“Best advice for new designers? Design games. Plural. The first game you get published will more likely be the sixth game you design.”

— Corey Young (@C_M_Young)

Observations on resource systems in games: what they are and how they can be used:

http://www.lvl99games.com/?p=2472

“Keep a journal and write down every game idea you have… there are truly no bad ideas because what seems like a terrible idea for a game when you first think of it can sometimes months later lead you to a great idea when you go back and read it in the journal.”

— Jason Slingerland (@JASlingerland)

“Learn to fail. Game design is all about trial and error.”

— Kevin Kulp (@TheKevinKulp)

A reminder of the potency of ritual, theme, narrative, and atmosphere in games:

http://www.mostdangerousgamedesign.com/2013/07/come-out-and-play-2013-reminder-that.html

A roundup of the most common advice given to board game designers:

http://themetagame.blogspot.com/2013/07/most-common-feedback-for-board-game.html

The Ludology podcast on what makes for a good set of rules: What are some common pitfalls? How should they be structured? What should be highlighted?

http://ludology.libsyn.com/ludology-episode-60-how-to-how-to-play

Creating “goal chains” that guide players through the decision-making process:

http://www.lvl99games.com/?p=1101

Chevee Dodd (@cheveedodd) joins the Happy Mitten podcast (@HappyMitten) to discuss rapid prototyping, courting publishers and more:

http://www.happymittengames.com/7/

An in-depth post-mortem from an unsuccessful board game Kickstarter campaign: what worked and what didn’t:

http://meltdowngames.wordpress.com/2013/07/15/post-mortem/

Two upcoming playtesting events:

Protospiel - Milwaukee: Sept. 28-29, 2013, http://protospiel-milwaukee.org/

Brookline Booksmith Prototype Event: Aug. 12, 2013, http://www.overboard-comic.com/blog/brookline-booksmith-prototype-event/

Coblis — Color Blindness Simulator→

tgcnews:

As game designers you should be taking into account color-blindness. This utility can help you out.

A primer for copyright and board games:

http://www.acrosstheboardgames.net/andrew/law-and-games-copyrighting-games/

A guide to role-selection games:

http://www.islaythedragon.com/2013/07/who-am-i-this-time-guide-on-role.html

Eric Lang (@eric_lang) on examining your motivations, choosing between correct solutions, quitting your day job and more:

http://www.boardgamequest.com/eric-lang-interview/

Rob Daviau (@robdaviaugamer) joins the Board Game University podcast to discuss working at a major game company, questioning assumptions, playing to analyze, and more:

http://boardgameuniversity.libsyn.com/board-game-university-episode-8-rob-daviau

A guide to hand management as a gaming mechanism:

http://www.islaythedragon.com/2013/07/he-deserves-big-hand-for-that-and-we.html

“Work hard. Take it seriously. Create the games you want to play and be passionate about everything you do.”

— Grant Rodiek (@HerrohGrant)

Advice for coping with the aftermath of a bad playtest:

http://danielsolisblog.blogspot.com/2013/07/advice-for-playtest-hangover.html

Ensuring that one player’s enjoyment of your game doesn’t come at the expense of another’s:

http://nothingsacredgames.com/living-with-schadenfreude/