Skip to Content
 

A matter of scale...

13 replies [Last post]
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 00:12
Anonymous

First post on the board, so please be gentle. *grin*

I'm in the process of designing a board game but dealing with a problem with scale. If I make the map peices the size I want them to be, then the game board will end up approximately 30"x36" (6x5 5" squares subdivided by 1" squares for movement). Problem is, that would require the average player to clear a HUGE amount of space just to play - or does it just seem big?

What is the best "size" for a gameboard so as to allow the most people access to the game?

Thanks in advance for the help.

Top
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 01:42
#1
sedjtroll
sedjtroll's picture
Offline
Joined: 07/21/2008
A matter of scale...

That IS too big. I work every day with plan sets that are 24x36 and I can tell you that's way too big for a board game.

Can you make the squares 1/2" for movement (2.5"x2.5" tiles)? That would cut it down to like 15" X 18"... maybe even too small. Maybe 20" x 24" would be good.

- Seth

Top
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 08:54
#2
Zzzzz
Zzzzz's picture
Offline
Joined: 06/20/2008
A matter of scale...

I would agree that that size sounds BIG, but then again, I am visualizing a 30"x36" monopoly board and you might be developing a board for a miniatures board game.

I think the size in general is large, but I think it depends on the focus of the game. If it was me and I was developing a miniature board game, 30"x36" might not really be that big. Those mini players always need an 8 foot table anyways ;)

Top
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 09:11
#3
jwarrend
Offline
Joined: 08/03/2008
A matter of scale...

It's certainly bigger than anything I've designed, but I'm pretty sure I've seen boards that are bigger. Regardless, I don't think it's a point of serious concern at the moment. The most important thing for you at this point is to make a board that will fit on your table, since you are the one who's going to be playing the game for the foreseeable future. Just work up a game board that's convenient and permits you to play the game. Once you have playtested a lot, and have a game that's fun to play, and you want to think about the next step, that's a good time to start worrying about the physical details of your game. But at this point, don't spend too much time worrying about the implementation of the game; just put something together, get it on the table, and play it!

-Jeff

Top
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 10:21
#4
Anonymous
A matter of scale...

That's a good idea. Especially if the project is taken up by a larger entity, the layout will no doubt change anyway (as we have seen with the Lord of the Rings .pdf).

Thanks again.

Top
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 12:53
#5
Anonymous
A matter of scale...

jwarrend wrote:
Once you have playtested a lot, and have a game that's fun to play, and you want to think about the next step, that's a good time to start worrying about the physical details of your game.

That's exactly right, unless you're self publishing (a great topic already covered in various other threads), you don't need to worry too much over the "sellability" of your layout. As you said, the company that buys your game will handle those aspects of it. You're job is to create a game that they would want to pick up and produce.

One thing to consider is to make the squares SLIGHTLY smaller than 1" (like .875" or .75"). The scale isn't that much smaller, will still fit many miniature pieces (if that's the scope of your game) and will significantly reduce the size of the board (.875" squares would make the board roughly 26.25" x 31.5", .75" squares would make it 22.5" x 27").

Top
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 15:54
#6
Anonymous
A matter of scale...

jwarrend wrote:
It's certainly bigger than anything I've designed, but I'm pretty sure I've seen boards that are bigger.

I saw this war game once in my friends basement. It was 6'x10' and covered in hexes. I would imagine roughly 1" accross. The map was of Europe (minus England), and North Africa. All I remember about it was that is was some sort of war game. The peices were pins. They played by snail mail (U.S. post), and had been playing since they graduated from college. To the best of my knowlege, no one ever one....

Top
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 16:47
#7
Zzzzz
Zzzzz's picture
Offline
Joined: 06/20/2008
A matter of scale...

At GenCON this year I saw the "Worlds Largets Board Game". They had it displayed in one of the hall ways. Cant remember the name, but the board was 15 ft x 20 ft. Or something crazy like that...

Top
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 17:06
#8
RookieDesign
Offline
Joined: 12/31/1969
A matter of scale...

The game the longuest day have an impressive map.
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/image/44313

From what I look for, basic board are 22'x22' (Have to double check this one) and 17.5'x17.5'.

The size are from the Parker Brother games. I guess that they had few standard size of board.

I downsize mine to 17.5 inches. regretfully.

Have a good day.

Top
Thu, 09/09/2004 - 18:01
#9
lar
Offline
Joined: 12/31/1969
A matter of scale...

If you get a chance, take a look at WAR: Age of Imperialism. They have a board that is 46" x 36" and while large, it can fit on most dinning room tables. The nice thing to note about it is how the board is laid out. It's basically 3 boards, each board being 36" long and tri-folded. They are printed straight to the edges so they line up nicely when laid out.

As far enjoyment and playing a game, I think you shouldn't worry too much about the size of the game. If it's so big that you could only play on the floor - and it was meant for adults, then maybe I would try to scale it down. But if you can fit it on most of yours friends tables (which I think you could, and given they don't need a lot of extra play space in front of them for cards, etc) then I wouldn't worry about.

But remember, printing a board that is 3 or 4 times larger than a normal game board means you are raising the cost of your game, you will need a larger box, a bigger place to the store games, etc, etc, etc. However, if those are not as critical to you and you are only concerned about game play, then I say make the board the right size for the game. Big boards don't scare me away ... big feet, now that's a different story.

Good luck, Lar

Top
Fri, 09/10/2004 - 10:18
#10
Anonymous
A matter of scale...

lar wrote:
If you get a chance, take a look at WAR: Age of Imperialism.

Other similar board games:

[/]
Top
Fri, 09/17/2004 - 11:20
#11
Anonymous
A matter of scale...

I gots big feets too Lar. *wink*

Thanks for all the tips. I actually ended up making the square sizes a tad bit smaller, so now the game peices are all 3.75" square. Making the board approx. 18.75"x22.5" - not a bad size at all really.

But now that I've got test game peices to play around with - what do you know, I have to rethink some of the ideas behind the game. But that will be a story for another day. *grin*

Top
Fri, 09/17/2004 - 15:11
#12
OrlandoPat
Offline
Joined: 10/16/2008
Just to throw another idea out there...

Keep box size and production costs in mind!

Overly large boards can be broken up into folding or segmented boards, but there's a limit to that, both from a playability box size standpoint...

Top
Thu, 09/23/2004 - 11:42
#13
Anonymous
A matter of scale...

True, but the game board is already in segmented peices. I've considered making a base board to place these peices on, but that leads back to your statement and feasibility of production (and costs) at a later point. I may make a legend border that is placed around the gameplay area to help define the space instead.

Top
Syndicate content


forum | by Dr. Radut