What are the essential elements of a steampunk board game? A BoardGameGeek designers forum discussion:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1035379/is-it-possible-for-a-steampunk-theme-to-not-feel-p

Daniel Solis on game design, rapid prototyping and more

How to ease players into a game’s design choices:

http://www.mostdangerousgamedesign.com/2013/09/scaffolding-choice-how-to-ease-players.html

Eric Lang (@eric_lang) discusses luck and skill, expansions, focusing on the losers, playtesting and more

The Ludology podcast discusses customizable card games with designer Mike Fitzgerald:

http://ludology.libsyn.com/ludology-episode-64-the-abc-s-of-ccg-s

Jamey Stegmaier (@jameystegmaier) on customer service and replacement parts:

http://www.stonemaiergames.com/kickstarter-lesson-53-replacement-parts/

Daniel Solis (@DanielSolis) on the interplay between theme and mechanics:

“The truth is, if your game is working as it should, no one should be able tell whether you thought of the theme or the mechanics first.”

http://danielsolisblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/theme-first-or-mechanics-first-it.html

Chris Kirkman of Dice Hate Me Games (@dicehateme) joins the Happy Mitten Games podcast (@HappyMitten) to discuss working with designers, running Kickstarter campaigns, graphic design, the manufacturing process and more:

http://www.happymittengames.com/12/

Josh Cappel joins Board Game University to discuss games from an artist’s perspective:

http://boardgameuniversity.libsyn.com/board-game-university-episode-15-josh-cappel

Lessons learned from the successful Kickstarter campaign for a family-friendly card game, Water Balloon Washout:

http://www.buildingthegamepodcast.com/2013/09/08/episode-67-wbw-kickstarter-postmortem-and-maelstrom/

A new online forum for the designers of euro games:

http://www.eurogamed.com/

“Fail big. It’s worth it.”

— Eric Lang (@eric_lang)

When to use iconography and when to use text:

http://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/22993/when-to-use-iconography

Lessons learned from the successful Chaos & Alchemy Kickstarter:

http://onlinedungeonmaster.com/2013/09/06/kickstarter-recap-chaos-alchemy/

What a guy who has backed 695 Kickstarter projects has to say to game creators:

http://www.stonemaiergames.com/interview-with-the-most-prolific-game-backer-on-kickstarter/

Martin Wallace on stealing ideas, researching theme, knowing what works, and more:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/1029781/interview-with-martin-wallace-2013

Board Game Design Forum’s September 2013 Game Design Showdown - “Oldest Game Ever Found”

Design a game using the “oldest gaming tokens” ever found

Deadline: Sept. 8, 2013

http://www.bgdf.com/node/13039

Resources to teach strategy game design, with a focus on games in the classroom:

http://www.kathleenmercury.com/

Updates about the future of the Unpub program for unpublished games (@TheUnpub), including Unpub 4 on Jan. 17-19, 2014:

http://dicehateme.com/2013/09/the-state-of-games-episode-51-the-bgg-top-20-and-future-of-unpub/

Sources for prototype cards:

http://boardsandbarley.com/2013/09/05/sourcing-board-game-components-cards/