What to Expect from This Blog
Today, I wanted to take a moment to highlight what will be featured in this blog as the weeks progress.
A lot of the entries will be written by me (Justin), and they will reflect on what I learned about tabletop game development in 9 years with FFG/Z-Man Games. My experience is in content and narrative development, a handful of direct design projects, and a large amount of project management and administration. Sam and Todd will also share insight on occasion: Sam with his thoughts on visual design, creative direction, and user interface, and Todd with deep dives into mechanical interactions, player psychology/incentives, and risk management.
It’s worth noting that we don’t have all of the answers about how to make high-quality, well-polished, fun, and critically/commercially successful games. Still, we think we’ve learned a thing or two worth sharing about the following:
Development Diaries: Regarding the creation of Leviathan Wilds, the design and development choices, and some of the decision points and challenges along the way.
Narrative Design: Storytelling in tabletop gaming is a strange and challenging endeavor, lacking a lot of the traditional tools of other media. This subject will be general musings and recommendations for best practices.
Visual Design and User Interface: How to use visual aspects of a project to elevate the experience, and how to ensure the learning and playing the game can be as approachable as possible.
Creative Professionalism: Passion for creative work is a wonderful thing, but it can be challenging to channel that productively every day (while avoiding burnout). Additional discussion will be focused on the process of creating fun: not for ourselves (necessarily) but for our intended audience.
Project/Risk Management: A little less fun and exciting than design, but critical to master. Understanding where advantages and disadvantages lie in a project can prepare you to make good decisions. Often it can be the difference between finishing and not finishing the project, or whether or not that project meets your metrics for success.
Please share in the comments if there are any subjects you’d like us to tackle. Next week we’ll start by discussing the foundational aspect of project management: the vision. Thanks for reading!
