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BGDL 19 - Brent Kinney (VP at Panda GM): The Ins and Outs of Printing a Game

Wed, 04/05/2017 - 12:52 — Board Game Desi...

Today, I'm talking to Brent Kinney, a vice president at Panda Game Manufacturing, about the ins and outs of the printing process.

There are a lot of nuances to the printing process, and the better you understand it, the easier and smoother everything will go. Panda GM is one of the major manufacturers of board games in the world, and Brent brings a ton of experience and insight to the discussion.

You can find the episode here:

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/the-ins-outs-of-printing-with-a-vice-p...

BGDL 18 - Tom Vasel: Lessons Learned from Playing 5000+ Games

Wed, 03/29/2017 - 10:16 — Board Game Desi...

Tom Vasel, founder of the Dice Tower, discusses some of the many things he’s learned after playing an astronomical number of games. We talk themes, mechanics, Kickstarter, publishing, trends, and tons of other stuff.

Tom has played and reviewed thousands upon thousands of games which has led to some interesting insight on what makes a great game.

Listen to the episode here: http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/lessons-learned-from-playing-5000-game...

BGDL 17 -Sen-FoongLim: How to Organize a Game Design Space

Wed, 03/22/2017 - 17:43 — Board Game Desi...

Sen-Foong Lim, designer of Belfort and Junk Art, discusses the many things a good game design space needs and ways to organize it all.

Listen to the episode here: http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/how-to-organize-a-design-space-with-se...

BGDL 16 - Edo Baraf: Things to Consider when Adding Custom Components to Your Game

Wed, 03/15/2017 - 12:11 — Board Game Desi...

Edo Baraf, designer of Herbaceous, discusses the many different types of custom components you can add to your games and the challenges and considerations that go with each one. We talk custom dice, boards, boxes, inserts, meeples, sleeves, and more. (Not miniatures. That will be its own episode.)

Edo has experience with lots of custom components and offers a ton of insight on the things to be aware of when adding them to your game.

Check it out here: http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/custom-components-in-your-game-with-ed...

BGDL 15 -Dan Peterson: Why a Publisher Might Reject Your Game and How to Handle It

Wed, 03/08/2017 - 12:36 — Board Game Desi...

Dan Peterson, chief developer and head of new acquisitions at Mayday Games, discusses why a publisher might reject your game and how to handle it.

Dan looks at close to 200 unpublished games a year and has years of experience in finding new games to publish. This episode is packed with great wisdom for anyone wanting to travel down the traditional publishing path.

Check out the episode here: http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/why-a-publisher-might-reject-your-game...

BGDL 14 - JT Smith: How to Create a Great Cooperative Game

Wed, 03/01/2017 - 12:46 — Board Game Desi...

JT Smith, designer of The Captain Is Dead, talks about how to design a great cooperative game.

We talk creating tension, alpha players, the math behind a good AI system, and more. Personally, I think The Captain Is Dead is one of the best co-op games on the market today, and it was great to get JT's insight on its creation.

Check out the episode here: http://wp.me/p7qg8b-bT

BGDL 13 - Jamey Stegmaier: A Day in the Life of a Pro Game Designer

Wed, 02/22/2017 - 16:16 — Board Game Desi...

Jamey Stegmaier, designer of Scythe, is back on the show, and we’re talking about what the schedule of a pro game designer looks like. It’s easy to have a romanticized idea of what being a full time designer is, but it doesn’t quite line up with reality.

We talk about the daily fires that have to be put out, how to be intentional with your time, ways to become more efficient, and much more.

Check out the episode here:

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-pro-designer-wi...

BGDL 12 - Emerson Matsuuchi: How to Design a Great Hidden Movement Game

Thu, 02/16/2017 - 11:20 — Board Game Desi...

Emerson Matsuuchi, designer of Specter Ops, goes into all the ins and outs of putting together a hidden movement game.

There are very few hidden movement games out there right now which means there’s still a ton to be explored. Emerson discusses the challenges he faced and his insights on the topic.

Listen to the episode here:

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/how-to-make-a-great-hidden-movement-ga...

BGDL 11 - Ryan Laukat: The Intersection of Art and Game Design

Wed, 02/08/2017 - 14:30 — Board Game Desi...

Ryan Laukat, founder of Red Raven Games, discusses how to create a beautiful game that is also functional. Ryan does his own art for all of his games, so he has an incredible understanding of the tug of war a designer and artist can have when trying to make a game look great but also work well for the players.

We also talk about some best practices when hiring and working with an artist.

Check out the episode here:

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/the-intersection-of-art-and-game-desig...

BGDL 10 - Jerry Hawthorne: The Importance of Story in Games

Wed, 02/01/2017 - 17:10 — Board Game Desi...

Jerry Hawthorne, designer of Mice and Mystics, discusses the importance of story in games.

Jerry specializes in narrative driven games and has numerous games to his credit. He goes into why people enjoy story in games so much and how you can inject more story into your games. Finally, he gives great advice on what to do first when creating a story driven game.

My favorite idea from the interview: "Create a story. Not a series of incidents."

Check out the episode here:

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/the-importance-of-story-in-games-with-...

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by Dr. Radut