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Prototyping/Playtesting software?

15 replies [Last post]
Tue, 11/22/2011 - 10:45
curtis.lacy
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Joined: 11/14/2011

Hi all,

I'm actually not sure if this belongs in "Prototyping" or "Playtesting", but I'm hoping a lot of the same people read both...

There are a couple of older threads on here where people are asking about software for prototyping and playtesting, and I'm going to try to sit down and do an organized "trade study"/comparison of the various options.

So far I've got these:

* Battlegrounds Gaming Engine
* Vassal
* Virtual Board
* Magic Set Editor
* DreamBoard
* NanDeck
* Decker
* Taebl
* Apprentice
* Magic Workstation

Is there anything out there that I'm missing? I'm looking for anything that helps with the prototyping->playtesting sequence, including anything that will actually help you find people to play with or play online.

Thanks!

Curtis

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Fri, 11/25/2011 - 15:42
#1
heruca
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Joined: 05/15/2009
Sounds like a good

Sounds like a good project.

You might find a couple of other apps suitable for prototyping & playtesting here.

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Sun, 11/27/2011 - 15:12
#2
pelle
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My Inkscape extensions (on

My Inkscape extensions (on phone so can't link now).

They are being split up for future releases. The countersheet extension will have a 2.0 beta soon. The hexmap extension (also possible to run online at hexmaps.appspot.com) will be later.

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Mon, 11/28/2011 - 12:54
#3
curtis.lacy
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Joined: 11/14/2011
Thanks!

Awesome list! I'll work my way through those as well.

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Mon, 11/28/2011 - 21:31
#4
Brykovian
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Did you have ZunTzu on your

Did you have ZunTzu on your list?

http://www.zuntzu.com/

-Matt

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Mon, 11/28/2011 - 22:11
#5
curtis.lacy
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Joined: 11/14/2011
Yup!

Looks like that one was on the Battlegrounds Games' list, but thanks for bringing it up!

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Wed, 11/30/2011 - 18:40
#6
SiddGames
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Results

I'd be interested in seeing your final review/comparison of these engines when you're done.

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Thu, 12/01/2011 - 17:59
#7
sotano42
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Joined: 11/13/2011
Virtual Board Webpage

Hi All,

I just wanted to share with you a small webpage developed for Virtual Board

http://www.imcsoftwarefactory.com/VirtualBoard/

News, releases and support can be seen on this link. Take some time to evaluate the latest version, it is turning really nice.

Thanks!

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Thu, 12/01/2011 - 18:50
#8
curtis.lacy
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Joined: 11/14/2011
Virtual Board!

Ah, there you are, sotano! I knew I had seen your posts about Virtual Board before, but I couldn't dig them up last night when I was looking. Thanks for adding your URL, I'll put it back on my to-look-at list.

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Thu, 12/01/2011 - 18:53
#9
curtis.lacy
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It's a work in Progress

@SiddGames - The list is coming along gradually. As it evolves, it lives here: http://www.globalgamespace.org/index.php/prior-art/

I'll also be posting periodic Twitter updates about the related project as @GlobalGameSpace {Ashamed of the shameless self-promotion, I am!}

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Fri, 12/02/2011 - 12:21
#10
larienna
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Is there an advantage to use

Is there an advantage to use a software to playtest games locally with a software or are these software much more useful for playtesting online.

Else it seems just easier for me to build a prototype and test. The only situation I see could be if I were sending prototypes to people who want to test my game, they could simply use a software to play and they will not have to print/cut anything.

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Fri, 12/02/2011 - 14:19
#11
heruca
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Joined: 05/15/2009
Cost savings and time savings

Cost savings and time savings are probably the biggest reasons, and those two reasons combined might lead you to try out changes/tweaks to your game design that you might not bother with if you have to deal with the hassle of re-creating all or part of your home-made physical prototype, not to mention getting your remote playtesters to do the same, just to test out a theory, game variant, or new unit type.

It is much easier to just update the digital components and start playtesting your changes within minutes. A big part of game design isn't just seeing what works, it is trying out and discarding all the things that don't work.

Another very nice feature of digital gaming software is that you don't have to limit yourself to local playtesters, or deal with prototype shipping costs for remote playtesters; you can draw from a worldwide pool of potential playtesters.

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Mon, 12/05/2011 - 09:39
#12
heruca
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sotano42 wrote:I just wanted

sotano42 wrote:
I just wanted to share with you a small webpage developed for Virtual Board

http://www.imcsoftwarefactory.com/VirtualBoard/

I've added Virtual Board (and a few other programs) to my comprehensive list of virtual tabletop software intended for general gaming. Hope it drives some extra traffic your way.

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Mon, 12/05/2011 - 11:57
#13
sotano42
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Great!

heruca wrote:
sotano42 wrote:
I just wanted to share with you a small webpage developed for Virtual Board

http://www.imcsoftwarefactory.com/VirtualBoard/

I've added Virtual Board (and a few other programs) to my comprehensive list of virtual tabletop software intended for general gaming. Hope it drives some extra traffic your way.

Thanks a lot for the promotion =) ...

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Tue, 01/24/2012 - 09:49
#14
curtis.lacy
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Joined: 11/14/2011
So very tired....

Okay, having looked at 26 different tools, I'm pretty sure any more will make my eyes bleed. I plan to come back to this as time allows, since it's always great to see what others are doing and I still have eight other tools I should look at. In the meantime, here's the ranked list I came up with: http://www.globalgamespace.org/index.php/prior-art/ .

VASSAL came out ahead according to the criteria I was looking for, though ACTS is a really interesting option for non-real-time play. ZunTzu and LackeyCCG are also pretty thorough packages. I can't say anything about the eight I didn't get to, but they're linked from my list, and if anyone who's familiar with those wants to judge them according to the metrics I used for the others, I'll gladly post it with a link back to your stuff!

And finally, my shameless self promotion: I've got a video where I run down the features common to pretty much any game, and I invite you all to come take a look: http://www.globalgamespace.org/index.php/blog/29-features-to-build-any-t...

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Tue, 04/24/2018 - 07:23
#15
yamaran
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Joined: 01/04/2018
Best Prototyping Tools for Designers

You should also take a look at the list of Best prototyping tools for designers - https://www.cleveroad.com/blog/discover-11-best-prototyping-tools-for-de...

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