When a game enables analysis paralysis, how do you streamline it without destroying the fun of the game? A Bluesky board game designers discussion:

https://bsky.app/profile/fertessa.bsky.social/post/3lb6jx5nisk2f

How granular are the numbers in your game, and how granular do they need to be? A discussion about games’ “fidelity” and ways of cutting down on the math players have to do (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ye5xFH6K0vQ

Tiebreakers: ways of thinking about them and finding one that makes sense for a design—a Bluesky board game designers discussion:

https://bsky.app/profile/marcelineleiman.bsky.social/post/3l7svdatny22c

The “sweet spot” mechanic: how it works, various ways games use it, and more (audio):

https://decisionspace.podbean.com/e/the-sweet-spot-mechanic-wwta/

Balance in board games: When is it important, and when is it boring? Can imbalance actually make some games better? (video):

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

An overview of hidden traitor and semi-cooperative game mechanisms:

https://www.skeletoncodemachine.com/p/hidden-traitor

Designing for depth: how depth works in games and some surprising risks of designing deep games:

https://www.underdoggames.com/a/blog/how-much-should-we-focus-on-depth-1

Pros and cons of victory points (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fssYt8nFvk

Crisis management games: examples of tabletop games that surround players with threats, plus a look at how they work and escalate tension, and design pitfalls to watch out for:

https://www.skeletoncodemachine.com/p/crisis-management

The colors of game design: a framework for how games work and a tool to help with game development:

https://uxdesign.cc/colors-of-game-design-9413d81e93a

An exploration of various tessellating shapes and how they might inspire us to create new games:

https://www.thedarkimp.com/blog/2024/09/18/tiles-tracks-and-tessellations/

An in-depth discussion about games that have achieved success by finding solutions to common design problems (audio):

https://decisionspace.podbean.com/e/more-design-problems-and-games-that-solve-them-with-jamey-stegmaier/

Dynamic markets and Dutch auctions: some ways that games can keep a card market from stagnating:

https://www.skeletoncodemachine.com/p/dutch-auctions

How a NASA workload assessment tool can be applied to the design and testing of tabletop games:

https://www.skeletoncodemachine.com/p/nasa-tlx

How luck can feel, how it’s generated, and why it’s used the way it is by game designers (audio):

https://cardboardphilosophypod.podbean.com/e/episode-036-the-luckiest-episode-of-all/

How game components like dice and cards can be considered information storage devices:

https://www.skeletoncodemachine.com/p/storing-information

Comparing hit points and victory points: their similarities and differences:

https://blog.tabletopdesign.org/?p=1717

The life cycle of resources in games: different ways they can enter the game and change during play:

https://medium.com/@fere_98462/resources-in-games-part-3-life-cycle-617c07a3a52a

Considering “zones of focus” where players follow the game’s action:

https://x.com/chessandpoker/status/1815013872341807479

How a flowchart can be used to help you better understand your game’s structure and flow:

https://x.com/Clint_Davey1/status/1815689934482895011