We’ve written quite a lot of content material since we began this web site in 2013. We hope this web page assists our recreation designers and fanatics to seek out exactly the subjects they want to see.

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Introductory Articles

Who are we? Alex & Matt

What motivates us to play video games?: A have a look at a number of totally different participant sorts and the way they could work together with varied kinds of video games. We reference this text as a place to begin to catering to the motivations of an viewers.

Classifications of video games: A breakdown of terminology and subjects we use all through this weblog.

Balance in Game Design

Introduction to Balance: Introduction and overview of our three classes of steadiness.

Internal Balance: False choices, dominant methods and strategies to steadiness objects.

External Balance: Types of asymmetry in video games, perceived steadiness.

Positional Balance: Runaway chief impacts, catch-up mechanics.

Dimensions of Games

Player Count & Scalability: Effective participant counts for varied mechanics and bettering how video games scale.

Complexity & Emergent Gameplay: Methods to enhance the depth to complexity ratio.

Game Length & Maximizing Time Value: Improving the ratio of how a lot time a recreation requires and the way a lot gratification it offers.

Conclusion – Utility: The advantages of manipulating complexity, participant depend & recreation size.

Dimensions of Games – Three New Areas: A break down of our three intersecting areas.

Downtime: The Paradox of Choice plus causes and options for downtime points in video games.

Pacing: A sequence of strategies on easy methods to construct participant curiosity as the sport progresses.

Player Control: An issue brought on by massive variations in expertise or randomness.

Approachability in Game Design

Introduction to Approachability:  Improve the gaming expertise for brand new gamers.

Extending the Invitation: Our first two axioms of approachability: Familiarity & Purpose.

Captivate A Captive Audience (Part I): Our second pair of axioms of approachability: Clarity & Navigation.

Captivate A Captive Audience (Part II): Our third pair of axioms of approachability: Parsimony & Assurance.

The Learning Curve: Breaking down the impacts of approachability and skilled gamers.

Teachability: Improving the expertise of studying and instructing new video games.

Building Game-Defining Concepts

Introduction to Game-Defining Concepts: A have a look at major sources of innovation in recreation design.

Game-Defining Concepts – The Doubling Cube: In-depth have a look at the Backgammon Doubling Cube.

Building Game-Defining Concepts: Common areas that may assist you to innovate your recreation design.

Theme in Game Design

Theme vs Mechanics: Finding Common Ground: Breaking down the truth of the Theme vs. Mechanic debate and discovering a productive start line to your designs.

Integrating Theme with Design: Reflecting on the design strengths of video games who’ve efficiently built-in theme.

The Who, What, When, Where & How of Thematic Execution: An unorthodox and satirical have a look at theme in recreation design. The essential content material of the article is genuinely meant to assist thematic execution. Additionally, there are deliberately imprecise references particular to fashionable franchises which can assist mirror the scenario of a brand new participant unfamiliar with thematic material of a recreation.

Satisfaction in Games

Satisfaction Guaranteed: A listing of satisfying parts in video games that may generate enjoyable or satisfaction in video games for gamers.

Dodging Dissatisfaction: Avoiding the pitfalls and errors that may detract from the participant expertise.

General Game Design Tips

Vanity and the Downfall of Aspiring Game Designers: A sequence of frequent errors for brand new designers and easy methods to keep away from them. Most notably, why nobody goes to steal your recreation concept.

The Role of Playtesting: Just a few design objectives you could want to prioritize in your subsequent recreation design.

Game Design Structures

[Early Game Structures]: Introduction & Resources: An introduction to our sequence on a number of of the foundational parts of recreation design together with useful resource developments and incentives that may drive participant motivations in decision-making.

[Early Game Structures] Turn Order: One of the important design parts that form the method of taking a flip and the way the lively participant can transition in the course of the spherical of a recreation.

[Early Game Structures] Decisions: A listing of 4 qualitative standards obtainable for Designers and Developers to guage the range and kinds of selections that gamers encounter in video games.

[Mid Game Structures] Player Ecology: A have a look at motivations, incentives and penalties and the way a number of psychology and financial rules can change the scope of a recreation.

[Mid Game Structures] Player Interaction: Our strategy to understanding and graphing how gamers can have an effect on each other, collaborate and compete.

[Mid Game Structures] Player Strategy: A graphical framework that teams video games primarily based on the strategic strategy gamers are inspired to take.

[Late Game Structures] Endgame Conditions: We break down how video games arrive at their conclusion, how acceptable is the top recreation set off and the way a lot management do gamers should writing the ultimate chapter of the story.

[Late Game Structures] Objectives & Victory Conditions: There are arguably solely 3 ways to win video games. These are their tales.

[Late Game Structures] Qualifiers – Flying Too Close To the Sun: Part one is about Comparative Qualifiers the place gamers are in contrast on the finish of the sport and somebody loses their wings simply earlier than ultimate scoring.

[Late Game Structures] Qualifiers – The Ultimatum & the Forbidden Fruit: Part two covers Absolute Qualifiers the place gamers should carry out particular duties or keep away from sure outcomes in an effort to stay eligible to win on the finish of the sport.

Mechanic Archetypes Series

Mechanic Archetypes – Worker Placement: An introduction to the mechanic protecting tendencies and interpretations of the time period “Worker Placement”.

Worker Placement – The Perfectly Average Middle Ground Mechanic: High-level have a look at the mechanic that features a few chosen strengths and weaknesses of Worker Placement.

Worker Placement – Observations and Innovations: A have a look at greater than two dozen Worker Placement video games whereas protecting varied developments and approaches to the mechanic.

Mechanic Archetypes – Pool Builders: An introduction highlighting the mechanics of Deck constructing, Dice constructing and Bag constructing collectively known as Pool builders.

Pool Builders – The Algae of Game Mechanics: High-level have a look at Pool constructing that focuses on the strengths and weaknesses of the the mechanic.

Pool Builders – Observations and Innovations: A have a look at a variety of Pool Building video games whereas protecting varied developments and approaches to the mechanics.

Game Design Analysis Series

Our analyses of fashionable video games that make the most of the terminology and recreation design frameworks we use on this web page.

Game Design Analysis – Terra Mystica: We have a look at Terra Mystica from the attitude of Balance, Complexity, Scalability, Approachability, and different attributes.

Game Design Analysis – Bora Bora: We have a look at Bora Bora with a give attention to Balance, Complexity, Scalability, Approachability and different attributes.

Game Design Analysis – Twilight Struggle: We have a look at Twilight Struggle with an emphasis on Game-Defining Concepts, Theme, Downtime, Satisfaction and a number of other different attributes.

Game Design Analysis – Bohnanza: We have a look at Bohnanza with an emphasis on Player Control, Pacing, Satisfaction and a number of other different attributes.

Dual Design Analysis – Concordia and Lewis & Clark: A particular pair of analyses with a have a look at the comparative strengths of two 2013 video games on the subjects of Theme, Pacing, Downtime, Satisfaction and different attributes.

Game Design Analysis – Power Grid: We have a look at one among our all-time favorites on the subjects of Balance, Approachability, Game Structures and a number of other different attributes.

Game Design Analysis – Keyflower: Keyflower’s mix of auctions and employee placement is outstanding and we have a look at a few of our favourite attributes that make its gameplay so interesting.

Game Design Analysis – Orleans: A latest favourite and among the finest video games we’ve performed in years, on this evaluation we dig to the underside of the bag and break down the most effective attributes of Orleans.

Guest Interviews

Scott Almes (January 2014): Scott discusses 4x video games, his design course of, Tiny Epic Kingdoms and Bigfoot.

Jamey Stegmaier (March 2014): Jamey discusses the playtesting and growth course of surrounding Tuscany, his strategy to design and a few of his wine of selection. [Warning: Ripe with Wine Puns]

Vital Lacerda (September 2014): Vital discusses the design and growth strategy of Kanban: Automotive Revolution. He additionally discusses designing together with his love of complicated video games, his artistic course of and The Gallerist. [Warning: Assembled with Automotive Manufacturing Puns]

Tom Lehmann (November 2014): Tom discusses the origin of Roll for the Galaxy, his typical work course of as a contract recreation designer, his ideas on collaborating on recreation design initiatives and a number of other of his latest and upcoming video games.

Professor Chris Hlas (January 2015): Chris discusses his approaches to instructing recreation design within the classroom, how college students have responded and great anecdotes from his experiences.

David Burke (January 2016): David discusses the “what goes around, comes around” design of Karmaka, unconventional themes and digital implementations of tabletop video games.

Dominic Crapuchettes (March 2016): Dominic discusses the event and development of Evolution: Climate and it’s thematic addition to the Evolution sequence. [Warning: Developed with Evolutionary Puns]

Mailbags

Trial & Error (December 2014): A mix of intelligent, humorous and considerate reader responses.

Mid-Summer Mailbag (July 2015): A set of questions and concepts and three concepts for a thematic traitor recreation. Also, what was the most effective 12 months in recreation design?

Influencers & Collaborators (December 2015): A mirrored image on one among our favourite tabletop blogs and three polarizing choices sorts in a few of our favourite video games.

The Return of the Mailbag (January 2017): A short mailbag prompted by readers and delivered for readers.