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Cardboard Edison

Game design & bright ideas for game designers

Bright Ideas

Tips & Resources for Board Game Designers

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April 13, 2023 April 13, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Stuck for an idea on a game design? Here are three tips for helping get your creative juices flowing:

https://www.thedarkimp.com/blog/2023/04/12/how-to-get-ideas/

April 13, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

April 11, 2023 April 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

We talk a lot about what good game design is, but what does good game design do?

https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/146281/i-have-affixation-good-game-design

April 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

April 11, 2023 April 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

A rundown of various action systems that give players interesting ways of deciding what to do on their turn (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uca3LzGMe1Q

April 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

April 10, 2023 April 10, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Shiny object syndrome: how it can derail board game designers and a simple step to avoid it:

https://boardgamedesigncourse.com/shiny-object-syndrome/

April 10, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

April 10, 2023 April 10, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Thoughts on victory points, how they assign values to things in games, and the sometimes unspoken assumptions that come with those systems of values:

https://shippboardgames.blogspot.com/2023/04/on-victory-points.html

April 10, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

April 10, 2023 April 10, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

When players ask themselves how valuable a thing or action is in a game, here are some of the considerations that come into play:

https://rericreuss.com/2023/03/31/how-good-is-this-valuation-in-board-games/

April 10, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

April 08, 2023 April 08, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Where and how do you playtest your games? A Twitter board game designers discussion:

https://twitter.com/ajstichter/status/1642616698187444227

April 08, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
playtesting

Cardboard Edison

April 03, 2023 April 03, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

A history of storytelling in games (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuDrFKs9Hxo

April 03, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
industry

Cardboard Edison

April 03, 2023 April 03, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Sealed bid auctions: how they work, games that use them, what they’re like for players, and more (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxl4fudIs4U

April 03, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

April 01, 2023 April 01, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

How to design a worker placement game (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsJ7YI8bJ_Q

April 01, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

April 01, 2023 April 01, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Two common reasons why players may forget a rule, and what you could do to address the issue:

https://twitter.com/BenjaminGoldman/status/1641494210560897034

April 01, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
rules, theory

Cardboard Edison

April 01, 2023 April 01, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Why banning players from doing certain things is usually a bad idea:

https://twitter.com/Nick__Bentley/status/1642189269585350657

April 01, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

March 29, 2023 March 29, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Auctions with constrained bidding: why it’s a tricky mechanic for game designers to get right (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCPSuX2jcF0

March 29, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

March 27, 2023 March 27, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

What makes a board game intuitive?

https://twitter.com/erik_a_sunden/status/1640283062410813440

March 27, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

March 25, 2023 March 25, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Punishing game mechanisms: the case for minus points, instant losses, and other mechanics that penalize players in some way (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lz5fEny3LeM

March 25, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

March 24, 2023 March 24, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Board games without copyright—answer to questions about copyright expiration, public domain, Creative Commons, clones of games, and more:

https://strebecklaw.com/board-games-without-copyright-do-they-exist/

March 24, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
industry

Cardboard Edison

March 23, 2023 March 23, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Board game designers discuss what they look for in publishing contracts:

https://twitter.com/tonymakesgames/status/1638287776339599361

see also: https://cardboardedison.com/reports

March 23, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
licensing

Cardboard Edison

March 23, 2023 March 23, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

A simple method for sorting through playtester feedback:

https://twitter.com/dr_vil/status/1638893021965205504

March 23, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
playtesting

Cardboard Edison

March 23, 2023 March 23, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Once-around auctions: how the mechanism works, the experience it offers players, games that use it, and more (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeSgZACXpgM

March 23, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

March 21, 2023 March 21, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

7 critical mistakes to avoid making when you go to crowdfund your game:

https://crowdfundingnerds.com/essentials/

March 21, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
publishing

Cardboard Edison

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