Tips & Resources for Board Game Designers
A deep dive into board game publishing contracts: what to look for, what to avoid, specific percentages, negotiating terms, and more (video):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgLJqu67dYc
see also our reports as mentioned in the show: https://cardboardedison.com/reports
Tips for how to communicate delays in delivering your crowdfunded project to backers:
https://updates.kickstarter.com/how-to-communicate-kickstarter-delays-without-losing-backer-trust/
New to board game design and not sure where to start? This Reddit board game design forum discussion goes into the processes that are most common for beginning designers:
Expectation value in board game design: how to use some simple mathematical modeling to inform balance and other design decisions:
Breaking down the biggest benefits of licensing your board game to a small publisher and licensing it to a large publisher:
How many publishers to pitch a game to at the same time? A Bluesky board game designers discussion:
https://bsky.app/profile/jeffgrisenthwaite.bsky.social/post/3mdqvhrv4hc25
What methods do you use for physical note-taking? A Bluesky board game designers discussion:
https://bsky.app/profile/peterlmcpherson.bsky.social/post/3me4fwyhm3k2z
A grab bag of game design questions: considering component cost when designing, how to remain motivated with a game design, the pros and cons of self-publishing, and more (video):
Games vs. puzzles: considering what makes them distinct—and what they have in common:
https://www.wericmartin.com/games-puzzles-and-everything-in-between/
Two quick tips for how to make sure your board game’s box stands out on stores shelves and in online stories (video):
A conversation digging into all the ins and outs of submitting to board game design contests… like the Cardboard Edison Award (video):
A counterintuitive tactic for new board game designers: trying to make an intentionally bad game (video):
A conversation about a tricky aspect of designing a multivictor game: balancing it to accommodate both cooperative and competitive play (video):
Getting a board game to your crowdfunding backers: what to do after you manufacture your game, from warehousing to freight shipping to customs to delivery and more:
https://boardgamedesigncourse.com/7-steps-to-delivering-your-kickstarter-board-game/
A pair of short videos with quick tips for making two essential elements for pitching a game design to publishers:
How to make a pitch video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkqgouPT9Pw
How to make a sell sheet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uan_taJqOqw
Designing your first game? Here are 5 types of games that are ideal for beginning game designers to try making:
A short thread describing a method of playtesting called “split testing” that pits two game designs against each other:
https://bsky.app/profile/nickbentley.bsky.social/post/3mcigqlnhxs2f
10 lessons about the process of designing board games from 2025 (video):
Notes on efficiency and chunking in scoring, and how they can shape player experiences in sports and games:
Some trends that shaped the board game industry in 2025 and what they have meant for game designers (video):
