A few simple things I learned in week 5 at SJG:
1) I trained myself to make card games in multiples of 52 or 54. If you’re printing in the USA, that’s relevant. If you’re printing in China, it’s not. You can make a game with 108 cards in it, and odds are good that you’ll get the same quote to print if you make it with 110 or 120 cards in it. Why? I don’t know. I don’t even pretend to know.
2) In contrast to note (1): Keeping your component requirements to a minimum is critical. If you create a game that can be played just with cards, but could be expanded to accomodate miniatures, a fist-full of dice, etc., you’re in pretty good shape. If you’re designing a game, and you keep adding components to it, be certain that those components are essential. If they aren’t, you’re making your game less appealing to publish without adding sufficient value.
3) Get enough sleep.
4) If you’re working and working and working on a game and it’s just not coming together, take a step back. Ask yourself, “What’s this game really about?” “Who’s the audience for this game?” “What story arc do the players follow as they play the game?” If you’re fortunate enough to have mandates from your customers, take a look at those too. Now break the game down and figure out what it needs to do actualize those primal roles and meet those mandates. Strip off any extra cruft that’s attached itself to the game. Try it again. Is it better? Is anything missing?
5) Capture notes at every meeting, even the small ones.
6) Offload the math onto the components. Even if you think the math is super-simple, offload it anyway. Why? Math you think is simple may be daunting for other people. Making components that “do the math” makes the game more accessible, more fun, and is likely to improve the game play in ways you didn’t even expect it to.
7) Order enough food for play test sessions. However much you’ve ordered, increase it by 10%.
8) It is very, very easy to make a game that color-blind people can not play. Be vigilant. (Note: I am not color blind, but I know several people who are to varying degrees. This includes one person who is completely color blind (grayscale vision) and an avid gamer. This is more of a problem than you’d initially expect, but just think about it for a moment.)
— Jonathan A Leistiko :: thought : gaming
Invisible City Productions is a collective of game designers, writers, and artists who provide this as a space for the creators of secret media to come together and touch antennae.
Thanks for the shout-out for the color blind. So sad to get a new game and find a color issue in it.
— Mike Haverty Apr 16, 10:47 PM #