Coming up with Ideas

I write everything down, even the really stupid stuff. I have a big pile of Text Files in a folder on my computer. Every so often, I go through and read them all. Sometimes, I combine several together into a bigger file of related ideas, but I tend to leave the old ones around, just for posterity and to make sure I won't forget useful things.

Actually for ideas, I am a dreamer and ride a lot of trains. So I get a lot of time to daydream. ABout anything that I see or encounter is a seed for a game idea, if it is interesting enough to persist in my brain long enough to get to my computer, I write it down.

If I get several files on a particular theme/game, I make another folder to keep it out of the general mess. I slowly revise from there with images and such. I really like keeping everything, and just making revisions in seperate files. This helps me see the development of ideas, and take a step back as needed.

Andy

At least for me, ideas for games just seem to come out of no where. They are usually something that interests me, or a cool idea that I could use with some novel game mechanic.

This is just my experience. Keep in mind I am no expert, and I am still designing my very first board game -- a chariot racing game.

What really gets me in terms of ideas, is the ideas that keep coming on a game I am working on. Right now, I can't get my head away from my chariot racing game. I keep thinking about it all the time, and then I will get sporadically more ideas on it.

What I try to do is to write all my ideas down without judgement. It is only later through further reflection do I then consider whether to add them to the design. I often will label ideas (at least mentally) as "possible future rule" or "great idea but probably won't work."

I think when coming up for ideas for a game, is to record them all, take the most simplest subset that will work coherently, write down the rules, create a prototype and refine.

This is just some thoughts.

DarkDream

Apparently I am unlike most here in that I don't jot stuff down, or just have ideas randomly hit me. I decide beforehand what kind of game I want to play and then design it. No great magical revelations or "Eureka!" moments for me.

I know what kind of games I like, and if I can't find a game that already exists that fits in that niche I make it myself. I start with a pretty clear vision of what I want the end result to be. The challenge is then to create that vision with whatever tools best fit the mold.

The thing is I end up with games I really enjoy. Sure, not everyone will as we know well enough the variety of tastes in gamers. But since I'm only designing trying to please nobody but myself I end up with a game that instantly goes on my top shelf.

I guess to actually answer the question of where my ideas come from would be to say - necessity. I decide what I want to play and if I can't find it, I design it. More boring and less interesting than watching rain run down a window and being hit by a lighting bolt of inspiration, but there you have it.

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Nick

Many years ago I began carrying a pen everywhere I go. I'm one of those people that writes (or rather jots) things down - or at the very least wants to have the option of writing something down if I think its important enough. The jottings aren't usually very elaborate just a word or two, perhaps a sentence that I use to help recall the entire idea at a later time.

There had been times when I'd have an idea/angle that warranted development, but didn't jot anything down. And then for the life of me I'd not be able to recall the specific nuance in the idea at a later time. Thus I began carrying a pen. I usually have a small pad of paper in my back pocket as well which gets occasional use. You can almost always find something to write on though, but rarely can you find something to write with.

Chip

When I don't have anything else to do, I design games in my head. I then spend a lot of freetime testing my game in may head, and try to fix all the problems. Then I make a prototype game and try it out with other people & take suggestions.

Generaly speaking, I like to look at a game that is already in publication, strip it down to it's bare functions and then re-build it over again with different content while varying the functions of the rules.

Kind of like one does when writing Screen Plays. All the stories have been done...just not your way with your style.