How (Not?) to Make a Board Game

A test pack shot I took – not bad for a lighting set up cobbled...

Sun, 10 Feb 2013 12:11:00 +0000

A test pack shot I took – not bad for a lighting set up cobbled together in half an hour using an old vacuum cleaner box, a couple of sheets of white cartridge paper, some tin foil and my girlfriend’s S.A.D.* lamp.

*Seasonal Affective Disorder – basically, if you feel down during the winter due to the lower light levels, using a S.A.D. lamp can help you feel better.

How to use feedback (in board games testing)

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:23:13 +0000

How to use feedback (in board games testing):

Game designer Jay Treat provides valuable insight into the mindset of the board game tester to help you get genuinely useful feedback from your session.

10,000 Feet to Publishing a Board Game

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:19:12 +0000

10,000 Feet to Publishing a Board Game:

Accomplished board game designer James Mathe has produced an incredibly succinct, yet comprehensive, checklist that all wannabe self publishers need to read.

I could start to enjoy chess if it was like this game of Extreme...

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 13:19:27 +0000

I could start to enjoy chess if it was like this game of Extreme Amazing Super Chess that featured on BBC3 recently

A collaboration between Graphical House and Derek Walsh,...

Fri, 23 Nov 2012 17:38:00 +0000

A collaboration between Graphical House and Derek Walsh, Semaphor Oblique is a beautifully crafted, artisan take on the traditional game of dominoes.

(via Form Fifty Five)

Indie game the movie is a surprisingly good film taking a look...

Fri, 23 Nov 2012 17:24:37 +0000

Indie game the movie is a surprisingly good film taking a look at the people creating some of the most innovative indie computer games, providing a really interesting insight into the personalities behind the work.

www.indiegamethemovie.com

I’ve had an extended break from designing the board game....

Wed, 31 Oct 2012 22:48:00 +0000

I’ve had an extended break from designing the board game. I reckon when you’re so immersed in something that requires such a great amount of time and concentration it’s easy to get sickened of it before it’s finished.

Anyway, the rules have been refined (again!) and I’ve started to investigate potential routes for the artwork. The main choice has been between slick Sim City-style computer generated isometric perfection, and a totally opposed, hand made with visible flaws and rich texture approach.

I’ve crudely mocked up a potential style route for the artwork here. All the illustration work other than the train tracks and icons was shamelessly stolen and hacked up from the website of superb illustrator, Abigail Daker (sorry Abigail!), who I’d love to approach to do the artwork for the finished game. It’s not representative of the final artwork, but is rather an indication of a potential route I might take with the style.

I was originally opposed to a hand painted look, as I didn’t want the game to look like it was copying classics like Settlers or Carcassone, but it’s a visual route that fits the themes so well that I think it’s inevitable the artwork will go this way.

Even though it’s a really crude mock up, I think it does a great job of showing the kind of aesthetic potential the game has. Regardless of how the gameplay turns out, if I do manage to get the game published the visuals are definitely going to be a winner.

These funky looking building blocks are called Totems,...

Wed, 24 Oct 2012 17:51:05 +0100

These funky looking building blocks are called Totems, they’re handmade from solid walnut and oak, and they’re designed by Dino Sanchez.

(via Design Milk)

Meeple earrings: definitely a present for the more geeky...

Mon, 07 May 2012 12:27:59 +0100

Meeple earrings: definitely a present for the more geeky girlfriends (and boyfriends? Who am I to judge?) out there. Buy them at HardBoiledMegg Etsy store. (via Daniel Solis)

Tile laying game, Tsuro, from Calliope Games, is pretty lovely...

Sat, 05 May 2012 17:13:15 +0100

Tile laying game, Tsuro, from Calliope Games, is pretty lovely to look at and apparently is a great player too.

Very interesting Ted Talk, in which game designer, Brenda...

Sat, 05 May 2012 16:43:24 +0100

Very interesting Ted Talk, in which game designer, Brenda Brathwaite discusses her take on how games can impact our perceptions of matters of cultural, historical and societal significance.

I’m loving this idea for a kind of 3D Carcassone game...

Sat, 28 Apr 2012 21:00:00 +0100

I’m loving this idea for a kind of 3D Carcassone game that Tom Scutt posted to the Board Game Geek forums. There has to be a great game in there somewhere!

Cathedral, by Robert P. Moore, is another rather lovely looking...

Sat, 28 Apr 2012 20:53:05 +0100

Cathedral, by Robert P. Moore, is another rather lovely looking game featuring simple, but beautiful, wooden playing pieces (image from Board Game Geek)

I came across this image of Joseph Hartwig’s rather...

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 23:43:10 +0100

I came across this image of Joseph Hartwig’s rather wonderful 1922 Bauhaus Chess Set via Eye Blog

Interesting information about board games publisher contracts

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 17:41:00 +0100

Interesting information about board games publisher contracts:

Written by board game designer, Tom Jolly.

A interesting – and well produced – look at interpersonal...

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 17:18:45 +0100

A interesting – and well produced – look at interpersonal relations between one group of game playing friends (via Purple Pawn)

Wil Wheaton, the actor who played the precocious super geek...

Sat, 21 Apr 2012 18:02:00 +0100

Wil Wheaton, the actor who played the precocious super geek character of Wesley Crusher in Star Trek The Next Generation has not only resurfaced (ok, so I’ve been informed he’s been in loads of successful TV shows since, but work with me here…), he’s clubbed together with some of his mates and put together what looks to be a pretty decent internet-only video channel, Geek and Sundry. The production values are far higher than you’d expect from a You Tube based video channel and there are some passable names participating (well, if you’re up on your American geek culture anyway).

Better than that, however, is that they have a bi-monthly show called Table Top, dedicated to board games, and here’s the trailer.

Steven Conway and David Coleson at The Spiel have been working...

Fri, 20 Apr 2012 19:54:00 +0100

Steven Conway and David Coleson at The Spiel have been working on a documentary about board game design and manufacture called Made For Play – and they’ve just released this trailer. (via The Purple Pawn)

I’ve not had a lot of time to spend on Cheetah 3D – and...

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 09:22:00 +0100

Using Dave Eillis's Studio lighting

Using the camera light and shadow mat

I’ve not had a lot of time to spend on Cheetah 3D – and I’m not going to need to do any game token mock ups for a while anyway – but I’ve been enjoying Dave Ellis’s informal tutorials over at david-ellis.co.uk and I had a wee play with his studio lighting set up (which I’ve tweaked a little for a more neutral effect).

I reckon the studio lighting is less flat, more realistic and the shadows are better, but you can see the difference it makes for yourself in the before and after photos above.

Play testing update

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 11:40:00 +0100

Following a few recent rule tweaks and optimisations, I’ve achieved a not insignificant goal: I managed to play the Train Game all the way through. It was a solo test, so perhaps not providing an accurate impression of gameplay, but I found it interesting and enjoyable, with twists and developments that encouraged changes in tactics and kept me engaged. Could it be that I have finally created a game that’s worth playing?

Of course, I made a bunch of tweaks to the rules immediately afterwards, but I feel like my faith and hard work has finally been vindicated. It’s no longer a case of “Can I make this work?”, but is instead “How do I make this game even better?”

Happy bunny :)