The requirement for the April 2017 24-hour contest is "puns":

https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1757080/24-hour-contest-april-2017

“Always make the prototype. Otherwise it remains nowhere near finished.”

— Rob Daviau

Tips for designing microgames:

http://www.theindiegamereport.com/designing-micro-or-all-about-creating-a-game-experience-that-delivers-more-with-less/

Cardboard Edison’s Favorite Tips & Resources - March 2017

This month our list of favorite board game design links includes answers to a fundamental question about good games, a collection of useful videos about game design, advice for talking to publishers from preparation to pitch to follow-up, and lots more.

theory:

• What makes a game good--or bad?

• Analyzing the many variables that go into tile-based city-building games

• Videos from the 2017 Game Developers Conference's Board Game Design Day (video)

• Common mechanisms in two-player games (video)

publishing:

• Tax deductions for board game publishers

licensing:

• How to make a great video pitch of your game

• How to approach publishers with game ideas (audio)

• Why a publisher might reject your game and how to handle it (audio)

process:

• “If you want to be a creative, cast as wide a net in your life as you can. Read things, try things, do things. That’s where ideas come from.” - Kevin Wilson

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Cardboard Edison is supported by our patrons on Patreon.

ADVISERS: Peter C. Hayward, Aaron Vanderbeek

SENIOR INVENTORS: Steven Cole, John du Bois, Richard Durham, Koen Hendrix, Chris and Kathy Keane (The Drs. Keane), Marcel Perro, Behrooz Shahriari

JUNIOR INVENTORS: Ryan Abrams, Joshua Buergel, Luis Lara, Aidan Short, Jay Treat

ASSOCIATES: Robert Booth, Stephen B Davies, Doug Levandowski, Aaron Lim, Nathan Miller, Isaias Vallejo, Matt Wolfe

APPRENTICES: Kiva Fecteau, Scott Gottreu, JR Honeycutt, Knight Works, Scott Martel Jr., David J. Mortimer, Mike Mullins, Marcus Ross, Sean Rumble, Diane Sauer

Lessons for designers and publishers after playing more than 5,000 games (audio):

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/lessons-learned-from-playing-5000-games-with-tom-vasel/

How to test a game for a contest (audio):

http://thegamecrafter.libsyn.com/testing-games-for-contests-at-the-game-crafter-episode-116

Tax deductions for board game publishers:

http://www.theindiegamereport.com/publishing-insights-taxes/

Analyzing the many variables that go into tile-based city-building games:

http://www.mechanics-and-meeples.com/2017/03/27/the-design-and-care-of-a-tile-based-city-builder/

The role of the developer in the design and publication process (audio):

http://ludology.libsyn.com/ludology-episode-148-half-baked

What makes a game good--or bad?

http://www.creakingshelves.com/can-games-be-bad/

Reasons to not play your own game during testing:

http://www.bgdf.com/forum/game-creation/playtesting/playtesting-advice-dont-play-your-own-game

How to use strengths and weaknesses in a game design (audio):

http://podbay.fm/show/580709168/e/1490371500

A look at the drafting mechanism (video)

How to create tension in board games:

http://makethemplay.com/index.php/2017/03/23/creating-tension-in-board-games/

How to organize a design space (audio):

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/how-to-organize-a-design-space-with-sen-foong-lim/

Getting high-quality art without breaking the bank (audio):

http://www.genesisoflegend.com/2017/03/episode108/

“Look at your theme, really look at it. What is it made of, what does it do, how does it do it, why, when, where? All of it. Take it apart and really look at what you have. Stop trying to make a ‘game’ when you can make an experience, something the players will talk about and feel like they were involved. ”

— Benny Sperling

Software for making board game prototypes (audio):

http://theforbiddenlimb.libsyn.com/designer-tools-galore-ep-53

Advice for new board game makers from Unpub 7 designers (audio):

https://www.buzzsprout.com/20526/491378-episode-73-get-in-the-game-at-unpub

How to be fair to Kickstarter backers when you make a change:

https://stonemaiergames.com/kickstarter-lesson-222-how-to-be-fair-to-backers-when-you-make-a-change/