The Board Game Design Lab

In this episode, I talk through pretty much every tip about game design that I can think of! And if you want to see the video version, you can check it out on YouTube HERE . The post 71 Ways to Become a Better Game Designer with Gabe Barrett appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

In this episode, I chat with Jason Tagmire about everything related to 18-card games. We talk about designing, publishing, manufacturing, shipping, marketing, crowdfunding, and more! The post Small Games that Pack a Big Punch with Jason Tagmire appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

In this episode, I chat with Jonny Pac about how to create games that fully engage players and keep them coming back for more. We talk about the difference between puzzles and games, designing for different types of players, utilizing randomness, fuzzy logic, and a whole lot more! The post How to Craft the Perfect Player Experience with Jonny Pac appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

In this episode, I chat with James Ernest about how to make a game that doesn’t just work mechanically but is also a lot of fun to play. We talk about how to identify when testers are having fun, the design decisions that create fun experiences, utilizing surprise, and a whole lot more. You can find James’s game design lectures and articles here: https://crabfragmentlabs.com/lecture-ha...

In this episode, I chat with Amy and Dusty Droz who raised over $1 million on Kickstarter as first-time creators with a game that only costs $39. You can late back their game, Botany, here: https://botany.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders The post How to Have Massive Success on Kickstarter with Amy and Dusty Droz appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

In this episode, I give my best advice on how to reach out to content creators and get featured on podcasts, and I chat with my friend, Justin Kral, a professional audio engineer about how to create an audio setup that sounds great. The post How to Get Featured on Podcasts and Sound Great with Justin Kral appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

In this episode, I chat with Andrew Lowen, and we break down a recent crowdfunding campaign I ran that I had to cancel. I talk about the mistakes I made and what I’m doing to fix things as I get ready to relaunch the campaign. The post My Crowdfunding Failure: A Post Mortem with Andrew Lowen appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Jorge Velez, professional illustrator, discusses topics related to art and creativity. We talk about how comparison destroys creative people, how to make your own luck, the different paths to becoming a pro artist, best practices for finding and working with artists, and a whole lot more. The post Art, Working with Artists, and Becoming Your Best Creative Self with Jorge Velez appeared first on Bo...

Zachary Strebeck, a lawyer who specializes in games, dives into the many legal issues that arise when bringing games to life and getting them on the market. We talk about clauses to look out for in contracts, the pros and cons of NDAs, what you need to know about copyrights and trademarks, and a whole lot more. If you want to contact Zachary, you can find his website here: https://strebecklaw.com...

In this episode, Sen-Foong Lim talks about how he balances his 50+ hour a week teaching job with working on 40+ games a year. We talk about how to design like crazy without burning out, how to get into a flow state, the myth of being self-made, how to work with co-designers, and a whole lot more! The post How to Balance Game Design with a Full Time Job with Sen-Foong Lim appeared first on Board Ga...

Peter C. Hayward, from Jellybean Games , is back, and we’re talking about how a hyper-creative person can pursue lots of different projects and actually get things done. The post How to Work on Lots of Projects at Once with Peter C. Hayward appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

In this episode, Jamey Stegmaier talks about how to make money creating games. We talk about how to monetize creativity and the many roadblocks people run into. Jamey unpacks what he would do if he had to start over and build a publishing company from scratch. He opens up about his biggest financial mistake. We talk about why people should design games. And a whole lot more. The post How to Make M...

Here’s a quick update about the relaunching of the podcast and the future of the Board Game Design Lab. Lots of cool things ahead! The post So, where were we? appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Today’s show is the final episode of the BGDL podcast for the foreseeable future.  Jamey Stegmaier, the show’s very first guest, joins me, and we talk through the past, present, and future of the BGDL, and I talk a lot about what’s next for me.  I tell lots of stories, get a bit emotional, and talk about things I hope other designers can learn from. But more than anything, I hope...

I’m celebrating the podcast’s 300th episode by chatting with Alan Moon, the designer of Ticket to Ride. We go through his long career in the gaming industry, discuss the genesis of Ticket to Ride, chat about playtesting and pitching, and more! The post (Celebrating 300 Episodes!) The Design Journey of Alan Moon appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Peter C. Hayward, from Jellybean Games , is back, and we’re talking through our absolute best tips and advice for game designers. We split the conversation into two parts: new designers and experienced designers. And we talk through our own successes and failures. And be sure to check out Peter’s latest game, Sunshine City, which you can download for free HERE ! The post Our Best Game...

Patrick Mcneil, from McMeeple Games , discusses what it’s like to design games with his children. Patrick has been creating games with his kids for years and has gotten many of the designs to the point of being fully published games. We talk about being intentional, setting the right expectations, overcoming negative feedback, and more. The post Designing Games with Your Kids with Patrick Mc...

Ben Rosset, designer of The Search for Planet X , talks about how to design games based on real-life systems and processes. ​ Ben has designed games based on aging cheese, brewing beer, finding planets, manufacturing board games, and many other themes that happen in the real world, so we have quite a bit to chat about. The post Designing Games Based on Real-Life Systems with Ben Rosset appeared fi...

Jess and Steph Nguyen, from  Hot Potatoz , talk about how to design take that games. We talk about finding a good balance of fun, game length, and hurt feelings. And we get into finding the right audience, playtesting, and more. The post How to Design Take That Games with Steph and Jess Nguyen appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Jesse Stacy, from Triceratops Games , discusses how to design drafting games. Jesse has been working on a drafting style game for a while, and we dive into the different types, how to keep a game moving, stacking other mechanisms, and more. The post [BGDL Community Spotlight] How to Design Drafting Games with Jesse Stacy appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Gino Brancazio, from Tinkerbot Games , talks about the three stages of prototyping, and we discuss what you need to know depending on which stage you’re in. The post [BGDL Community Spotlight] The 3 Stages of Prototyping with Gino Brancazio appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Andrew Lowen and Sean Bradford, from Next Level Web , talk about how to get the most out of your crowdfunding campaign. We spend most of the time talking about different aspects of marketing and break down examples from our own campaigns of what worked and what didn’t. The post How to Get the Most out of Your Crowdfunding Campaign with Andrew Lowen and Sean Bradford appeared first on Board G...

Rob Dougherty, founder of Wise Wizard Games , talks about how to run a successful publishing company. We talk about how Rob got started, how to actually make money, how to use Kickstarter effectively, and more. The post How to Run a Publishing Company with Rob Dougherty appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .

Ryan Laukat, designer of Sleeping Gods , talks about designing open world games. Sleeping Gods is a phenomenal example of how a board game can pull off the open world experience, and we do a deep dive into basically every aspect of its design. I’ve also been working on an open world game of my own over the last couple years, so we get into the ways we overcame similar issues. The post Design...

Matt Bivens discusses how to teach game design. Matt has been teaching design to high school kids for years, and we get into the usefulness of game design concepts, feedback, and more. The post Teaching Board Game Design with Matt Bivens appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .