I want to make a board game!

Ten tips for aspiring tabletop game designers

Apr 18, 2023

I want to make a board game…

The other day, someone in the Odd Gob Games Discord server asked:

I am starting development on my first board/card game is there any advice anyone has or book recommendations or what not anyone could give me for help?

I love this question!

What are some tips I’ve discovered over time, but wish I had known earlier?

All I can suggest are the things that I’ve found helpful so far on my journey, but I think they have might have value for everyone interested in game design.

Ten tips for getting started

Here they are: a mixture of advice, inspiration sources, websites, and links, in no particular order…

1. Get a copy of Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design

Geoff Engelstein’s book Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design 2nd Edition is over five-hundred pages of board game mechanisms. Each mechanism has a short description, a brief discussion, and some sample games. Not a book I think you’d read cover to cover, but it’s my favorite reference text. It provides a great starting point for digging into a specific mechanism.

Geoff has also been slowly re-posting his old GameTek articles on Substack. His one on Staggered Goal Engagement Theory is a good place to start.

2. Play games on BGA

They say if you want to become a writer, read a lot of books. The same is true of game design — play a lot of games. BoardGameArena (BGA) makes this easy.

I’d encourage you to play games you don’t think you’d like, and that aren’t your usual style! For example, Terra Mystica and Gaia Project aren’t my favorite games, but I still think about the power cycling mechanism because it’s so fascinating.

3. Playtest with TTS

Basic Tabletop Simulator table with a custom PDF, dice, cards, and poker chips.

I’ve used Tabletop Simulator (TTS) to play games like Hansa Teutonica for a long time, but I’ve only recently used it for playtesting.

Unlike a fully scripted game platform like BGA, TTS is a physics simulator. It has components to drop in like dice, cards, chess pieces, and pawns. You can also load your own PDFs into custom objects to use as rulebooks, cards, and player boards.

Watch for an upcoming Skeleton Code Machine on how to get your game into TTS for testing.

4. Watch board game videos

Just like playing board games can make you a better designer, consuming some board game media might help too. Here are some of my current picks, with a video to try for each one:

The Dice Tower: The most comprehensive board game review channel. If a board game exists, they’ve probably reviewed it. Each review includes a quick overview of how to play. Try: Top 10 Games for Aspiring Game Designers
Adam in Wales: A mix of game design and the board game business from someone who has published some games. Try: How to Design a Worker Placement Game
Shut Up & Sit Down: Highly entertaining video reviews of both board games and tabletop roleplaying games. They have a podcast too, as you’ll see below! Try: Hansa Teutonica - The Best Eurogame Ever?
No Pun Included: Board game reviews by Elaine and Efka are a wild ride and frequently include both comedy and sharp insights on the game’s context. Try: Pax Pamir Second Edition Review

An honorable mention goes to 3 Minute Board Games for packing the most review into the shortest time. Check out Obsession in about 3 minutes.

5. Write down every idea you have

Notion, Trello, Obsidian, Microsoft Todo, Apple Notes. There are countless apps that will help you organize your notes and ideas.

My recommendation is to just pick one and use it. I’ve found that if I don’t immediately write down an idea, it’s gone forever. So now I’ve learned that when I think of something during a walk, I quickly jot it in down in Notion or Trello. Game ideas, titles, interesting phrases… they all go in the notes. This has been one of the best things I’ve done.

6. Get some cards and a pile of dice

Tabletop Simulator is great, but don’t overlook the tactile feel of designing and testing with actual components. I don’t think you can beat a pile of polyhedral dice, Sharpies, paper, and a deck of cards for prototyping. A printer is great too, if you have one. Using some heavy stock paper in sleeves can be a very satisfying way to test card games, allowing shuffling.

7. Listen to tabletop game podcasts

I have a few podcasts that I highly recommend for designers:

Although these podcasts focus on reviewing the games, I think they are each so insightful and critical in their commentary that they are useful for designers. Each one gets to the core of the game being reviewed.

The SU&SD episode about Obsession is what made me want to play it, turning into last week’s post about Exploring Three Mechanisms from Obsession.

8. Get involved in game jams

While many of the game jams on itch.io are focused on video games and tabletop roleplaying games, there are some that are board game related. The recently ended Postcards from the Front jam received 48 entries, each one a playable wargame that can fit on a postcard. I’m hoping to see more board game jams in the future!

9. Get comfortable with design/layout

Affinity Publisher V1 showing Heads Frozen in Vaults Enduring

When I made MAMMOTH for Tiny Tome, I had very little clue about how to do desktop publishing. So I grabbed a copy of Affinity Publisher and went to work, learning about bleed, gutters, margins, and CMYK vs. RGB color. Some of the mistakes I made (gutters!) caused quite a bit of rework, but it was a great experience.

Eventually you’ll want a prototype of your game from The Game Crafter, or it will go into production via a publisher. While you might not be the main graphic designer, it will be a huge benefit to know the basics of layout and printing.

10. Consider public domain art

While your game needs to be mechanically sound, the art and design can be a major factor in it’s success or failure. Especially on crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter, your game needs to be visually appealing.

Incorporating public domain art into your designs can allow you to get beautiful prototypes for testing before investing in custom art. It can also be used for the final product.

Conclusion

Some things to think about:

These tips work for tabletop roleplaying games too! While focused on board games, I think all of these tips apply to tabletop roleplaying game design as well. My personal interest is in blurring the line between TTRPGs and board games, so to me, they are the same thing at different ends of a spectrum.
Play games you don’t like. I’ve learned the most from games that push me out of my usual comfort zone and enjoyment. Resources like BoardGameArea and Tabletop Simulator are great for trying games you think you’ll only play once.
This list will change over time. Just like my Top 10 Games, the things I find most helpful will hopefully change over time. I’ll find new ones, and realize some of these weren’t as awesome as I first thought. That’s a good thing!

What did I miss? What are your top tips for aspiring board game and card game designers? What do you wish you knew sooner?

Skeleton Code Machine