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Cardboard Edison

Game design & bright ideas for game designers

Bright Ideas

Tips & Resources for Board Game Designers

Cardboard Edison
  • Cardboard Edison/
  • Our Games/
    • Houdini's Last Act
    • Quad Squad
    • Cobras
    • Retail Rejects
    • More Games
    • Prototypes
  • Free Resources/
    • Blog
    • Industry Reports
    • Playtest Groups
    • Virtual Tabletops
    • Contests
    • Interviews
    • Game Design Checklist
  • Publisher Directory/
  • Tariffs Report/
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  • Award/
featured
theory
playtesting
prototyping
process
rules
licensing
publishing
industry
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August 30, 2018 August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Lessons from blind testing a rulebook--how certain formatting encourages players to miss rules:

https://twitter.com/WeirdGiraffes/status/1035213479777591301

August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
rules

Cardboard Edison

August 30, 2018 August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Making tabletop games with digital tools (video)

August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
process, industry

Cardboard Edison

August 30, 2018 August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Ways to streamline a game by removing math and counting (audio):

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/removing-math-from-games-with-dan-peterson/

August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
theory, podcasts

Cardboard Edison

August 30, 2018 August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Tips for breaking into board game design from an up-and-coming designer (audio):

http://goforthandgame.libsyn.com/a-conversation-withjulio-nazario-game-design-champion

August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
industry, podcasts

Cardboard Edison

August 30, 2018 August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison
“Game Designer pro tip #1: always negotiate for copies of your game.”
— Scott Rogers
August 30, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
licensing

Cardboard Edison

August 24, 2018 August 24, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Advice for the full process of game design, from concept through publishing (audio):

https://www.lowplayercount.com/episodes/2018/8/19/episode-71-concept-to-table-series-game-design-with-cole-wehrle-sen-foong-lim

August 24, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
theory, process, playtesting, podcasts

Cardboard Edison

August 24, 2018 August 24, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Why it's important to not avoid product testing to gain a CE mark:

https://www.manokentgames.com/single-post/2018/08/24/CE-Marking-in-Boardgames-Advice-False-Loopholes-and-Mistakes

August 24, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
publishing

Cardboard Edison

August 23, 2018 August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Roll-and-Write Global-Jam

Runs Sept. 1-8, 2018

Prizes: games

https://sites.google.com/view/rollandwriteglobaljam/home

August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
contests

Cardboard Edison

August 23, 2018 August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

20 lessons from 20 years of game design (audio):

Human Nature

Aesthetics

Resonance

Piggybacking

Interesting vs. Fun

Emotional Response

Make It Personal

Details Matter

Customization

Exploring

Loved Not Liked

Don't Prove

Fun

Bluntness

Designing Components

Challenging Players

Less Is More

Creativity

Feedback

It All Connects

August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
theory, podcasts

Cardboard Edison

August 23, 2018 August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison
“Remember: no matter what theme you pick, no matter what mechanisms you use; somebody will pass on your game based on only that. No game is “for everyone” so don’t stress.”
— Jon Moffat
August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
industry

Cardboard Edison

August 23, 2018 August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

How to design a shuffle-builder (think Smash Up) (audio):

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/how-to-design-a-shuffle-builder-with-callin-flores/

August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
theory, podcasts

Cardboard Edison

August 23, 2018 August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

A few ways of defining "fun" and how to figure out if your game is working (video)

August 23, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

August 22, 2018 August 22, 2018/ Cardboard Edison
“I highly recommend blind playtesting! If you’ve never placed a rulebook you’ve written in front of someone else to figure out, you definitely need to. Even if you’re not a publisher, you’ll find out so much about how people learn and play games.”
— Carla Kopp
August 22, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
playtesting

Cardboard Edison

August 20, 2018 August 20, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Lots of pointers for making a pitch video:

https://bluecubeboardgames.com/2018/08/18/making-a-pitch-video/

August 20, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
industry

Cardboard Edison

August 16, 2018 August 16, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Terms that one publisher includes in their licensing contracts:

https://stonemaiergames.com/game-designer-contracts-and-stonemaier-games/

August 16, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
licensing

Cardboard Edison

August 16, 2018 August 16, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

The essential elements of pitching your design to a publisher (audio):

http://www.thespiel.net/node/1160

August 16, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
licensing, podcasts

Cardboard Edison

August 15, 2018 August 15, 2018/ Cardboard Edison
“Every game you design will be better than the last. You will be smarter. You will be better. Don’t be afraid to put a game on a shelf for a year and work on something else. You’ll figure it out when you come back!”
— Jonathan Gilmour
August 15, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

August 15, 2018 August 15, 2018/ Cardboard Edison
“Goals can be useful in starting designing, but don’t get hung up on them. Follow your game wherever it leads you, even to places you didn’t expect to go.”
— Matthew Dunstan
August 15, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

August 15, 2018 August 15, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

Three ways to improve the process of writing and editing rulebooks:

http://joshuayearsley.com/2018/08/09/were-making-rulebooks-all-wrong/

August 15, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
rules

Cardboard Edison

August 14, 2018 August 14, 2018/ Cardboard Edison

How much upkeep is too much for players? A Board Game Designers Forum discussion:

https://www.bgdf.com/forum/game-creation/design-theory/what-percentage-game-should-be-spent-doing-upkeep

August 14, 2018/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

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