So I was thinking...
Today I was searching for a six foot tall wooden giraffe for a gift for my wife and I was invited back into the "workshop" area where all the carvings are made. There were probably twenty-some men working away making very nice wood carvings of every African creature you could imagine. They are truly high quality. I'm a woodworker myself, so I was especially impressed what they could make with so little.
So I was thinking...
And the other day I found some very, very lovely hand-painted cloth mounted on post-card size stock with, again an African type design. But, African theme or not, there was obviously some talent involved here.
So I was thinking...
And last week, I took an old belt I had to the musee where the leather workers have their shop so they could make a dog collar out of it. It came out very nice, and my dog gets a lot of compliments on his collar. While at the musee I notice that the leather workers make these incredible chests and picture frames.
So I AM thinking...
I wonder if there might be a good resource here for custom, hand-made games. I could see even how the theme of the game could be tied to these hand-made pieces. I've been looking at
www.zeitstein.de/oper_bild1.html
and think that something along these lines could be made very easily and very affordably here. Even if it is just for prototyping.
Anyone think there might be some interest out there for this. The materials and labor are much, much less than in the states. And if things are bought in bulk, the price would only go way down. It's the shipping that would have to be worked out. Details, details.
Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
John
[EDIT: Yippee! four-side die!]
Yes, I am in Guinea right now. And from the work I have been seeing, I think some beautiful game pieces could be made here. Some may be more raw than others...but that too could easily play into the theme of the game. Just a stroll through the marche (market) gets your game design juices going. You could almost make a game from some found objects I think.
I'd much rather have a set of wood 'pawns' that may not be exactly alike than a set of perfectly symmetrical plastic pieces. The tactile sensation of the wood or leather, and the heft in one's hand more than make up for any 'imperfections' of the hand made.
I really think that there is an opportunity here, and if anyone is interested in sending me some 'plans' for a game, I could work with them on the design, and price it out for you. It would be great to bring some business to this part of the world.
Please feel free to contact me or PM me for more information.
Any other thoughts on the subject are very welcome.
John