A potpourri of answers to questions about board game design and publishing: retheming, giving up on a design, complexity, roadblocks, prototyping, and more (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBD1hogt2MY

Replayability: factors that make a game replayable, how they intersect, and whether replayability actually matters all that much (audio):

https://decisionspace.podbean.com/e/replayability-and-why-it-doesn-t-matter-what-we-talk-about/

21 ways to make the most of playtesting:

https://www.thedarkimp.com/blog/2023/11/22/21-ways-to-make-the-most-of-playtesting/

Board game design productivity hacks: tips for making more time for game design (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7aanyR5xRk

Getting out of a game design slump—tips from the Bluesky board game design community:

https://bsky.app/profile/senfoonglim.bsky.social/post/3ke3ccrzco42n

How developing your communication skills can make you a better board game designer:

https://shippboardgames.blogspot.com/2023/11/communication-is-design-skill.html

Tips for taking really nice photographs of your board games: framing, lighting, lenses, and more:

https://talkingshelfspace.com/how-i-photograph-board-games/

Art in board games: How does a game’s art affect the way we play? (audio)

https://cardboardphilosophypod.podbean.com/e/episode-017-how-does-art-effect-the-way-we-approach-a-game-featuring-peter-mcpherson/

Tips for setting up and running a booth at a convention (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63efqdpyh-4

Why the name of your board game matters—and some tactics for coming up with one that works (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJkZkY6I040

“Pillars of design”: lots of questions for board game designers to think through as they work on a new design:

video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSmwcCEmdwY

list: https://boardgamedesignlab.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Pillars-of-Design.pdf

Some variations on worker placement that have helped the genre evolve:

https://tabletopgamesblog.com/2023/11/07/working-hard-a-look-at-worker-placement-mechanisms-topic-discussion/

Random production: how some games generate resources for players in random ways:

https://medium.com/@zipo13/the-great-equalizer-7529a25788e7

“All games suck until they’re great! All a good game designer is, is just somebody who can tell the difference.”

— Joseph Arthur Ellis

6 truths about the board game industry, and especially what it’s like for game designers (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpL8W863TDQ

Winning: a conversation about why players care about winning a game (audio):

https://cardboardphilosophypod.podbean.com/e/episode-016-why-do-people-care-so-much-about-winning/

“Given my choice, I’ll always design a boardgame that will be loved by some and hated by others rather than a game that will be seen in a mildly positive way by most. I want to make games that leave a lasting impression on those who play them, one way or the other.”

— Kevin Wilson

Horror in board games: thoughts on what works and doesn’t:

https://dailyworkerplacement.com/2023/10/31/i-want-to-play-a-game-horror-in-board-gaming/

What does it mean for a game to be “too long”? What makes players feel like a game goes on too long? Or not long enough? (audio)

https://cardboardphilosophypod.podbean.com/e/episode-015-what-makes-a-game-too-long/

Dice, cards, and more: Different ways of generating random numbers and what makes them fun (audio):

https://cardboardphilosophypod.podbean.com/e/episode-014-rolling-dice-and-flipping-cards/