con Indy
http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/984519/the-designer-indie-small-publishers-guide-to-gen
Cardboard Edison's Favorite Tips & Resources - May 2013
/This month’s roundup of board game design tips features down-to-earth advice for meeting with publishers, some insights into the human brain, a reminder about playtesting (hint: playtest!) and more…
- Ten (or so) things every game designer needs to know about people
- How theme and mechanics are more tightly connected than commonly assumed
- “The simpler your design, the fewer decisions you give players, and the more weight each of those decisions needs to carry. It’s challenging.” - Grant Rodiek (@HerrohGrant)
- “By now you know that you need to playtest, playtest, playtest, but it is worth mentioning again because it is that important.” - Danny Devine (@3ddevine)
- The On Board Games podcast goes in-depth on planning, running and fulfilling a Kickstarter project
- “Don’t make it all about the money”: making the most of a Kickstarter campaign
- Two pieces of advice from Matt Worden: (1) Talk with Folks, and (2) Finish Something
- “My most given piece of advice is to start small and get something playable. Make the simplest form of your game playable and try it.” - Chevee Dodd (@cheveedodd)
- “SLOW DOWN. When you have that first idea you think ‘Gosh I am brilliant! This is going to be easy. I will be a millionaire sensation!’ Don’t feel like you have to get a game out the door in a month.” - A.J. Porfirio (@VanRyderGames)
- “Keep going, keep going, keep going! Never stop. If you believe in it, you have to put the work into it. The difference between an idea in your head and product in stores is perseverance.” - Isaac Vega (@IsaacVegaDesign)
The benefits of crappy prototypes:
http://exampleofplay.wordpress.com/2013/05/30/the-benefits-of-crappy-prototypes/
Tips for setting goals for board game designers and publishers:
http://gameofmarketing.blogspot.com/2013/05/how-do-you-win-importance-of-goals.html
Lessons learned from the Paradise Fallen Kickstarter campaign, by Patrick Nickell of Crash Games (@crash_games):
http://www.stonemaiergames.com/kickstarter-retrospective-2-what-you-can-learn-from-paradise-fallen/
The psychology of loss aversion and how it can be used in board games:
http://www.mechanics-and-meeples.com/2013/05/28/psychology-of-gaming-loss-aversion/
Korea Boardgames Design Contest 2013
Deadline: July 21
Prizes: up to $1000 and possible publication
http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/982738/kbg-design-contest-2013-1600s-prize-pool
A look at games that use an action point allowance system:
http://www.islaythedragon.com/2013/05/where-actions-at-guide-to-action-point.html
Several print-and-play board game design contests are running this summer:
http://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/19776/pnp-design-contests-for-the-summer-of-2013
IPad apps that can help you design board games: suggestions from the BoardGameGeek designers forum:
http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/981411/ipad-friendly-apps-for-game-board-designs
