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I Want to Design a Board Game — Where Do I Start?

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@woodenBitLover · 3w · 363 views

I've been playing board games for 10 years and I have an idea for a game. It's an engine builder with a nature theme (think Gloomhaven meets Brass: Birmingham).

Problem: I have zero design experience. Where do I actually start? Do I need to learn graphic design? Should I prototype in Tabletop Simulator first? Is there a community for aspiring designers?

Any designers here who can share their journey?

4 Replies

H
@hexcrawler 3w

Start with paper. Seriously. Index cards, markers, and poker chips. Your first 50 prototypes will be ugly and that's fine. Design is iteration.

C
@cube_pusher 3w

r/boardgamedesign and the Board Game Design Lab podcast are great resources. Also, playtest with strangers ASAP. Friends are too nice.

R
@ResourceMgr 3w

Read \

T
@thinkingAP 3w

One piece of advice: start with the FEELING you want players to have, not the mechanics. \