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Greetings fellow like-minded folks

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Tue, 09/13/2016 - 05:41
Games Design Re...
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My name is Tony Bushell.

I am in my mid 50s and when I was much younger (14 to 17 years old), I spent a lot of time designing games (mainly board games) with a close friend. We had great fun and enjoyment creating games like 'Golden Gladiators', 4 dimensional Chess (using the same squares as the real board but arranged 4 x 4 x 4) and even Rho(which we created using napkin rings and napkins). We also created our own version of Dungeons & Dragons RPG before it was released in the UK, based on a promo advertisment we got hold of.

I am based in the UK and in my spare time love to be creative. I have recently learned how to produce modern music (EDM, Future House, Drum & Bass and some Dubstep) using the name Parralax (see Soundcloud same pic as my avatar here), tried some writing (sci-fi novel but found it too hard), love pencil drawing and painting.

In my mid-life I want to rekindle the spark of boardgame design and have emersed myself in Rahdo youtube vids to catch up with the current boardgame scene. I have recently purchased Pandemic, Forbidden Desert, Roll for the Galaxy and Paperback and I am having great fun playing them with my 26 and 24 year old sons.

I have joined BGDF to acquire some knowledge and hopefully make a few friends and who knows, maybe create some cool boardgames.

I would welcome pointing in the right direction for lists of good board game design books to help give me a firm grounding/foundation.

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Tue, 09/13/2016 - 06:18
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polyobsessive
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Welcome!

Welcome from a fellow UKian!

Do you have any boardgame projects on the go yet?

As far as boardgame design books, it kinda depends on what style of writing you like. Possibly a good starting point would be the Kobold Guide to Board Game Design, which is an excellent collection of essays examining the field from many different perspectives.

Incidentally, several cities around the UK have Playtest UK meetups, where game designers get together and play each others' prototypes. Some very experienced designers attend these meetings, and I have learnt a lot about the design and development process from the few events I have managed to get to. You would be very welcome even without your own game to play (actually, possibly even more welcome). Check out http://playtest.co.uk/ if you are interested.

Good luck with your projects,
Rob

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Tue, 09/13/2016 - 07:20
#2
Games Design Re...
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Re: Welcome!

Thanks polyobsessive for the warm welcome.

Only very vague pre-embryonic ideas for board games at the moment, more in the knowledge acquisition and understanding today's scene mode.

Yep, I thought the Kobold book looked interesting. Might take the plunge and buy it.

Thanks for the Playtest UK link, will try to make one although only a few are scheduled for the rest of this year.

May all your projects be amazingly enjoyable and successful.

Tony

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Tue, 09/13/2016 - 07:43
#3
let-off studios
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Welcome to BGDF!

Welcome to BGDF, Tony. :D

I'm a fan of Pandemic and especially Forbidden Desert. I think of the latter as the best distillation of the mechanics that designer has come up with so far, and I always recommend that one above his others to newcomers. Forbidden Island (perhaps the second in his unofficial "series") seems a lot more accessible to newcomers.

As for literature, you may be able to find a copy of Reiner Knizia's Dice Games Properly Explained. In it, there are dozens of examples of games that use ordinary six-sided dice and some tokens. The best part of the book is that he explains probability in a straightforward manner, and describes various types of games and their relationship to luck and interesting decisions (which happens to be a key phrase involved in game design these days).

Another book I can recommend is A Theory of Fun by Raph Koster. He discusses the combination of firm rules, discovery, "figuring out" a game, and the process of approach players have at "winning" games. It's an enlightening, easy read.

Designing games can be a game in itself. More of a puzzle, really. But above all it can be a great hobby. Welcome back. :)

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Tue, 09/13/2016 - 08:10
#4
Games Design Re...
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Re: Welcome to BGDF!

Hi let-off studios,

Glad to hear you like Matt Leacock's games. He employs an excellent set of game mechanisms to increase the pressure in a very controlled and precise way in Pandemic and Forbidden Desert.

Many, many thanks for the book recommendations. Both welcome responses have given me exactly what I was looking for.

Wishing you every success and enjoyment in your board game ventures.

Tony

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