“Keeping in mind what makes your game different as you design the game will help you to highlight that element as you go through the design process. Think about the rest of your game acting as a funnel to bring your players back to the unique elements of your game.”

— Chris Renshall

Cardboard Edison's Favorite Tips & Resources - October 2014

This month our roundup of exceptional board game design links features answers to legal concerns you might have, a list of publishers accepting submissions, a quote that lit up Tumblr, and plenty more…

#industry:

• A massive post touching on lots of legal issues facing board game designers and publishers

#licensing:

• A list of publishers that are accepting submissions, and what types of games they’re looking for

#publishing:

• “Working on the first game that you’re serious about self-publishing? Start small. No, smaller. Smaller. Keep going.” - Daniel Solis

#process:

• Games every designer should play to become familiar with the breadth of modern gaming
• “It’s important as a game designer to find what bothers you in the games people are playing and imagine solutions; that’s vital practice in developing the problem-solving skills you need, but also one of the better sources of inspiration.” - Jay Treat (@jtreat3)
• How to research a theme
• How a design can get stuck in a ditch, and how to get it back on track

#playtesting:

• What do you do when a tester says, “You removed my favorite feature”?

#theory:

• The purpose of expansions
• How designers can approach difficult themes in board games
• A taxonomy of game scoring methods

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Experiences with different print-on-demand services, from the Facebook Board & Card Game Designers Guild:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/320445024722916?view=permalink&id=558624050905011

The Meeple Syrup vidcast on designing games from existing intellectual property

“Playtest the hell out of your game. You’re never done playtesting it. Even when you think you’re done, playtest it more.”

— Jon Gilmour (@jongilmour)

“Do not be afraid to show your design to other designers. They have been where you are now and understand your feelings. It is a scary thing, but totally worth it.”

— Suzanne Zinsli (@KabrtZinsli)

“Hidden trackable information” and the role of memory in board games–a BoardGameGeek forum discussion:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1255020/good-memory-ruins-many-games

40 free icons for prototyping:

https://www.behance.net/gallery/20711777/Free-icon-pack-2

What to do when two publishers want to license your game:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/320445024722916?view=permalink&id=557462767687806

Some design opportunities offered by cards:

http://www.3dtotalgames.com/cards-randomness/

The benefits of self-doubt in the early stages of design:

http://hyperbolegames.com/2014/10/28/self-doubt-is-my-first-tester/

Considering how to elicit fear from a board game:

http://oakleafgames.wordpress.com/2014/10/28/eliciting-fear-playing-for-keeps/

15 indispensable tools for Kickstarter creators and entrepreneurs:

http://stonemaiergames.com/15-indispensable-tools-for-every-kickstarter-creator-and-entrepreneur/

Game design time sinks, and how to improve your process:

http://tgikgamesblog.wordpress.com/2014/10/28/how-to-build-a-game-22-dissect-your-process-to-make-it-better/

“Before pitching to a publisher, do your research. Does your game fit their existing catalog/box size or fill a hole?”

— Sen-Foong Lim (@SenFoongLim)

2015 Ion Award Game Design Competition

Deadline: Jan. 1, 2015

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1259716/2015-ion-award-game-design-competition

Ways to encourage Kickstarter backers to pledge aside from exclusive content:

http://stonemaiergames.com/10-better-reasons-than-ks-exclusives-to-back-a-kickstarter-project/

“First and foremost, what we’re here to do is to create environments to have fun. So if you’re designing games, define fun and make sure that your game does that, because fun means different things to different people.”

— Ray Wehrs, co-founder of Calliope Games

Six stats for Kickstarter success:

http://www.buzzsprout.com/4646/215212-6-stats-to-kickstarter-success-ep-230-w-john-coveyou

“Take a look at what elements of your game have an easily calculable value, and try to find ways to force players to make judgments based on incomplete information. That leads to more interesting decisions and an involving game.”

— Geoff Engelstein (@gengelstein)