As a designer play your game a ton. Then have your friends do the same. Then strangers. Take in all the data, iterate and repeat. There is no shortcut, and skimping in this process really shows long term.
— Ben Pinchback
One of the best things you can do as a designer, beyond simply finding a publisher who likes your idea, is to find one who has an actual opinion about how to improve it and fashion it into the right game for the right market.
— Brett J. Gilbert
A great sell sheet is marginally better than a good one. Don’t spend more time on your sell sheet than your game.
— Gil Hova
I think that to be a good boardgame designer, it’s useful if you actively enjoy criticism.

Divorce your self from your actions/creations. You are more.

Have a proper discussion about your failures and mistakes. That way you can learn to be better.
— Bez
After the initial stages of your design, 1 test with strangers is worth a dozen games against your codesigner / with your design team.
— John Brieger
Falling in love with your ideas is about the daftest thing a game inventor can do.
— Maureen Hiron
Take time to review and synthesize your notes at your notes after playtest sessions, before you make changes. It’s shocking how often my instinct when I get home is to just start changing things without really analyzing the feedback.
— John Brieger
Don’t defend your #gamedesign, even if players are factually wrong. Capture their experience and reflect on cause.
— John Brieger