Fertessa Allyse, producer at Funko Games, talks about how to design a trick taking game.

We talk about table talk, bringing new ideas to the genre, what to look for while playtesting, and more.

And be sure to check out Fertessa’s trick taking game, Wicked and Wise, on Kickstarter HERE.

*Also, at one point, I mention UNO as a trick taking game, however, it’s definitely a matching game. (duh, haha)

The post How to Design Trick Taking Games with Fertessa Allyse appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Janice Turner, designer of Assembly, talks about designing puzzle games.

We talk about player experience, designing during nap times, how to make puzzles fun and not tedious, and more!

And be sure to check out Janice’s game, Pilfering Pandas, on Kickstarter HERE.

The post Designing Puzzle Games with Janice Turner appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Josh Horsley, designer of Castlescape, talks about designing deck-building games that have more going on than just building a deck.

We talk about adding boards and other components, and we get into the benefits and obstacles of creating these kinds of games.

And be sure to check out Josh’s game, Castlescape, on Kickstarter HERE.

The post Deck Building and MORE with Josh Horsley appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Ami Baio, designer of You Think You Know Me and several other conversation-based games, talks about what all goes into designing and publishing them.

We talk about how to create gaming environments that encourage people to talk, listen, and enjoy chatting with each other.

The post Designing Conversation Games with Ami Baio appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Martin Wallace, designer of Brass: Birmingham and about 100 other great games, talks about Euro games and his process for designing them.

Martin is one of the greatest designers of all time, and he offers tons of excellent advice based on his 30+ years in the industry.

The post How to Design Euro Games with Martin Wallace appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Joe Hout, designer of Dungeon Draft, talks about how to design a roll and write game.

Joe has designed quite a few roll and writes, and we get into dice vs cards, combos, player counts, and more.

And be sure to check out Joe’s game Dice in the Darkness and play along on Twitch HERE.

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In this BGDL community spotlight episode, Alex Lu, designer of Dogs Bond, discusses how to implement interchangeable win conditions in a game.

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Today, it’s just me on the show, and I’m discussing different angles of designing and publishing solo games, and I’m talking through the design process for my latest solo game, Hunted: Wode Ridge.

I talk about pros, cons, design challenges, the business side of things, and more.

And you can check out Hunted: Wode Ridge on Kickstarter HERE.

The post Designing Solo Games and the Making of Hunted: Wode Ridge with Gabe Barrett appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Travis Jones, designer of Pendulum, discusses what all goes into the design process for a real-time game.

We talk about time constraints, chaos, analysis paralysis, board layout, and more.

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Shannon McDowell, puzzle maker and escape room designer, discusses what designers and publishers need to think about when designing puzzle games and games with puzzles in them.

Shannon has done a ton of research on puzzles and how they relate to culture and cultural biases for Wilfred Laurier University. And she has a great system for defining and understanding the different types of puzzles in games.

[mobileonly]To download this episode to your phone, click <a href=”https://media.blubrry.com/board_game_design_lab/content.blubrry.com/board_game_design_lab/BGDL_209_Shannon_McDowell.mp3″>HERE</a>.[/mobileonly]

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Frank West, designer of Isle of Cats, discusses the ins and outs of designing a polyomino game (games with those funny Tetris tiles). 

Isle of Cats is one of the best polyomino games on the market, and we get into what makes these games fun, prototyping, and more.

The post How to Design a Polyomino Game with Frank West appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Al Leduc, designer of Yukon Airways, discusses what all goes into designing a dice drafting game.

We talk about balance, dice mitigation, why the d6 is king, and more!

The post Dice Drafting Games with Al Leduc appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Jon Vallerand, founder of Subsurface Games, does a deep dive into the mechanism of majorities.

We talk about the best majorities based games, ways to incentivize players, interactive play, and more.

And be sure to check out Jon’s game, With a Smile and a Gun, on Kickstarter HERE.​​

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Shem Phillips and Sam Macdonald, from of Garphill Games, discuss what all goes into designing worker placement games.

We talk about creating unique mechanisms, board design, player interaction, and more.

The post Designing Worker Placement Games with Shem Phillips and Sam Macdonald appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Assad Quraishi, designer of Genesis: Battle of Champions, how to design a collectible card game and how to run a company with a CCG as your main product.

Assad has been designing CCGs for 20+ years and running his own CCG company for quite a while, so we’re able to explore nearly every angle of this aspect of gaming.

The post How to Design a Collectible Card Game with Assad Quraishi appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Marco Pecota, designer of Legions of Steel, discusses everything that goes into designing a miniature war game.

Marco has been designing these types of games since the 90s, and we go into combat systems, movement, metal vs plastic, and everything in between.

And be sure to check out Marco’s miniatures packs on Kickstarter HERE.

The post How to Design Miniature War Games with Marco Pecota appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Bez Shahriari, designer of Yogi, discusses how to design not just a game but a gaming system that can support lots of different games.

Bez designed a system called the ELL Deck a while back, and we get into everything a designer has to think about when working on a project that’s going to consist of more than one game.

And be sure to check out Bez’s game system, the ELL Deck, on Kicstarter HERE.

The post Designing a Game System with Bez Shahriari appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Victoria Caña and Alex Uboldi, designers of Gladius, discuss the design process for creating a game with betting at its core.

We go into the ins and outs of balancing hidden vs open information, tension, and why people like these games so much.

The post Designing a Betting Game with Victoria Caña and Alex Uboldi appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Jayson Smith and Jason Zmuda, from Gold Cauldron Games, discuss the ins and outs of various combat systems.

We talk dice, cards, dexterity and more. And we analyze several “must play” games to learn how to design awesome combat. 

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Odin Phong, founder of Inkwell Games, discusses how to design a roll and write game.

The roll and write genre has exploded in popularity over the last couple of years, and we get into why people are drawn to them and how to design a good one.

And be sure to check out Odin’s roll and write anthology on Kickstarter HERE.

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