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Cardboard Edison

Game design & bright ideas for game designers

Bright Ideas

Tips & Resources for Board Game Designers

Cardboard Edison
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theory
playtesting
prototyping
process
rules
licensing
publishing
industry
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January 09, 2026 January 09, 2026/ Cardboard Edison

A short thread about how players often get the rules wrong and what that means for designers:

https://bsky.app/profile/nickbentley.bsky.social/post/3mboz4k23y22o

January 09, 2026/ Cardboard Edison/
rules

Cardboard Edison

January 08, 2026 January 08, 2026/ Cardboard Edison

How to give useful game-design feedback by matching your advice to the designer’s experience level (video):

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

January 08, 2026/ Cardboard Edison/
playtesting

Cardboard Edison

January 03, 2026 January 03, 2026/ Cardboard Edison

Thoughts on how the players themselves affect the gameplay experience—and what that means for designers:

https://tabletopgamesblog.com/2025/12/30/socially-afflicted-how-people-affect-gameplay-experience-topic-discussion/

January 03, 2026/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

January 03, 2026 January 03, 2026/ Cardboard Edison

Writing your board game’s rulebook can be a chore—here’s a process for breaking up the task into manageable chunks:

https://discocandybar.com/2026/01/02/making-the-game-rules/

January 03, 2026/ Cardboard Edison/
rules

Cardboard Edison

January 02, 2026 January 02, 2026/ Cardboard Edison

A good problem to have as a designer: How to deal with multiple publishers wanting to sign your game (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVqfMec6YCM

January 02, 2026/ Cardboard Edison/
licensing

Cardboard Edison

December 18, 2025 December 18, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Three publishers on how they’re using—and paying to include—fan designs in their releases:

https://boardgamewire.com/index.php/2025/12/16/board-game-publishers-stonemaier-cmyk-and-eurydice-games-on-how-theyre-utilising-and-paying-to-include-fan-designs-in-their-releases/

December 18, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
licensing, industry

Cardboard Edison

December 18, 2025 December 18, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

A history of board game design (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTr3kVXd6LY

December 18, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
industry

Cardboard Edison

December 16, 2025 December 16, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Sea freight shipping times: how to estimate delivery of a game from an overseas manufacturer:

https://www.bodagames.com/2025/12/16/sea-freight-shipping-times/

December 16, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
publishing

Cardboard Edison

December 10, 2025 December 10, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

An exploration of board game boxes and their role in selling a game, framing and contextualizing the experience, and creating meaning (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgfVE_qbWC8

December 10, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
publishing

Cardboard Edison

December 09, 2025 December 09, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Why it isn’t helpful to compare your game design efforts to those of other designers, and why it’s better to pay attention to your own progress instead:

https://boardgamedesigncourse.com/stop-comparing-yourself-to-others/

December 09, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

December 08, 2025 December 08, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Optimizing your pitch: some best and worst practices in helping your game get a fair shake from the publishers you submit it to (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrrFsv47ZEk

December 08, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
licensing

Cardboard Edison

December 06, 2025 December 06, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Should you playtest in-person or virtually? Why not both? Here are some upsides to each approach:

https://discocandybar.com/2025/12/05/playtesting-your-tcg-game-paper-or-pixels/

December 06, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
playtesting

Cardboard Edison

December 06, 2025 December 06, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Marketing your board game ahead of a crowdfunding campaign: organic marketing, Facebook ads, and more:

https://boardgamedesigncourse.com/kickstarter-campaign-market-your-game/

December 06, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
publishing

Cardboard Edison

December 05, 2025 December 05, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Approaching your game’s prototype from a storytelling perspective, as a pitching tool, as a creative endeavor, and more (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaygkfL2WhA

December 05, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
prototyping

Cardboard Edison

December 04, 2025 December 04, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Considering the differences between maps that use hexes vs. maps that use connected points:

https://www.skeletoncodemachine.com/p/everything-is-pointcrawl

December 04, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
theory

Cardboard Edison

December 03, 2025 December 03, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Answers to a bunch of questions about designing and publishing board games (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncobd6xxT2Q

December 03, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
process, publishing, industry

Cardboard Edison

November 29, 2025 November 29, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

What do you do with your old prototypes? A Reddit board game designers discussion:

https://www.reddit.com/r/BoardgameDesign/comments/1ozz02m/what_do_you_do_with_old_prototypes/

November 29, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

November 24, 2025 November 24, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Experts in crowdfunding, manufacturing, and fulfillment offer tips and tricks for how to navigate the publishing process (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZLGW1x5jo4

November 24, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
publishing

Cardboard Edison

November 20, 2025 November 20, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

Career paths in the tabletop industry: how to gain work experience that’s attractive to publishers and other gaming companies (video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vcjh97TFETE

November 20, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
industry

Cardboard Edison

November 19, 2025 November 19, 2025/ Cardboard Edison

When should you start talking about your board game idea? A Reddit board game design forum discussion:

https://www.reddit.com/r/BoardgameDesign/comments/1ozjd9o/when_to_start_talking_about_ideas/

November 19, 2025/ Cardboard Edison/
process

Cardboard Edison

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