2018 Children's Game Print and Play Design Contest

Deadline: Dec. 16, 2018

Prizes: GeekGold

https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2085758/2018-childrens-game-print-and-play-design-contest

“Every rule, every component, every aspect of your game must solve a problem or provide an experience that is essential to your game. Everything else compromises quality.”

— Jay Treat

Free art assets for independent board game designers:

https://indieconquest.com/

How to communicate with artists effectively:

https://www.3dtotalgames.com/artists-brief/

Ways of integrating story into a board game (audio):

http://ludology.libsyn.com/ludology-episode-186-zombie-apocalypse

“Don’t give up if the feedback is negative; correct and move on. Be prepared to question everything you have done and to change even when changing is the most painful thing to do. It will eventually pay off.”

— Nestor Tyr

How designers can foster “narrative equity”—the ability of games to create stories that players will tell afterward (audio):

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/dir-xxuth-4daa619

Information about various gaming conventions from a designer’s perspective (audio):

http://boardgamestogo.libsyn.com/boardgames-to-go-184-conventions-for-boardgame-players-designers

“Don’t take pride in your game. Take pride in yourself as a designer. It doesn’t matter how many times you rebuild it; it matters that you’re learning and building skills: both general skills and the skill of designing that specific game.”

— Jay Treat

A discussion about the assumptions we make about games—and how to design games that challenge them (audio):

Part 1: https://www.buzzsprout.com/48513/819477-episode-46-game-assumptions-part-1

Part 2: https://www.buzzsprout.com/48513/835898-episode-47-game-assumptions-part-2

“Every design success is just the latest iteration in a series of design failures.”

— Seth Jaffee

Board game industry advice that you shouldn’t follow:

https://twitter.com/KindFortress/status/1053282699253817345

Practical math a probability tips for board game designers:

https://twitter.com/hashtag/gamedesignmath

“As game designers we focus a lot on components, mechanics, & systems. But learning to teach your game well helps attract more play testers & also reveal unnecessary complexities. Be intentional about how you teach, and iterate on it just as you would with your design.”

— Joseph Z. Chen

Characteristics of effective catch-up mechanics:

https://www.3dtotalgames.com/the-paradox-of-catch-up-mechanics/

Designing light games and filler games (audio):

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/designing-light-games-with-carla-kopp/

A discussion of the development process and working with an IP-based game (audio):

http://onboardgames.libsyn.com/obg-320-ip-everywhere

“I cannot stress enough that if you are a first time designer you should try to start small & simple rather than big & complicated. Larger designs have many interacting systems that are much harder to design, troubleshoot, & playtest. Then try something bigger after.”

— C.M. Perry

“The more I create, the more I develop the skill of persistence. I see people “give up” so easily, convinced that a problem is unsolvable, resigning themselves to a flaw in their work that they see as unavoidable. With very rare exceptions, there’s ALWAYS a solution. Find it.”

— Peter C. Hayward

“You’re going to have bad playtests, bad feedback, lack of solutions to problems, and especially lack of time. Take feedback for what it is and try something different. Most importantly: Don’t stop trying.”

— Lock Watson