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Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

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nosissies
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Joined: 07/26/2008

Hey folks,
If you've been around here for any length of time there are at least two things you are probably aware of:

1) new people (please don't take this the wrong way new folks, we do love you!) tend to start their time here with a few pretty specific questions/types of questions

2) there is this strange "wiki" word that people keep tossing around.

oh and maybe...
3) Jeff writes really long posts/analyses ... j/k Jeff, you know we all appreciate your insights :-)

While I'm not sure we can do anything about 3, you can help us with 1&2. As you may know the next generation of the site will involve a wiki as it's centerpiece. Yes, we'll still have forums and chats, and even blogs, but that will all be structured around the wiki. A wiki is a much more useful way for an online community to have some sort of memory (see the link below for more info). You may realize now that while the forums remember everything we say, it can be downright difficult to find stuff in there (which is still more effective than my own brain)

We want to make sure that new visitors are well served by the new site and we want them to be able to find answers to those first questions as quickly as possible. This has lots of benefits to regular contributors, such as not having to answer the same question over and over, but it also raises the level of conversation overall and makes it easier for people to come up to speed with the community.

So, finally we get to my question... what are those questions that everyone asks first? Please respond here with the questions you think are most often asked whether tedious or interesting. We'll use your answers and suggestions in structuring an individuals first interactions with the site.

Thanks!
Tom (and the other wierd wiki folks)

ps. if you want to know more about what a wiki is and how they work you may want to head to the wikipedia which is the definitive wiki on the web.

pps. by the way, anyone is welcome to respond to this, even newcomers and lurkers, are there any questions you wanted to ask, but been afraid to ask? Inquiring minds want to know!

jwarrend
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Joined: 08/03/2008
Re: Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

nosissies wrote:

3) Jeff writes really long posts/analyses ... j/k Jeff, you know we all appreciate your insights :-)

I've said it before -- if brevity is the soul of wit, I am of all men most witless!

In all seriousness, it's important to keep in mind that there are two types of "newbies" -- designers who are new to the site, and folks who are new to game design in general.

Among the latter especially, the #1 question is "How do I copyright my game?" New designers, in my experience, have (a) designed the best game ever, (b) have been encouraged by their family and friends to try to make money off of it, and (c) are paranoid in the extreme that someone will steal that idea. I myself fit all of these criteria when I started out. So I think that what a faq ought to do is to encourage foilks with this mindset to slow down, be a little patient, be a little more self-critical, and be a little less paranoid. We should encourage them to develop their craft and learn how to design great games, but to realize that this takes time -- no one is great out of the gate.

However, I think that some of this will be handled in a "new designers" section of the wiki, so if you're just looking for "faq" questions, I would probably add one like "How much is this going to cost? How much do I stand to gain?" People who are just looking to make a quick buck will realize it's too difficult to make money off of games, and will go away, while people who really care about learning to design great games will hopefully stick around and become part of the community.

Among experienced designers, the most common questions seem to deal with navigation problems. Many of them realize their questions may have been asked before, but don't know where to find them. For them, a clear description of how to find things on the site might be a useful FAQ entry. Perhaps also some information about where to post certain kinds of questions; ie, a guide to how to use the forums.

Also, some people come in looking for bits, or other kinds of "consumables". Pointing them in the direction of the "links" section might be a good faq item.

Finally, some people want others to playtest their games. Directing them as to how to go about soliciting help for things like this might also be a good idea.

Just some thoughts, delivered in my long and rambling style!

-Jeff

nosissies
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Joined: 07/26/2008
Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

Thanks Jeff, good thoughts, I think you've caught most of what I would have come up with. The trick is going to be making sure that folks can find answers to these "gateway" questions more easily than they can post the question in the forums.

Any others folks?

peace,
Tom

Zzzzz
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Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

How about these as a few possible items:

What are game mechanics?

How do I go about getting published?

Where can I find a _____________? (fill in the blank... publisher, printer, pawns, paper, parts, pegs oh and other words not starting with a "p" are also allowed!!... etc)

How do I start a board game business?

I plan to sell my games online, does selling games online work?

seo
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Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

Quote:
What are game mechanics?

Hey, I was going to suggest that one! ;-)

A few newbie qustions:

- What is a german style game? Same for other sorts of games, like RPG, Collector Set Cards, etc.

- What does 2d6 mean? (I know it sounds obvious once you know it, but the first time you read a mention of 1d12 or 1d20 it's not as obvious)

- What are the odds for each result with 1d6, 2d6, etc. Odds in general for repeated results in secuantial dice rolls, etc.

- Tutorials and suggested materials for home made game parts (counters, boards, cards, etc) for prototyping.

- Tutorials for Photoshop, Gimp, etc. Specially how to create textures and effects (I think those would be general enough to be worthy of inclussion)..

I'm sure a few more will come to my mind as soon as I'm away from the computer. ;-)

Seo

Johan
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Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

To 10 posts!

1) I have this great idea, can anybody help me to build a game around it?
a) Where do I start?
b) Is there a procedure/step by step list I can use?

2) How do I protect my game?
a) Can I get a patent?
b) What is the deferens between patent and copyright?
c) How do I copyright my game?
d) If I have copyrighted my game, is the game protected?

3) I have a design problem with…
a) The game takes to long
b) The game does never end
c) Run away leader/bash the leader/component inflation (and so on) (game traps)!

4) How do I get components to my game?
a) Where do I find components to my game?
b) How do I create cards, game boards, markers and so on?
c) Does anybody have a template for cards, markers…
d) Where can I find miniatures for my game?

5) I need to create a prototype
a) Can anybody help me to do that?
b) How many prototypes do I need?
c) Can I use a professional to do a prototype for me?
d) I have used a professional company (that belives in my game) that has created a prototype for $. How do I get my money back?

6) How do I test?
a) Where do I find testers for my game?
b) My friends don’t want to test my game. How do I make them to do that?
c) How do I protect my game from the testers (that they don’t steal the game/idea)?
d) How should I set up a test session?

7) Usage of graphics
a) Can anybody do the graphics for my game?
b) Here is my portfolio? Does anybody have work for me?
c) What graphic programs should I use?

8) Can I self published
a) Can anybody direct me to a ... in the ... area?
a) How many copies should I print?
c) How do I sell my game over internet?
d) What will it cost?
e) Do I need a company to sell the games?

9) Publish a game via a game company
a) Where do I find a game company that wants to publish my game?
b) How do I send in the game?
c) Is it worth the money to go via an agent?
d) I send in the game x month ago, but have not heard from them yet. Should I contact them?
e) What should they pay me for the game?

10) Can I re-use others Ideas?
a) I have made new graphics for game x. Can I publish/sell it?
b) I want to do a new module to game x. Is that possible?
c) I have remade game x with a new mechanism, a new theme and new graphics. Can I publish the game by my self of do I need there approval?

// Johan

english
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Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

Lot's of good stuff on this thread - I like it!

Suggestion 1:

seo wrote:
What are the odds for each result with 1d6, 2d6, etc. Odds in general for repeated results in secuantial dice rolls, etc.

I agree with this one - a section on odds for dice and card packs would be good. Some work would have to be done to work out some sort of parameters for this though.

I usually use my brothers brain to work out odds as I'm more of an 'organic/creative' thinker rather than 'logical number cruncher'.

So the nitty-gritty of odds and chances of particular things happening would be very useful.

Suggestion 2:

A 'project manager' workflow chart. This is something I've been thinking about a lot recently. Why don't we create some form of workflow chart (it would be pretty big) which shows all the milestones and gateways that need to be met/gone through to get a game from 'idea' all the way to 'publication'.

This could cross reference to the wiki for the details if needs be.

c

PS - Johan's list is a great one too!

ensor
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Joined: 08/23/2008
Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

Good list! One question I'd add is "Where can I take a course in game design?" or "Where can I read more about game design?"

Besides the archives here, you can then point them to a list of published books, like Game Inventor's Handbook, Rules of Play, etc, that have been discussed here before, and also to the Games Journal archives (lots of reading material there), and the Strategic Insight articles by Shannon Appelcline ( He outlines the basics of trading, majority control, auction, bluffing, etc. at http://www.skotos.net/articles/TTnT.shtml )

Anonymous
newbie questions

hello all,
I am one of those newbies (this is my first post and I am trying to figure out how to design my first game). Firstly, great ideas on the wiki. My most pressing questions have to do with prototyping. How do I actually make gutters to fold the board. Where do I find the right materials at a decent price, etc. I realize that these questions have probably been answered many times before and I am quite ignorant about the first things in regards to board game design, but I gotta start somewhere. (right?) Anyhow, I am very thankful for what this community is doing.

WolfSaint

Anonymous
Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

Im a newbie too. Very pleased to find the site, thanks for putting it together.

Something I am having trouble with is the terminology that is used here.

"CCG and TCG whats the diff?" etc. I have been away from manual gaming for many years, spending time with PC games instead.

I am working up to posting about my game concept but I am a bit worried about using the proper terms. Maybe this would be a good thing to include in a wiki for this forum.

C.

phpbbadmin
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Joined: 04/23/2013
Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

Captain_Black wrote:
Im a newbie too. Very pleased to find the site, thanks for putting it together.

Something I am having trouble with is the terminology that is used here.

"CCG and TCG whats the diff?" etc. I have been away from manual gaming for many years, spending time with PC games instead.

I am working up to posting about my game concept but I am a bit worried about using the proper terms. Maybe this would be a good thing to include in a wiki for this forum.

C.

Depends upon the context really.

TCG means trading card game. A game where you're supposed to buy and trade cards. It implies an inherent customization mechanic.

CCG can means customizable card game. In that respect it can be a game like Blue Moon, where you customize your decks but you don't necessarily have cards with different rarities . In other words, when you buy expansions, you get all the cards. You don't have to try your luck with booster packs.

CCG can also mean collectible card game, which is pretty much the same as a trading card game. Magic is the the most famous of course. Usually you have to spend a lot of $ to stay competitive.

WIth that being said, I've seen all three terms thrown around synonymously, so it depends entirely upon the context of how the person is using it.

HTH,
Darke

Zzzzz
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Re: newbie questions

WolfSaint wrote:
hello all,
I am one of those newbies (this is my first post and I am trying to figure out how to design my first game). Firstly, great ideas on the wiki. My most pressing questions have to do with prototyping. How do I actually make gutters to fold the board. Where do I find the right materials at a decent price, etc. I realize that these questions have probably been answered many times before and I am quite ignorant about the first things in regards to board game design, but I gotta start somewhere. (right?) Anyhow, I am very thankful for what this community is doing.

WolfSaint

First off, welcome. Secondly try this previously thread about making game boards, a member here SiskNY wrote up a quick how-to in this thread (which has already been added to the wiki :):

http://bgdf.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=2086&highlight=simple+folding+game+board

Shrike
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Joined: 08/26/2010
Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

So the wiki is up? If so, can someone help a blind guy out and point me in the right direction, I don't see it for some reason.

Zzzzz
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Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

Shrike wrote:
So the wiki is up? If so, can someone help a blind guy out and point me in the right direction, I don't see it for some reason.

It is not up for public use at this time, not sure how members keep finding it, but no one should use it yet. Until the admins have a chance to polish and complete the inprogress work on the wiki. And of course, Darkehorse decidedsto make it available to all :)

Sorry if this is a bummer, but good things come to those who wait! ;)

Shrike
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Joined: 08/26/2010
Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

Well there you have it then. Thanks for the info, makes me feel better that it's hidden than thinking I just couldn't find it on the open site. I mean it's bad enough that the voices won't quiet down, ...now if I started to not see things that were really there....? =)

larienna
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Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

there is 2 things I that could be cool to be add:

1- Material creation, with picture it is even better. Remember somebody( don't know its name) teach us how to build a cardboard box and other people posted new box model. We have to find this information on the wiki. Info to build prototypes too with various material or technique that could be used.

2- Game theory : OK, we are not all mathematicians, but sometime we go in the thorics (or even phtlosophy) of the game. For example some body post "Can multiplayer game be non-competitive" and we dug into the essence of a game to declare that a game with no competition is not a game. Or, the recent post about different type of "interaction" between players. etc. This can allow people to solve common bugs in their game design.

Anonymous
Wiki Fodder: Top ten first questions

Interesting ideas popping up.Some links to other interesting websites & articles culd be given.Information on the history of board games,their classification(types) etc can also be given.
Developing trends,future scopes of board games could also be added,kind of helps designers know the latest trends in the industry.I am located at India & it helps designers like us know whts actually happening in the otherside of the globe.

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