In this BGDL rewind from May of 2019, Elizabeth Hargrave dives into all the ins and outs of designing an engine-building game. We chat about her personal design process and all the interesting obstacles she encountered when designing Wingspan. We also talk about how to layer concepts on top of each other, balancing winning strategies, creating a satisfying conclusion, and more!

The post How to Design an Engine Building Game with Elizabeth Hargrave appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Ben Rosset, designer of The Search for Planet X, talks about how to design games based on real-life systems and processes.
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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.

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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.

Ted Alspach, designer of Maglev Metro and several other route building games, talks about what makes these games special.

We talk about themes that mesh well with the mechanism, end conditions, keeping players interested, and more.

The post How to Design Route Building Games with Ted Alspach appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Steve Finn, founder of Dr. Finn’s Games, discusses how to design set collection games. Steve has designed a ton of games with this mechanism including Biblios, Herbaceous, and Sunset over Water, so he has a lot to say on the topic.

And be sure to check out Steve’s Latest game on Kickstarter HERE.

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Fabio Lopiano, designer of Merv: The Heart of the Silk Road, discusses how to use entangled decision-making as the primary mechanism in a game.

In several of Fabio’s designs, players have to make choices based on how things like resources and actions are paired together or “entangled.” We unpack everything that goes into designing games that intertwine various options.

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Mike Kelley, designer of Mega Man Adventures, discusses cooperative games and what goes into designing a good one.

Mike has been designing and reviewing cooperative games for years, and we dive into both creating co-op games and how to stand out to reviewers and gamers.

The post How to Design a Cooperative Game with Mike Kelley appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

Jonny Pac, designer of Merchants Cove and lots of other games, discusses his process of finding the perfect mesh of theme and mechanisms.

We talk about his approach to theme in his various games, research, and what it looks like for mechanics to make sense inside the theme.

The post Thematically Informed Game Design with Jonny Pac appeared first on Board Game Design Lab.

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