Chris Rowlands, designer of Last Garden and host of NPC-Cast, discusses creating awesome content that helps people as much as possible and also builds up goodwill toward you and your games. The board game community is incredible, and there are tons of opportunities to help fellow designers and add value to what they’re trying to create. And... The post Content as Marketing with Chris Rowlands appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Apr 19, 2017•44 min
The post [BONUS] Rob Daviau on What Themes Need a Legacy Version appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Apr 15, 2017•4 min
Rob Daviau, designer of Pandemic Legacy, and I discuss how to run playtests like an absolute pro. Rob started designing games for Hasbro before moving into the designer game space, and he has a TON of insight on how to playtest your way to an amazing game. The post How to Playtest like a Pro with Rob Daviau appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Apr 12, 2017•1 hr 26 min
The post [BONUS] Brent Kinney on Underutilized Printing Opportunities in Games appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Apr 08, 2017•3 min
Brent Kinney, vice president at Panda Game Manufacturing, discusses the details and nuances of getting your game printed. We talk typical setbacks, what the different phases in the process look like, ways to make the process easier, and much more. Panda GM is one of the major manufacturers of board games in the world, and... The post The Ins & Outs of Printing with a Vice President from Panda Game Manufacturing, Brent Kinney appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Apr 05, 2017•43 min
The post [BONUS] Tom Vasel on Where He Hopes the Gaming Industry Goes Next appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Mar 31, 2017•4 min
Tom Vasel, founder of the Dice Tower, discusses some of the many things he’s learned after playing an astronomical number of games. We talk themes, mechanics, Kickstarter, publishing, trends, and tons of other stuff. Tom has played and reviewed thousands upon thousands of games which has led to some interesting insight on what makes a... The post Lessons Learned from Playing 5000+ Games with Tom Vasel appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Mar 29, 2017•38 min
The post [BONUS] Sen-Foong Lim on Where to Find Components for Your Prototypes appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Mar 24, 2017•5 min
Sen-Foong Lim, designer of Belfort and Junk Art, discusses the many things a good game design space needs and ways to organize it all. Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the show: Gimp Canva Cropodile Rotary Cutter The post How to Organize a Design Space with Sen-Foong Lim appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Mar 22, 2017•58 min
The post [BONUS] Edo Baraf on How to Create and Manage Kickstarter Stretch Goals appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Mar 17, 2017•6 min
Edo Baraf, designer of Herbaceous, discusses the many different types of custom components you can add to your games and the challenges and considerations that go with each one. We talk custom dice, boards, boxes, inserts, meeples, sleeves, and more. (Not miniatures. That will be its own episode.) Edo has experience with lots of custom... The post Custom Components in Your Game with Edo Baraf appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Mar 15, 2017•46 min
The post [BONUS] Dan Peterson on Themes that Need to Be Explored appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Mar 10, 2017•5 min
Dan Peterson, chief developer and head of new acquisitions at Mayday Games, discusses why a publisher might reject your game and how to handle it. Dan looks at close to 200 unpublished games a year and has years of experience in finding new games to publish. This episode is packed with great wisdom for anyone wanting to... The post Why a Publisher Might Reject Your Game and How to Handle It with Dan Peterson appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Mar 08, 2017•52 min
The post [BONUS] JT Smith on How to Come Up with Expansion Ideas appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Mar 03, 2017•11 min
JT Smith, designer of The Captain Is Dead, talks about how to design a great cooperative game. We talk creating tension, alpha players, and the math behind a good AI system. Personally, I think The Captain Is Dead is one of the best co-op games on the market today, and it was great to get JT’s... The post How to Design a Great Cooperative Game with JT Smith appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Mar 01, 2017•33 min
The post [BONUS] Jamey Stegmaier on How to Approach a Small Publisher with Your Game appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Feb 24, 2017•8 min
Jamey Stegmaier, designer of Scythe, is back on the show, and we’re talking about what the schedule of a pro game designer looks like. It’s easy to have a romanticized idea of what being a full time designer is, but it doesn’t quite line up with reality. We talk about the daily fires that have... The post A Day in the Life of a Pro Designer with Jamey Stegmaier appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Feb 22, 2017•43 min
The post [BONUS] Emerson Matsuuchi on His Process of Creating Special Abilities appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Feb 17, 2017•6 min
Emerson Matsuuchi, designer of Specter Ops, goes into all the ins and outs of putting together a hidden movement game. There are very few hidden movement games out there right now which means there’s still a ton to be explored. Emerson discusses the challenges he faced and his insights on the topic. The post How to Make a Great Hidden Movement Game with Emerson Matsuuchi appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Feb 15, 2017•36 min
The post [BONUS] Ryan Laukat on Creating Art for a Kickstarter Project appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Feb 10, 2017•5 min
Ryan Laukat, founder of Red Raven Games, discusses how to create a beautiful game that is also functional. Ryan does his own art for all of his games, so he has an incredible understanding of the tug of war a designer and artist can have when trying to make a game look great but also... The post The Intersection of Art and Game Design with Ryan Laukat appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Feb 08, 2017•48 min
The post [BONUS] Jerry Hawthorne on How He Draws Inspiration from Everyday Life appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Feb 03, 2017•8 min
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 first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Feb 01, 2017•28 min
The post [BONUS] Stephen Buonocore on Things to Consider when Adding Components to a Game appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Jan 27, 2017•3 min
Stephen Buonocore, president of Stronghold Games, goes into all of the ins and outs of researching publishers, contacting publishers, and pitching your game. We talk in depth on how to do things the right way to give your game the best chance of being signed. Then, Stephen closes the conversation with a couple funny stories... The post How to Get Your Game Published with Stephen Buonocore appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Jan 25, 2017•56 min
The post [BONUS] Richard Launius on His Favorite Game Mechanics appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Jan 13, 2017•7 min
Richard Launius, designer of Arkham Horror, gives incredible game design advice, talks Cthulu and what makes a great Cthulu game, and goes into how to make games that create epic experiences that stand the test of time. This episode is packed full of wisdom from a game design legend. The post Advice, Cthulu, and How to Create an Epic Gaming Experience with Richard Launius appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Jan 11, 2017•52 min
The post [BONUS] Jay Vales on How to Make a Good “Take That” Game appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Jan 06, 2017•2 min
Jay Vales discusses how his game, Conquest at Kismet, came to be and how it got great reviews but underperformed when it came to sales. We go into the contributing factors and what other designers can learn from the experience. We also talk about some interesting design concepts, dealing with real-life death, and how even... The post Why Good Reviews Aren’t Always the Magic Bullet with Jay Vales appeared first on Board Game Design Lab ....
Jan 04, 2017•44 min
The post [BONUS] Colby Dauch on Barriers to Entry in Gaming appeared first on Board Game Design Lab .
Dec 30, 2016•9 min
