“Have fun! If you’re not enjoying it, then what the hell is the point?”

— Alan Gerding, co-creator of Two Rooms and a Boom

Thoughts on mapping theme to mechanics for a well-integrated theme:

https://oakleafgames.wordpress.com/2013/10/19/game-theory-isomorphism/

Exceptions in games: When are they appropriate?

http://www.mostdangerousgamedesign.com/2013/11/investigating-exceptions.html

Thoughts on using carrots or sticks in a design:

http://3dtotalgames.com/carrot-vs-stick/

“I don’t recommend building a medium or large game for your first design. Start simple. Design time scales exponentially with complexity.”

— Jay Treat (@jtreat3)

Jamey Stegmaier (@jameystegmaier) discusses how to get low-cost international shipping on the Funding the Dream podcast (@FundtheDream):

http://www.buzzsprout.com/4646/128546-free-international-shipping-on-kickstarter-ep-170-w-co-host-jamey-stegmaier

Matt Worden (@MattWordenGames) discusses fitting game design into real life on the Happy Mitten Games podcast (@HappyMitten):

http://www.happymittengames.com/16/

January 2014 is 4P Month–playtest your games four times in one month:

http://gil.hova.net/2013/11/05/january-2014-will-be-4p-month/

“Don’t dismiss your idea as tough or not important, but work on it and support it.”

— Babis Giannios, designer of Shadows Over the Empire

The theme for the November 2013 BoardGameGeek 24-Hour Contest is “map”:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1064485/24-hour-contest-november-2013

What you should definitely include in your rulebook:

http://boardgameben.com/writing-rules-part-ii-whats-in-whats-out/

Ways to design a game with asymmetric difficulty, and why you might want to:

http://3dtotalgames.com/accepting-asymmetric-difficulty/

Considerations when designing and balancing “power” cards:

http://jtreat.tumblr.com/post/66115254018/a-very-brief-intro-to-designing-power-cards

A high-level look at writing rulebooks:

http://boardgameben.com/writing-rules-part-i-time-traps-and-peanut-butter/

Catch-up mechanics: When are they appropriate and how can they be done correctly?

http://hyperbolegames.com/2013/11/04/catch-up-now/

The Cardboard Jungle podcast (@CBJPodcast) offers advice for first-time Kickstarter project creators (starting at 1:29):

http://www.mevio.com/episode/334714/episode-26-ain-t-that-a-kick

A look at different approaches to implementing victory points:

http://oakleafgames.wordpress.com/2013/11/03/game-theory-victory-points/

The Ludology podcast discusses set-collection games:

http://ludology.libsyn.com/ludology-epsiode-68-game-set-match

CardMaker→

tgcnews:

A Windows utility to turn a spreadsheet into simple graphical cards. Could be very useful in prototyping.

Cardboard Edison's Favorite Tips & Resources - October 2013

Our monthly roundup of board game design links includes discussions of tactics and strategy, betrayal, how to price a game, an extensive look at modular boards and lots more.

#featured:

• Meaningful Decisions: Jesse Catron on Board Game Design Choices

#theory:

• The differences between tactical, short-term choices and strategic, long-term decisions, and the intersection between them
• Some basic economic principles to help you tune your design
• Betrayal: how it can occur in games and how to encourage or discourage it
• Writing flavor text: Advice from Grant Rodiek and Mark Rosewater

#playtesting:

• Some questions to consider asking blind playtesters
• “If you are a designer, and you find a guy who can break your game in a matter of minutes, you hang on to that person for dear life.” - Gil Hova (@ingredientx)

#publishing:

• The Impressions Vidcast discusses how to price your board game
• 10 pieces of advice for a successful Kickstarter
• How to keep in contact with Kickstarter backers after the project ends