When I first started Mr Boss's Design Lair, I added the phrase "and other nonsense" just in case. Well, it's time for some other nonsense! Still game related of course!
(not my shelf... mine is much bigger!)
Over the past year I've rekindled my love of tabletop games. Tabletop games is the new term for board and card games. There's something great about tabletop games - their replayability, the elegant systems, the tactility, the toy-like bits, the wide variety of themes and a chance to interact with human beings - that sets them apart from video games.
(It's just like a video game, but your cat can knock it over!)
I remember going into dusty game stores filled with Grognards (Gamers that look like the guys from Duck Dynasty) to try to find a board game that wasn't about World War 2. Or the Civil War. Or the Napoleonic Wars. Of the Crimean Wars. Or the Roman Empire. Usually I was out of luck. But nowadays we are in a golden age of tabletop gaming! They are so easy to find (just go to Barnes and Noble or Target or Toys R Us!) and there is something that appeals to just about everyone.
(For the record, I love games with miniatures, modular boards and dice rolling)
I've always loved playing tabletop games and own quite a few. Ever since I was a kid, I always liked designing them. They're probably part of what led me to become a video game designer. You can learn a lot about making games by making tabletop games.
That's why this year I have issued myself a challenge - to design a tabletop game a month over the year.
I plan on detailing the process of making a board game and publishing the results right here for you to play! My criteria is this:
1) The game can be of any theme
2) The game can be of any genre - from cards to miniatures - from Ameritrash to Euro
3) The game must reach alpha - it must be a completely playable game with very few (if any) bugs
4) The game can be playtest able - most of them will be available as free "print and play" games at this website - or they will be playable by downloading the rules and using stand-in pieces from other games
And if you haven't dipped your toe into tabletop gaming yet, I'll be posting some reviews of some my all-time favorites over the following year.
I'm really looking forward to this! I hope you check back soon in for some tabletop games!