@unpub.org keynote by @connievdc.bsky.social on soft skills in game design -- live thread. (Connie is a pillar of the DMV ♦️🎲 design community)

Tips for designing a board game for a 24-hour game jam from people who’ve done it

Day two is upon us! unpub.org/app

Player elimination can take a few forms. Here’s a look at “soft” player elimination: what it is, what it’s like for players, and how some games address it

Oops this panel about building local game economies / ecologies is actually 3-4 not 4-5 3️⃣🕒🥉 😅 Oops

The word for the March / April 2026 Bi-Monthly 24 Hour Design Challenge on BoardGameGeek is "classic"

🎲✂️ Tonight at 9PM EST (UTC-5), @senfoonglim.bsky.social and Hafiz chat with Chris Stone (stoneagedistractions.com) about the overall positivity of the game design community and how to foster yours locally. Come join in the chat youtube.com/MeepleSyrup or facebook.com/MeepleSyrup!

It's #CraftWednesday! Do you have a game-related crafting project in progress? It could be a prototype, print and play, upgrading the components of a favourite game, making an accessory or even something larger like a table or games room. Share a picture and join in! Please RP!

Update on Cardboard Edison Award winner Roux Mates!

Only one day until #Unpub! Two of our most popular seminars are back this year. First, we’ll dive into prepress in Prepping Your Files for Production. Then on Friday, our famous Crash Course in Game Manufacturing. Bring your questions. We’d love to see you there!

I'm participating as a part of the @tga.bsky.social Future of Games Summit panel for freelancing this Saturday! What are some questions you would ask a panel of freelancers working in the tabletop game industry? We've got a writer, 3D sculptor, illustrator, graphic designer, and a game designer!

Good people headed to the @unpub.org Festival this weekend, my Saturday is full but I've still got plenty of time available to schedule a playtest of your game and give you a consultation on a solo mode if needed. I just ask for a donation of any size to dravetfoundation.org. #GameDesign #BoardGames

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.

Great playtesting event last evening at Walkthrough Collaborative Centre. Reminder that I'll be running the same event at Pe Metawe on March 21st, from 1:30-4pm. Please RSVP if you'd like to join, even if you attended the first one. tinyurl.com/2rzvauam @pemetawe.bsky.social

I'll be doing a panel on pitching your game designs to publishers this Thursday. Come check it out if you're going to Unpub!

It’s almost time for @unpub.org Festival, and we’ll be there! If you’d like to set up an appointment to meet with one of our Panda Project Managers, you can book a time on our calendar here: unpub.pandagm.com/14

- Dissect the games you play/see. Why does it work? How would you improve it? (Warning: It’s very hard to turn it off) - Keep an eye on what games are currently popular. - Learn about older games and boardgames. - Make prototypes. - Participate in game jams. - 𝗗𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀!

Unpub! We'll have various prototypes, but our focus this year will be: 🦂 Scorplings, our quick-reaction card-slapping game 🦩 TwentyONEderland, our Wonderland-themed game of 21 Table: Saturday 230PM-630PM unpub.softr.app/festival-202...

Most commonly effective way to tap broad intuition is to reference games (particularly folk games or sports) and primal play patterns Which is why you see so many pitches like “scrabble but X / Taboo but Y, chess but Z” Also why every playful TikTok trend ever is coming to Target shelves

The first finalist for the 2026 Cardboard Edison Award has arrived: Hatchlings by Alan Leduc! (Pretty fast for a game about turtles…) Details at cardboardedison.com/award

166 games in the @unpub.org Game Gallery so far. unpub.softr.app/festival-202... What are you excited to play?

Today's 15s Board Game Design 🎲 Tip for the Day continues our discussion on narrative design with "Who are you?": youtube.com/shorts/c34FN... #boardgame #tabletopgames #gamedesign #lgbtq #gamepublisher #boardgamedesign #narrativedesign

Unpub! We'll have various prototypes, but our focus this year will be: 🦂 Scorplings, our quick-reaction card-slapping game 🦩 TwentyONEderland, our Wonderland-themed game of 21 Table: Saturday 230PM-630PM unpub.softr.app/festival-202...

How I'm going to ask for feedback going forward, instead of, "Whatdja think?" #boardgames 🎲✂️

How randomness adds value to games

I’m scrolling through the Unpub 🎲 ✂️ web app like “I’ll try this one 🛒, and this one 🛒, and holy yes that one too 🛒”. Now to build out my calendar 🛍️

Making board games about the worst parts of human history—how should game designers tackle difficult historical subjects?

This is next week at @arworkshop.bsky.social in Edinburgh. I'll give you my perspective on how to contact media types like myself that I hope will help you get your game in front of the right people. luma.com/xujrxzaq

It's #CraftWednesday! Do you have a game-related crafting project in progress? It could be a prototype, print and play, upgrading the components of a favourite game, making an accessory or even something larger like a table or games room. Share a picture and join in! Please RP!

The Origins Awards, one of board gaming’s longest-running prizes voted on by industry professionals, has unveiled its latest slate of 120 nominees – and come under fire for failing to mention any of the games’ designers for the third year in a row: boardgamewire.com/index.php/20...

🎲✂️ Tonight at 9PM EST (UTC-5), @senfoonglim.bsky.social and Hafiz chat with @scorelandergames.bsky.social about designing sport-specific board and card games. Come join in the chat youtube.com/MeepleSyrup or facebook.com/MeepleSyrup!

How designing mass-market games is different from designing hobby games, via @ericlang.bsky.social @justingary.bsky.social

Reviewers: if something doesn't seem right about a game, please take a moment to re-read the rules or even reach out to the publisher or designer for clarification before publishing a review. That extra step can save heartache and damaged reputation on both sides.

Game Market West is back! I'm proud to announce the tabletop games made by indie designers for the upcoming GMW Spring 2026, on March 22 at San Jose Guildhouse, are now available: www.gamemarketwest.com/spring-2026-... #boardgamesky

Registration for the Playtest Zone at the UK Games Expo 2026 is now open, via @playtestuk.bsky.social

Want to design a solo mode for a published game that doesn’t have one? Submissions for the 2026 Solomode Contest on BoardGameGeek are open through May 15. Winners may receive GeekGold.

Today's 35s Board game design 🎲 tip for the Day wraps up the self-publishing discussion and introduces March's topic: youtube.com/shorts/7ICZ8... #boardgame #boardgamedesign #tabletopgames #lgbtq #gamepublisher

Can you design a game that uses a standard deck of playing cards plus 18 custom cards? Submissions for the 2026 Deck Hand Game Design Contest are open through May 1.

The only prescriptive advice I’ll give young designers: Make games only you could make. Don’t ask me what I mean by that, cos you either already know - or you’ll figure it out.

We've got a fantastic slate of tabletop events at GDC this year. Here's a unique one - Play with Designers. We've got an all-star lineup of designers (and then me) each running 1-2 tables of their games, explaining their design decisions during play. schedule.gdconf.com/session/play...

5 tips for pitching your board game to publishers—and step-by-step instructions for 10 of them

To be a game designer is to receive a lot of ”no”. Make sure to celebrate your ”yes”! Just had a bunch of no sent my way. I try to remember the positive outcomes and just rework the rejected games that I still like! ❤️ 🎲✂️

Fun is not a monolith. You may not know exactly what kind of fun your game wants to be when you come up with it but it’s critical to understand the intended experience before you pitch it.

I started trying to explain how to outline a rulebook, but the metaphor ran away from me.

Richard Garfield's been explaining how luck & skill are not opposites for well over a decade, but I still encounter designers & players who haven't internalized this lesson. I suspect it's the number one reason people tend to underrate the amount of strategy in lighter games.

Reboxing: how one publisher thinks about the experience of putting the game back into the box when designing the product

In case you missed it, the finalists for this year’s Cardboard Edison Award are out!

Today's 15s Board Game Design 🎲 Tip for the Day continues our self-publishing discussion with the most valuable resource and who should do what: youtube.com/shorts/kucpL... #boardgame #boardgamedesign #tabletopgames #lgbtq #gamepublisher #gamedesign

In case you missed it, the finalists for this year’s Cardboard Edison Award are out!

🎲✂️ Tonight at 9PM EST (UTC-5), @senfoonglim.bsky.social and Hafiz chat with @hotbananagame.bsky.social about culture and authenticity in boardgame design. Come join in the chat youtube.com/MeepleSyrup or facebook.com/MeepleSyrup!