There's tons of tabletop game design advice out there now. Some is valuable. Much of it is well intentioned but unhelpful "best practices" served as gospel. The most recent video from @beyondsolitaire.bsky.social feels vital in a way this space rarely sees. www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRFY...

Another Hawk & Dove update went out today via our newsletter! Progress on Painkillers and announcing our attendance at several conventions across the EU this fall. As always, if you're interested in what we're up to, please share and subscribe! www.hawkanddovegames.com

These kinds of reviews make me very happy : ) And if you’re into this sort of thing as well, make sure to follow the KS! www.kickstarter.com/projects/alw...

One of our favorite things about Color Jam is seeing how people build a story around their coloring choices. Due to the game's puzzle, we stylized some spaces to be interpreted in different ways. In the photos below, the spaces in the middle right either be a hot air balloon or a part of a cactus!

I'm so excited that the ColorJam Kickstarter page is LIVE! 🖍️ The goal is simple: "Color a nice picture." 🧩 The puzzle is elegant: satisfying for gamers, easy enough for kids. 🤔 But the experience is deep: What, really, is a "nice picture?" I would love if you followed along to learn more! 🩷💚🤎🩵💜💛

Make your next work of art in Color Jam, a cozy, print-and-puzzle coloring game launching on Kickstarter later this year. Grab your favorite crayons and play solo or with friends. Follow along here for when the project goes live: www.kickstarter.com/projects/lun... The night is for creativity. 🖍️

Happy pride youtu.be/uAkNYJsL3wA

Oh hey, I was on a board game podcast talking about my one of my games about community resilience and collective action. Incredibly exciting to talk about two of my favorite things!

Yes, it was an incredible honor to be featured on the @boardgamegeek.com Podcast, but it was even more fun just to chat with my friend @panda8ngel.bsky.social about some of my favorite food-themed games and color vision accessibility! Check it out here: boardgamegeek.com/blog/12153/b...

You know, when you think about it, a designer had to playtest Jumanji.

Yes! It genuinely has never been easier to playtest your game if you're willing to engage in this space on Discord. You can build your own network too, but this is always available and has more peer-to-peer playtesting than any space on the internet.

BGG Podcast - Episode 95: Emily Vincent - Usability & UI Design in Board Games, 10+ Hidden Small Box Gems, Libraries, and cats calling in the Spring boardgamegeek.com/blog/12153/b...

Our latest Dialogue at Dusk is now on Youtube! We chat with thelast19digitsofpi about his game Ornithocracy, and how unranked games are particularly powerful for games of negotiation and diplomacy. www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpGK...

I just sent out our first newsletter to subscribers! The biggest piece of news is announcing our first game - Painkillers, one of my designs. I am immensely proud of this game and how far it has come since its inception. Here's a mini thread on the game as it is now.

I heard y'all are interested in sites that list cool tabletop game designers? How about one made by humans which features local indie designers making 100% human-made games?? www.designedinthedmv.org/designers.html

Learn about my newest game design: open.substack.com/pub/mandasha...

New episode of Multiple Win Conditions! This time I’m chatting about how often you get told to “just stick to game design” if you ever mention self-publishing and how I don’t think the distinction is quite so clear. youtu.be/Tdzmkc4qQ7w?...

On May 12th at 3pm est, we'll chat with thelast19digitsofpi about his diplomacy game Ornithocracy, and how unranked games are particularly well suited for games of negotiation. discord.gg/d4nMFq3e?eve...

We are accepting submissions for this year's Midnight Market, an annual event where we host a curated library of small-print run games available for purchase for a limited time. If you would like to submit your game, please click here: forms.gle/tJcB22LQe4aM... The night is for indie games. 🌙

IT'S HERE! Order Keep the Faith, @gregisonthego.bsky.social's storytelling game about a religion in transition with art by @goblinprincete.bsky.social and @momatoes.com. Available at cmichpress.com and some retailers. Ask your local game store! #keepthefaithgame #KTFShareTheLore

Give us a listen!

This conversation with Liz was, as always, a delight!

New Multiple Win Conditions! Today I’m talking about “Find the Fun”. One of the most common bits of advice I got as a new designer youtu.be/vPTe9PlGAP8?...

We are really excited about publishing Color Jam, designed by @stickydoodler.bsky.social and Joe Kell. It's a cozy, print-and-puzzle coloring game for one or for you and some friends. It's perfect for lazy summer evenings or for when you want a whisper of strategy in your coloring. 🏖️🖍️

Just a reminder that The Bonsai Diary print-and-play is 50% off to celebrate its Origins Award nomination. That's a whopping $2.50 off! (And if you truly can't afford it, there are still 27 free community copies available of the ashcan/prototype) stickydoodler.itch.io/the-bonsai-d...

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about how so much game design advice that’s available is really just business/product advice. It’s got a lot of survivorship bias and as a result, it’s homogenising and dissuading a lot of what’s possible. So…I’m making a little vlog series about it!

I haven't done nearly as much game design work recently, because I have been working on becoming a game publisher! Starting with a co-design of mine that I really believe in, but hoping to move beyond that if it goes well 😀 Please come along on this journey with me - we all need good diversions!

Unpub was a great experience! I’m never more creatively invigorated than after a convention full of games, especially one with lots of playtesting new, cool ideas. Unfortunately, I’m also never more exhausted snd unable to think. Here’s a short thread about some of the cool stuff I got to see!

If you love games, come to Unpub, even if you don't design games yourself. I get so much joy from playtesting events from seeing the essence of a game before it's coated in a glossy finish. If, like me, you believe games are art, playing prototypes lets you see the fingerprint of the artist.

Unpub is this weekend! We're exciting to play your games and share some of ours with you. Our publishing studio focuses on games where any number of players can win or lose OR games where there are no winers and losers, just various outcomes players reach. Here's what we're bringing:

A while back, I posted about my move to the Netherlands later this year. As part of that move, my family is also venturing into the world of tabletop game publishing through Hawk and Dove. I'd be honored if you would check us out and follow along on our journey!

In what ways can board games improve society? Xoe talks with @gregisonthego.bsky.social about the social lessons games can teach us and how they can start important conversations, often through the lens of his design Keep the Faith, and his codesign Bloc by Bloc! youtu.be/xDzYgaBJ11Y

Tonight at 9pm EST, @xoe.gay will be having a chat with @gregisonthego.bsky.social about his design Keeping the Faith, as well as encouraging social change through game design! You can come join the chat and ask us questions over on discord: discord.gg/7SQXuB4M?eve...

AEG would not exist without the creativity and hard work of designers.

Stuff like this downplays and ignores the significant reality of what it takes to design a game. It's not just making ideas, but testing them, refining them, demonstrating them, proving them, iterating on them, and doing it all over and over and over again to push forward the vision you made.

If you're in the Los Angeles area, Xoe is going to be repping Lunarpunk Games at Little Tokyo's Zinefest at table E8! Going to be selling Vibes and Conviction and stuff there! It's from 9am to 4pm! www.ltzinefest.org

I'm quite proud to have had to order a second print run of The Book of Wandering. Back in stock, you can grab yours today! Imagine a handwritten letter from twenty or more like-minded individuals that you've never met. #journaling #traveling #magical

Plenty of well loved, competitive, tabletop games focus on and make the argument for achieving status above others (winning), taking resources (cards, tokens, etc), impeding others through competition, etc. Even in the mechanics, board games are political. We gotta stop pretending they're not.

Rulebooks are often read out loud. This sounds obvious but make sure when writing yours you put all the stuff you actually want to be heard in the main text that *looks* like it should be read. Otherwise, the people not reading the rulebook (and probably the reader) are going to skip it.

Given the history of transphobic takes and enthusiastic embrace of AI generated illustrations, it's enormously disappointing to see @boardgamegeek.com celebrate and reward the work of FryxGames in their Hall of Fame.

It can be tricky balancing a multivictor game that rides the line between cooperative and competitive. Come listen to us chat with @zesock.bsky.social about the lessons he learned balancing his game Thieve's Dilemma for both playstyles. youtu.be/sjFR6lWrGWc

What if I'm the Devil? just arrived! Very excited to check this out. It was released during the @lunarpunk.games Midnight Market!

There's no best way to playtest or make your game. Just many different ways that offer up many different results and insights for you to explore and make decisions from.

Happy to see this starting to take shape!

Pyrotechnics by TTGDA member @backwardscapgames.bsky.social is a 2 player head-to-head card game that's quick and easy with just the right spark of strategy. It's currently available for pre-sale with delivery expected before the end of January 2026! www.seahorseandhummingbird.com/shop/pyrotec...

It’s time! SUBMISSIONS FOR THE 2026 CARDBOARD EDISON AWARD ARE OPEN! Board game designers, show us what you’ve been working on! Deadline is January 31: cardboardedison.com/award

Beastieball might be the best monster collector/fighter styled game I've played (think Pokemon + Volleyball).

Apparently there's a new security exploit with TTS that allows users to join non-private sessions, mess with your mod, and run scripts that cause your computer to crash. Once again. Stop using the terrible board game software. The pile of reasons is a mountain at this point.

If you're stuck on a game design problem because stuff isn't working the way you want, make sure you have a solid thesis for your game. Your thesis is the central thing you want your game to say/prove/do. Then start seeing what design decisions align with your thesis vs work against it.

Me using a gradient literally every time: "Graphic design is my passion."