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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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December 02, 2023 December 02, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

A process and equipment for making nice-looking custom dice (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SUD_i6rSgU

December 02, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
prototyping

Cardboard Edison

December 02, 2023 December 02, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Having other designers playtest your game is great for some things and not as great for others:

https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/155163/i-love-some-other-designers

December 02, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
playtesting

Cardboard Edison

December 02, 2023 December 02, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

How being more intentional about your game’s thematic choices can lead to a richer final product (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tX4udstVy_w

December 02, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

December 02, 2023 December 02, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Crowdfunding campaigns typically slow down in the middle—here are some ways of overcoming the mid-campaign doldrums:

https://stonemaiergames.com/12-ways-to-overcome-the-mid-campaign-doldrums/

December 02, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
publishing

Cardboard Edison

November 27, 2023 November 27, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

This online tool creates blank board game maps of various sizes (hex grids only for now, with others to follow):

https://sparkling-narwhal-68437b.netlify.app/

November 27, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
prototyping

Cardboard Edison

November 25, 2023 November 25, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

Contracts in board games: what they are, what they add to gameplay, and different ways games have used them:

https://medium.com/@zipo13/promises-promises-44ea83c9daab

November 25, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

November 24, 2023 November 24, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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

November 24, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
process, playtesting, prototyping, publishing

Cardboard Edison

November 22, 2023 November 22, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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/

November 22, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory, podcasts

Cardboard Edison

November 22, 2023 November 22, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

21 ways to make the most of playtesting:

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

November 22, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
playtesting

Cardboard Edison

November 18, 2023 November 18, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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

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

November 18, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

November 18, 2023 November 18, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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

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

November 18, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

November 18, 2023 November 18, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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

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

November 18, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

November 17, 2023 November 17, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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

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

November 17, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
publishing

Cardboard Edison

November 12, 2023 November 12, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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/

November 12, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory, publishing, podcasts

Cardboard Edison

November 12, 2023 November 12, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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

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

November 12, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
publishing, industry

Cardboard Edison

November 11, 2023 November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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

November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
industry

Cardboard Edison

November 11, 2023 November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

“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

November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
process, theory, industry

Cardboard Edison

November 11, 2023 November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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/

November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

November 11, 2023 November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison

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

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

November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

November 11, 2023 November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison
“All games suck until they’re great! All a good game designer is, is just somebody who can tell the difference.”
— Joseph Arthur Ellis
November 11, 2023/ Cardboard Edison/
playtesting

Cardboard Edison

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