Cardboard Edison’s Favorite Tips & Resources - August 2015

Our monthly roundup of excellent board game design links and tips this month includes an interesting method of solo testing, practical advice for pitch sessions, some reminders about the industry and more…

theory:

• On whether to make a good game for a broad audience or a great game for a narrow group

playtesting:

• Different playstyles you can mimic during solo testing
• “No matter how much you think about a game, playtesting is way better! You see problems occur that you couldn’t think about.” - Adam Daulton

process:

• Yves Tourigny on two kinds of designer’s block, not taking feedback personally, dealing with rejection and lots more
• “Good games aren’t designed, they’re developed.” - JR Honeycutt
• Key questions to answer very early in the design process

licensing:

• The Meeple Syrup show offers lots of practical advice for pitching to publishers and navigating a con as a designer
• Tips for pitching to publishers, learned from observing dozens of pitches at Gen Con 2015

industry:

• “If you want your game to be published, consider the publisher part of the audience.” - Steven Cole
• “You have to have a thick skin in any business, and this one is no exception. Name any game and there are people who won’t like it. Sure it’s hard to hear, but as long as there are plenty of good reactions as well, it’s not the end of the world.” - Sean Scott Garrity

Cardboard Edison is supported by our patrons on Patreon.

SENIOR INVENTORS: Steven Cole, John du Bois, Richard Durham, Matthew O’Malley, Isaias Vallejo

JUNIOR INVENTORS: Stephen B Davies, Luis Lara, Behrooz Shahriari, Aidan Short, Jay Treat

ASSOCIATES: Robert Booth, Doug Levandowski, Aaron Lim, Nathan Miller, Marcel Perro

APPRENTICES: Gino Brancazio, Keith Burgun, Kiva Fecteau, Scott Gottreu, JR Honeycutt, Brad Price, Diane Sauer, Dan Sinensky

“Always keep your goal in mind. Why are you making the game? The answer will determine your audience.”

— Cole Medeiros (@TheGubsGuy)

“Test your game in chunks. If you are designing a big game make sure the most important part is working before adding too much chrome.”

— Peter Gousis (@MVPBoardgames)

“A game cannot please all of the people all of the time; take critical points of view under consideration, but don’t let them drag you down or send you off on a tangent.”

— Eric Jome

Early-game structures: starting resources, private and public objectives, and more:

http://www.gamesprecipice.com/resources/

Lessons from the New Bedford Kickstarter relaunch: shipping, feedback, player counts, preparation and more:

https://oakleafgames.wordpress.com/2015/08/28/lessons-learned-from-the-new-bedford-relaunch/

Designing “primal” games:

http://kevingnunn.com/2015/08/29/primal-games/

Hasbro Gaming Lab 2015 Face-to-Face Party Game Challenge

Five finalists will run Indiegogo campaigns with promotion by Hasbro Gaming Lab. One winner receives $10,000 and a trip to Hasbro to work with its game development team.

Deadline: Sept. 30, 2015

http://hasbrogaminglab.com/

Game design deadly sins:

http://www.robindavid.info/2015/08/game-design-deadly-sins.html

How to know when your design isn’t working, and what to do about it:

http://hyperbolegames.com/2015/08/28/the-54-card-guild-4/

The Inquisitive Meeple Playing Card Challenge

Design a game with just a deck of playing cards

http://theinquisitivemeeple.com/playing-card-challenge/

Trove designer David Somerville (@thisistrove) on experience-first design, rapid prototyping, taking criticism, researching design and more:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1425655/board-game-designer-interview-1-david-somerville-s

The Game Crafter Survival Challenge

Design a game where the players are in a dire situation and must survive

Deadline: Nov. 30, 2015

https://www.thegamecrafter.com/contests/the-survival-challenge

Kickstarter vs. Indiegogo–pros and cons:

http://stonemaiergames.com/kickstarter-vs-indiegogo-which-crowdfunding-site-should-you-choose/

“When play testing a game, if a player asks “can I do this fun thing?” The answer should almost always be “yes!””

— Matthew O'Malley (@BlackOakGames)

“Think about why your tester said something, not just what they said.”

— Paul Peterson (@warewolf00)

“Make it smaller. Then make it smaller again. Until you can’t anymore.”

— John du Bois (@JohnduBois)

“Surround yourself with people who will encourage you and will never, ever let you get by with subpar work.”

— Jason D. Kingsley (@JasonDKingsley)

“Don’t start with what players do, but rather what you want players to think about. Then focus the mechanics from there.”

— J. Alex Kevern (@AlexWithIdeas)

“Don’t add something to your game just because it should be there. Add it because it can’t be left out.”

— Nat Levan (@OakleafGames)