4 amazing (and useful) examples of board game design theory | Geoff Engelstein

Comments · 60

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  @natew.7951 · 2 years ago

  Geoff is the GOAT of design theory.  Every time I formulate my thoughts about something to do with game design,  I find an article or video or podcast of Geoff saying it already in a much better way.

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  @DeyaViews · 2 years ago (edited)

  IT&apos;S YOU! I listened to so much of the Board Game Design Lab podcast so much during my last job, which ended in autumn 2022. I missed it and didn&apos;t notice it was back! This just popped up on my suggestions after watching a video on writing webtoons... and I was like... &quot;wait, I recognize that man&apos;s voice...&quot;<br><br>Glad to see you back at it! Guess I&apos;ve got a lot to catch up on. (:<br><br>The podcast actually got me to get Geoff Engelstein&apos;s book (Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design: An Encyclopedia of Mechanisms). I contacted him to ask him a question about it and found out early that there was gonna be a 2nd edition. The approachability of board game designers is a big reason for why I continue to feel inspired in designing myself.

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  @etienned.840 · 2 years ago

  His book on boardgame mechanics is awesome!

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  @RglMrn · 2 years ago

  Absolutely amazing talk. Always a treat to hear Geoff&apos;s insights.

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  @KnomDeGuerre · 4 weeks ago

  When I was a tot, my big brother would pre-load the Candyland deck so that I would only move one square at a time, he would land on every special square one after the other

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  @raymk · 2 years ago

  Hearing some random stories that teach you great game design lessons is always entertaining and insightful!:face-red-heart-shape:

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  @christianamey3547 · 2 years ago

  The Elam ending is fantastic. It is used in &quot;The Basketball Tournament&quot; every summer and has led to some exciting finishes.

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  @zachwhaley208 · 1 year ago (edited)

  On the topic of low probability events. I think think its really cool that Jeff thinks about it that way. I would take his initial thought and come up with a different conclusion, like it seems BGDL does. If something super improbable will definitely happen to a small number of people, that&apos;s an epic event for them. So what if it causes them to lose the game. They will never forget that experience. Also, we need to give people more credit. They might not understand the math behind it, but they instinctively know that if they get 12 exploding dice in a row that it is hilarious and unlikely. So as they are rolling those dice, if they have any humor at all, would understand its not a bad game or even a bad experience- its an epic experience of luck. Then, you get more buzz from an experience like that. I would not use math as a way to design out these crazy experiences- let them experience it! I&apos;m more with BGDL on this- win or lose, give me the weird story.

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  @TaytertotsUM · 1 year ago

  Wow, I am sitting here listening to this while working on my own game design. I just came home to unwind from working at an orphanage here in the Bolivian back country. Very relatable.

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  @andrewlehman1035 · 2 years ago

  I think this is one of the best episodes

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  @WilliamAugustusGriffinSr · 2 years ago

  Wow, such engaging content: loss aversion, sports references, the exploding dice example at <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jn38jGiEdKc&amp;t=4296">1:11:36</a>, and more! I was blown away by the insights and concepts in this video! A designer wanted to mitigate a 1/200,000 chance that an auto loss event/feel bad moment happened in their game. Just simmer on that. How many broken edge cases (positive or negative) do we let slide in our own designs? Do you just wave it off and say, &nbsp;&quot;the odds of that is probably 1 in a million.&quot; Or do you calculate the true odds and prevent even the possibility of a negative first play experience for the player. 😯

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  @nickcovington8005 · 1 year ago

  Incredible video! So glad the algorithm connects me to your channel. I&apos;m looking forward to diving in!

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