Design Theory Archives - Board Game Design Lab

Dr. Corey Butler, social psychologist and avid gamer, has been conducting research on gamers for a while and has some really interesting information on player psychology based on both his formal training and his research. And check out all the really cool articles and research findings on Corey’s blog HERE. The post Player Psychology with Dr. Corey Butler appeared first on Board Game Design...

Greg Loring-Albright is back on the show, and we’re talking about games that don’t exist on a board or even at a table. Greg has been designing games that pervade into spaces much bigger than your dining room table, and he has some really interesting insight on how and why these games work. The post Pervasive Games with Greg Loring-Albright appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Richard Garfield, designer of Magic: The Gathering and a ton of other great games, discusses how to use luck and skill effectively in game design. Richard belongs on the game design Mount Rushmore and has awesome insight and advice. The post Luck vs Skill with Richard Garfield appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Matt Leacock, designer of a little game called Pandemic, discusses how to craft the player experience.​Matt is one of the most well-known designers in the world, and he’s learned how to finely tune a game to give players the desired experience. Previously, he worked for companies like Apple and Yahoo developing UX for various products,... The post Crafting the Player Experience with Matt Lea...

The post [BONUS] Jason Perez on Using Games for Therapy appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Jason Perez, psychotherapist and host of the Every Night Is Game Night podcast, discusses the different ways people learn and how that should affect rulebook writing. We go into how the brain works, what makes rules so hard to learn, and more. The post Learning Styles and Writing Rulebooks with Jason Perez appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

The post [BONUS] Seth Jaffee on the Value of Playing a Game Multiple Times appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

The post [BONUS] Patrick Leder on How to Know When a Game Is Done appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Patrick Leder, designer of Vast, discusses what all goes into designing an asymmetrical game. In Vast, each player takes on an incredibly different role with different actions, different win conditions, and different ways to play. And creating a game of this scope is no small task. The post Designing an Asymmetrical Game with Patrick Leder appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Jerry Hawthorne, designer of Mice and Mystics, discusses the importance of story in games. Jerry specializes in narrative driven games and has numerous games to his credit. He goes into why people enjoy story in games so much and how you can inject more story into your games. Finally, he gives great advice on what to do... The post The Importance of Story in Games with Jerry Hawthorne appeared fir...

The post [BONUS] Colby Dauch on Barriers to Entry in Gaming appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Rahdo and I discuss 2 player games and how to craft an awesome 2 player experience. We go into specific mechanics that work really well in 2 player games, and we talk through how a designer can make a game scale down to 2 players effectively. After playing nearly 1000 games with just 2 players,... The post How to Create the Perfect 2 Player Experience with Rahdo appeared first on Board Game Design...