Andrew Harmon, designer of Portals and Prophets, discusses religious themed games.

Andrew designed a time travel game with a Biblical theme, and we talk the ins and outs of how to bring a religious themed game to life. We also talk about how not to offend too many people along the way.

Also, Andrew’s game is out on Kickstarter right now. Check it out here.

The post Creating Religious Themed Games with Andrew Harmon appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Sami Laakso, owner of Snowdale Design, discusses how to design a scenario based game.

Sami is both a publisher and a designer, and he’s been working on a campaign driven game with legacy elements for over 2 years. We discuss what he’s learned throughout the design process, and he gives lots of tips and tricks.

And you can find Sami’s scenario game on Kickstarter right now. Check it out here.

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Today, Kirk Dennison, owner of Piecekeeper Games, discusses how to efficiently create new versions of a game and iterate like a boss

Kirk is both a publisher and a designer, and he’s obsessed with efficiency. He gets into some serious nuts and bolts about saving time and moving from one version to the next.

And be sure to check out Kirk’s latest game “Gearworks” on Kickstarter.

The post How to Iterate like a BOSS with Kirk Dennison appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Scott Rogers, designer of Rayguns and Rocketships, discusses how to intertwine theme and mechanics.

Scott has been designing both video and board games for years and teaches game design at the University of Southern California. Scott also does the “History of a Board Game” segments on the Dice Tower and Ludology podcasts.

And the Jack Vasal Memorial Fund auction mentioned in the show can be found HERE.

The post Intertwining Theme and Mechanics with Scott Rogers appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Andrew Birkett, founder of Atheris Games, discusses how he started a publishing company and got his first game 200% funded on Kickstarter.

We talk about tips for pre-campaign preparation, overcoming the mid-campaign slump, finishing strong, and more.

The post How a First Time Publisher Gets Funded on Kickstarter with Andrew Birkett appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Timo Multamaki, founder of Dragon Dawn Productions, discusses the many things he’s learned about project management and getting games across the finish line.

Timo has a team of 40+ people from all over the world working on various games​​, so he’s had to become the glue that holds people together and keeps them on the same page until the games are done.

The post Project Management and Working with Virtual Teams with Timo Multamaki appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Jamey Stegmaier is back, and we’re talking about the making of Scythe. We discuss the ins and outs of all the design choices that brought one of the best games in the world to life.

The post The Making of Scythe with Jamey Stegmaier appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Evan Derrick, designer and part owner of Van Ryder Games, discusses theme and how to really bring it to the forefront in a game.

Evan designed “Detective: City of Angels” which is one of the most thematic games I’ve ever seen, so I pick his brain on what makes a theme really come together.

The post THEME! And How to Bring It Out with Evan Derrick appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Danny Lott, designer of Coma Ward, discusses how to design a horror themed game and really evoke a creepy experience. 

This episode has a ton of great advice, but I’m not gonna lie, it gets a little weird in the middle. (You’ll hear what I mean…) We finish strong though, haha.

The post Designing Horror Themed Games with Danny Lott appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Carla Kopp, founder of Weird Giraffe Games, discusses how she stays on the hustle and gets so much done in design, publishing, playtesting, and Kickstarter.

We talk about the tips and tricks she’s learned to hack her time and consistently make things happen.

The post How to Hustle and Get Things Done with Carla Kopp 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.

Randy Hoyt, owner of Foxtrot Games, discusses how to turn a game into a product.

We go into marketability, sellability, usability and more.

Randy has been designing and publishing games for a number of years and has a ton of insight on making games that sell.

The post Going from Game to Sellable Product with Randy Hoyt appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Fabio Del Rio, owner of CSE Games, discusses the ins and outs of sports themed games. We go into mechanics, marketability, licensing, challenges, success stories, and more.

Fabio has been publishing sports games for over a decade and brings a lot of wisdom and insight to the episode.

The post Sports Themed Games with Fabio Del Rio appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Daniel Aronson, professional graphic designer and game designer, discusses the importance of being intentional with all the graphic design in your game. We talk fonts, color choices, layouts, branding, and more in this information full episode.

Daniel is the designer of “El Dorado,” which just launched on Kickstarter. Check it out here.

The post Graphic Design and Its Effect on the Player Experience with Daniel Aronson appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Lance Myxter, the Undead Viking, talks about game reviews from a lot of different angles. Lance has done over 1000 reviews and offers a lot of insight on the different ins and outs of the review world.

He does a ton of videos for Kickstarter games and gives some great advice for anyone wanting to travel down that road as well.

The post Let’s Talk Game Reviews with Lance Myxter the Undead Viking appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Marshall Britt, owner of Yanaguana Games, talks about all the mistakes he’s made and lessons he’s learned as a small game publisher.

The post Lessons Learned as a Small Publisher with Marshall Britt appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Hermann Luttmann, designer of Dawn of the Zeds, talks about how to design a solo game.

Hermann has created numerous games meant for only one player and offers a ton of interesting insight on how to craft the solitaire experience.

The post How to Design a Solo Game with Hermann Luttmann appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Denny Weston, designer of Kingdoms Lawn Game, discusses the ins, outs, and challenges of creating a game meant to be played in the great outdoors.

And check out the Kingdoms Lawn Game Kickstarter here.

The post Designing Outdoor Games with Denny Weston appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

James Hudson, owner of Druid City Games, talks about how to create a game that families love to play.

James works full time in the gaming industry, and his company focuses specifically on family games. We talk about what makes a game appealing to families and how to get noticed on Kickstarter.

The post How to Design a Great Family Game with James Hudson appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Daryl Andrews, designer of Sagrada, discusses how to work on a bunch of designs at the same time.

Daryl has designed around 100 games that are either in stores, in production, or have been signed and are waiting to move forward, so he has a TON of knowledge on the subject.

The post How to Work on Multiple Games at the Same Time with Daryl Andrews appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.