What makes a game “mean”?

https://lestmyopinions.com/2019/06/26/bless-your-heart-on-mean-games-and-such/

“Take notes every time a player forgets a rule. Figure out if it was the #gamedesign or your teaching/instructions.”

— John Brieger

“A seasoned gamer can solve just about any problem in a design by adding rules.

A pro developer needs to solve the same problems while retaining simplicity and identity.

A master developer solves them while simplifying the game, still retaining identity.”

— Eric Lang

“There are a lot of ways to design a real-time game, but my favorite real-time games, and the way I like to design them, is to keep the actions and the amount of thought required for those actions simple. The fun of the game comes from making lots of small decisions under the stress of the time pressure. If there’s too much to keep track of in the game, and you’re under that same stress, the game gets bogged down.”

— Kane Klenko

Rules to keep your game’s icons usable:

http://www.mechanics-and-meeples.com/2019/06/24/a-treatise-on-icons-part-one-the-rules-of-iconography/

Should games allow players to paint themselves into a corner?

https://hollandspiele.com/blogs/hollandazed-thoughts-ideas-and-miscellany/painting-corners

“Being a professional creator means constantly letting discomfort into your life. Learning new tools and techniques, tearing down your creations and building them back up, seeking feedback, pitching, networking - all of these open you up to potential uncomfortable feelings. ”

— Emma Larkins

Game designers share their tips and tricks for writing rules:

http://design100.org/20-rules/

Great tips on finding success on Kickstarter and transitioning to full time as a game designer (audio):

http://breakingintoboardgames.libsyn.com/breaking-into-board-games-episode-94-omari-akil

The broad steps along the path to making a game:

https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2219261/step-step-what-order

Notes on finding the right complexity level for a game:

https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/91241/u-fiddliness

“#gamedesign in 2 steps:
1) Find something that’s fun/interesting to do
2) Build a system that rewards players for doing that
(There’s obviously more to it - endless playtesting, balancing, simplifying, playtesting, and playtesting - but this is game design in its simplest form.)”

— Peter C. Hayward

“Even when focused on testing one game, bring along the prototypes for 1-2 others. Don’t miss out on extra tests. ”

— John Brieger

Notes on “engine building” in games:

http://makethemplay.com/index.php/2019/06/10/engine-building/

How to increase your chances of getting a response when emailing a publisher for the first time:

https://boardgamedesigncourse.com/how-to-contact-a-publisher/

Defining the roles of designer, developer, and playtester:

https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/5877/prototypical

How to make a great second edition of a board game:

https://www.boardgamequest.com/what-makes-a-great-2nd-edition-game/

“Leaning on the same people to test the same game each iteration biases results. Get new perspectives constantly.”

— John Brieger

Hard numbers for mailing-list conversion rates leading up to a Kickstarter:

https://medium.com/@fantastic.factories/how-large-of-a-mailing-list-do-i-need-before-launching-my-kickstarter-4a7f173aaf3a

The importance of cons, networking, game development and contests (audio):

http://breakingintoboardgames.libsyn.com/breaking-into-board-games-episode-95-daniel-newman