Board Game Design Lab

Odin Phong, founder of Inkwell Games, discusses how to design a roll and write game. The roll and write genre has exploded in popularity over the last couple of years, and we get into why people are drawn to them and how to design a good one. And be sure to check out Odin’s roll and...

Ann Losito, Twitch streamer with Twist Gaming, discusses how to engage with media as a game designer. In today’s world, designers and publishers are more and more having to be on top of their media game in order to be successful. Ann and I get into what that looks like.

Dave Schultze, designer of Gridopolis, discusses how to design a game that not only spreads out on the table but also goes up. Dave has worked for companies like Lego, Hasbro, and Mattel designing toys and games and has a ton of knowledge on how to design three-dimensional games.

Lizzy Funkhouser, designer of Something to Fear, discusses what it looks like to pay attention to detail when designing a game. Lizzy loves to add Easter egg type details into her games to enhance the gaming experience, and we get into lots of examples and ways to add cool things to a design.

John Brieger, professional freelancer, discusses what it looks like to make a living working on board games. John is a designer, developer, editor, and more, and he’s been working on games full-time for about a year.

Joe Pilkus, professional game developer, discusses the lessons he’s learned from developing games over the years. Joe has worked on games from Stonemaier Games, Academy Games, and many other major publishers, and he’s been helping fledgling game designers online for years.

Derek Funkhouser, designer of Walking Dead: Something to Fear, discusses how to design games that create magic moments. Derek is the lead developer at Skybound Games and loves designing so that players enjoy awesome moments that they’ll talk about for years to come.

Wes Woodbury, designer of Legends of Novus, discusses how to design a fantasy-themed game. We talk about world-building, combat systems, art, and more.  And be sure to check out Wes’s fantasy-themed board game on Kickstarter HERE.

Ryan Langewisch, designer of Tasty Humans, discusses how to create and update a game quickly and efficiently. Ryan recently won a 48-hour game jam and has gotten really good at the iteration process.

Luke Laurie, designer of Energy Empire, discusses all the ins and outs of creating a worker placement game. Luke has a ton of experience with the genre with 4 more worker placement games set to come out over the next 2 years.