Board Game Business Podcast
by Richard New, Brian Henk, Jeremy Commandeur
On The Board Game Business Podcast, we discuss the business side of the tabletop gaming industry. We don't review games or tell you which ones we like, but instead focus on how to price, distribute, design, develop, and market your game. Richard New hosts and sits alongside Jeremy Commandeur, a game designer, and Brian Henk, a game designer and publisher with Overworld Games.
Episodes
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Going Full Time as a Game Developer with John Brieger - Ep. 92
John Brieger talks about some of the biggest mistakes he's made during the development process so we can all learn from them. References: Brieger Creative - https://www.briegercreative.com/ John Brieger on Twitter - https://twitter.com/DasBrieger
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Going Full Time as a Game Developer with John Brieger - Ep. 91
Learn why your game needs development help with professional developer, John Brieger. References: Brieger Creative - https://www.briegercreative.com/ John Brieger on Twitter - https://twitter.com/DasBrieger
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Top 5 Rough Edges on a Kickstarter Game - Ep. 90
We discuss the top 5 most common rough edges on a Kickstarter game so you can avoid them on yours! Dustin Schwartz Rules Editing: https://twitter.com/dustinbschwartz The Game Crafter Sanity Test: https://help.thegamecrafter.com/article/145-sanity-tests
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Top 5 Places to Find Prototype Art - Ep. 89
In this episode, we re-visit our list of top places to find art for your prototype. Links: The Noun Project: http://www.thenounproject.com Nasa: https://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/index.html National Gallery of Art: https://www.nga.gov/collection/collection-search.html Public Domain...
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Top 5 Predicted Impacts of COVID-19 on the Board Game Industry - Ep. 88
Jeremy and Brian discuss how we think the board game industry will be impacted by COVID-19. This was recorded in early April of 2020. Resources: Good Cop Bad Cop Online - https://gcbc.arantius.com/ Tabletopia - https://tabletopia.com/ Tabletop Simulator - https://www.tabletopsimulator.com/ Board...
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Top 5 Time Savers for Game Designers - Ep. 87
In this episode, we are going to cover a bunch of tips for you game designers to SAVE YOU TIME. Resources Mentioned Google Drive - https://docs.google.com Dropbox - https://www.dropbox.com Card Creatr - https://cardcreatr.sffc.xyz/ Component.Studio - https://component.studio/ Paperize -...
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Top 5 Tips for Advertising Your Board Game - Ep. 86
We give you our top 5 tips for advertising your board game and how to learn which sources are best for you and your game. This is a little more focused on ads for a Kickstarter campaign, but is applicable to any type of advertising for a board game. References: Bitly Link Shortener -...
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Mailbag on US Manufacturing, Recovering from Disaster, and Component Cost Considerations - Ep. 85
Today we dig into the Patreon mailbag and answer these questions: How do you recover from being punched in the gut? What is a unique enough selling point for a game? What are some component cost considerations to take when manufacturing your game? Should I fulfill my Kickstarter campaign myself?…
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Top 5 Biggest Changes in the Board Game Industry in the Last 5 Years - Ep. 84
How has the board game industry changed in the last 5 years? Brian co-founded Overworld Games about 6 years before this was recorded so it's also a view of how things have changed between when he started publishing games and now. Here is the top 5 list: 5) More games in big box retailers 4) It's...
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Top 5 Ways to Deal with Scope Creep - Ep. 83
Patron Andrew van Ingen suggested this episode on how to deal with scope creep. Here's the list we go through! 5. If some people don't hate it, you are doing it wrong. 4. Don't let experiments linger. 3. Determine the scale, audience (learning time), price point and play time of your game. 2.…
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Top 5 Ways to Build a Crowd for Your Game - Ep. 82
When you're trying to build up a crowd for your game before Kickstarter or to build your resume for selling your game to a publisher, there are a lot of places to put your time and money, but some are better than others. 5. Create a Facebook page or group 4. Build/support your local gaming...
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Top 5 Tips for Managing Your Day Job and Hobby Board Game Business - Ep. 81
Jeremy and Brian give some tips for how you can better manage your day job and hobby board game business. Resources: Multideck - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/multideck/id1193399487?mt=12 Compononent.Studio - https://component.studio/ Paperize - https://beta.editor.paperize.io/#/ Asana -...
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Top 5 Things That Are Probably Wrong with Your Game Pitch - Ep. 80
Jeremy and Brian cover the top 5 things that are most commonly wrong with a pitch a game designer gives to a publisher. If you're a designer, you'll probably find something in here that you can use to improve your next pitch.
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Signs It Is Time to Give up on a Design - Ep. 79
When you've been working on a design for a while and you're not sure if there's enough there to keep going with it, we have some signs that it might be time to give up on it. If you want a spoiler, the signs are: 5) No market opportunity 4) Design colleagues don't ask about the status or…
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Reasons to Theme Your Prototype - Ep. 78
We go over the top 5 reasons to theme your prototype and some discussion around them. If you want to have them spoiled, here are some of our notes on each one: 5) Theme makes it easier to learn your game. It drives cohesion, direction, and rules comprehension. 4) Some publishers really care about...
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Getting Your Prototype Played at Smaller Conventions - Ep. 77
Top 5 Tips for Getting Your Prototype Played at Small Conventions 5) Teach games and then ask if they want to try your own game afterwards. (know your audience and be respectful of time) 4) Setup in open gaming and grab drive bys and/or have good signage. 3) Setup an event with local designers...
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Going to Conventions Without Going to Conventions - Ep. 76
Today Brian interviews Erik Dahlman of Albino Dragon about the convention services he offers where his team will demo your game at his booth at various conventions throughout the year. You can get the exposure that conventions offer without the million headaches of actually doing it. To get more...
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Funding Goal, Stretch Goals, and Updates - Ep. 75
In this one, we cover different methods for setting your Kickstarter funding goal, your stretch goals, how many updates to send during the campaign, and we talk about Richard's holy grail Star Trek cat game.
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Rules for Writing Rules - Ep. 74
Learn all about Jeremy's "7 Rules for Writing Rules" and what Richard and Brian think about them. We actually disagree on this on more than most episodes! Jeremy's 7 Rules for Writing Rules Force yourself to write your rules right away and have them ready for your first playtest with real people....
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Designing Around Analysis Paralysis - Ep. 73
Today we discuss designing around analysis paralysis: Is it a bad thing? Limiting your decision space Add more options/decisions as you go Allowing players to "mess up" the next player's carefully laid plans Companion app Reference cards to make decisions easier Usability in graphic design or...
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Gaming with Edo on Overworld Games Experiments - Ep. 72
Ed Baraf sits down with Brian Henk to discuss the history of experiments tried at Overworld Games, such as using IPs or releasing a game outside of Kickstarter -- and how games have done in terms of profitability and copies sold. Going through what went well and what didn't may give other…
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Saving Your Failing Kickstarter Campaign - Ep. 71
Today we talk about how to figure out why your Kickstarter campaign is failing and how to fix it. Brian's magic recipe for a successful campaign: A page that converts visitors into backers Get backers to your page Converting: The video, explaining the hook, providing the content people really…
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Gen Con Designer Events and Metatopia with Double Exposure's Vincent Salzillo - Ep. 70
Brian had the pleasure of interviewing Vincent Salzillo, President of Double Exposure, Inc. His company organizes Gen Con events such as First Exposure Playtest Hall and the new First Encounter Designer Showcase (publisher speed dating) events. They also organize conventions such as DEXCON,...
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Getting More Prototype Plays - Ep. 69
Today we talk about ways to get people to play your ugly prototype! Some topics: Imaginary friends Design partners or other trusted designers Protospiel/Unpub Designer groups General playtesting groups Fostering an inviting community Print-and-plays Conventions at a free table Conventions as an...
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Are Pledge Managers Worth It? - Ep. 68
Today our episode is more focused on behind-the-scenes of being a Kickstarter creator. We dig into how CrowdOx works and use it as a vehicle to discuss some topics on how a pledge manager can and should be used on a campaign. Topics: Paypal processors and freezes (maybe) How is CrowdOx different...
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The Roll [sic] of Randomness - Ep. 67
Today we talk about how randomness affects our enjoyment of games. It's slanted towards game design, but also has some publisher/indie creator perspectives as well. Low-randomness games High-randomness games Is randomness in games good or bad? How does it affect your target audience? Harnessing…
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The Golden Age of Tabletop Gaming at Wondercon 2018 - Ep. 66
This is the Golden Age of Tabletop Gaming Panel from Wondercon 2018 organized by High Voltage. It covers industry trends, game design basics, and how to find events and gamers in your area. The panelists are: Will Pasquin (Gaming Guru, High Voltage) Becca Scott (Host, Geek & Sundry's Game The…
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10 Questions to Ask Yourself When Designing a Game - Ep. 65
If you'd rather not listen to the questions and you just want to ask yourself some thought-provoking questions about your game, here is the list! Which feeling(s) am I trying to deliver? Why would someone play or buy this game instead of others? What's the hook? Which core element will keep…
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Trapped in a Room with Juliana Patel and Ariel Rubin - Ep. 64
Richard interviews Juliana Patel and Ariel Rubin who created the extremely successful Escape Room in a Box: The Werewolf Experiment that is now being published by Mattel. He learns all their secrets about in their 2,000+ backer debut campaign! Some specific topics: Partnering with Mattel Escape...
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How to Navigate Multiple Offers - Ep. 63
This episode provides some guidelines for the situation where multiple publishers want to sign your game and how you handle it, both from the designer and publisher perspective. Specifically, we cover: submitting your game to multiple publishers at the same time handshake deals bringing copies to…
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Total Recall Post Mortem - Ep. 62
We talk generally about publishing licensed games and specifically about the unsuccessful Total Recall Kickstarter campaign. Why didn't it fund? What did you do differently? Likeness rights 101 Timing releases in a line of games Hidden costs of doing a licensed game Liability insurance The costs…
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LA Comic Con Golden Age of Tabletop Gaming Panel
This is a panel organized by High Voltage about how awesome games are and how to grow and build an inclusive gaming community. This took place on 10/28/2017 at Stan Lee's Los Angeles Comic Con, hosted by Will Pasquin with these panelists: John Clair - Mystic Vale, Downfall David Zuckman - Obscure...
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Ethics Mailbag - Ep. 61
We have another mailbag episode! These topics were suggested by listeners: Are environmental concerns a factor for publishers, manufacturers, and designers? How can I make my game more accessible and inclusive? What kind of support should publishers donate to charity? Resources: The Overworld…
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Am I a Jerk if I Don't Back My Friend's Kickstarter Campaign? - Ep. 60
If you're listening to this podcast, there's a good chance you know someone personally who has launched a Kickstarter campaign. Did you feel obligated to back it? We try to break down this social etiquette around the subject in this episode.
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How Not to Get Burned on Amazon - Ep. 59
Today we discuss how to use Amazon to sell your board game. - Fulfillment by Amazon - Amazon Marketplace - Vendor Express - Amazon Launchpad - Getting Burned Stories - Amazon Marketing Services - Improving your search rankings - Sales on Amazon - Pricing on Amazon - A+ Content - VINE Reviews…
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How Should You Be Using Social Media? - Ep. 58
Today we talk about social media and how we should use this in the board game industry. Specifically, here are some of the questions and topics: How should a game designer use social media? Which social media platforms should a game designer be using? How should a game publisher use social media?...
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Top 5 Tips for Designing a Reference Card - Ep. 57
We attempt to define what a reference card is, which isn't as easy as you may think, and then we pull them apart and figure out which games need them and how to design them clearly. Then we end with a Top 5 list of tips to make your reference card better. Here are some questions and topics we...
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Target Markets - Ep. 56
Today we talk about designing and publishing games for a particular market. Here are some of the topics/questions we cover: What's a target market? Which markets are commonly considered in the board game industry? Identifying the market that's right for your game. Should I use elements to my game...
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Top 7 Ways to Improve Your Playtest Feedback Quality - Ep. 55
Here are our top 7 ways to improve your playtest feedback quality. If you want a spoiler, here's the list! Ask negative leading questions. Trash/talk down your own game Stay focused and interested in every word play testers say. Don't defend anything. Don't break their flow. Focus on problems and...
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How (Not) to Make a How to Play Video - Ep. 54
How-to-play videos are used more and more by designers to show potential publishers or playtesters their game and by publishers after a game has been released to teach customers how to play them. In honor of April Fool's Day, we give tips on how NOT to make a how-to-play video. I know, we're not...
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Designer Tools Galore - Ep. 53
Today we go through a quick overview of each iteration of our design process from a tool perspective. We discuss which of these tools work well and which ones we've used in the past. We also cover some of the software we use to stay connected to our designer partners. See the list below of...
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Why Are So Many Licensed Games So Bad? - Ep. 52
We discuss licensed games and the specific challenges associated with making a game from them. If you are granted the rights to make a card game based in the Star Wars universe, how do you make a game around it? Or should you make the game first and try to acquire the license later? Here are some...
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Matching Art to Your Game - Ep. 51
How do you find the right artist for the style of game you're making? Commence discussion! Topics: Finding artists to fit your target market. Identifying market segments. Examples of illustrations or graphic design not fitting the game. Selecting images for the Star Trek Trading Card Game. What...
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2017 Predictions - Ep. 50
Some predictions for what will happen in the board game industry in 2017. Legacy Games Quality Kickstarter Exodus Otherwise, Kickstarter Growth Continues Will Quality Go Up or Down? Company Mergers Component Diversification "Meeples with a Twist" Chipboard Constructs Display Games Unexpected...
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Top 10 Ways to Build Your Board Game Industry Network - Ep. 49
Here are Jeremy and Brian's top 10 ways to build your network within the board game industry: Jeremy J10 – Participate in contests. J9 – Be easy to find on social media. J8 – Place encouragement above criticism. J7 – Do your homework to avoid wasting publishers' time. J6 – Observe Publisher Speed...
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Reasons to NOT Enter the Board Game Industry - Ep. 48
This episode, we ground everyone with a discussion of reasons why you might not want to enter the board game industry. You will lose money. You will lose time, effort, and opportunities. Other people will be critical of your work, not publish, or not buy it. The work is not all fun. Your game is...
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Reaching Your Core Audience at a Convention - Ep. 47
Today we discuss how to reach your core audience at a convention. We specifically hit on these points: Luring on the First Day Promo Packs/Where to Sell Them Coupon Books To Do Lists Banners/Advertisements Other Ideas Email Lists Playtesting Upcoming Kickstarter Games When to Send Con Updates...
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How to Exhibit at a Major Con - Ep. 46
This is the first episode we did after Brian moved to the Los Angeles area. We talk about tips for exhibiting at a major con. Here are some topics: - When to pull the trigger? o Playtest Hall o Volunteer at another Booth - Booth shape and layout - Selling at a Con without a Booth - Copies Sold -...
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Running Your Board Game Kickstarter Panel at Gen Con 2016 - Ep. 45
Tips for running your Kickstarter campaign in this condensed version of a Gen Con 2016 panel! Panelists: JT Smith, Zachary Strebeck, Jeremy Commandeur, and Brian Henk We discuss: - #1 Mistakes - Kickstarter as a Business - Stretch Goals - Crowd Building - Page Layout - Reward Levels - Naming...
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Game Design and Publishing Panel at Gen Con 2016 - Ep. 44
At Gen Con 2016, we were on a panel to talk about lots of publishing topics. These were the folks on the panel: JT Smith of The Game Crafter Zachary Strebeck, the Game Lawyer Jeremy Commandeur, Game Designer Brian Henk of Overworld Games things like: Here are some topics we discussed: Forming…
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About this show
On The Board Game Business Podcast, we discuss the business side of the tabletop gaming industry. We don't review games or tell you which ones we like, but instead focus on how to price, distribute, design, develop, and market your game. Richard New hosts and sits alongside Jeremy Commandeur, a game designer, and Brian Henk, a game designer and publisher with Overworld Games.
Hosted by
Richard New, Brian Henk, Jeremy Commandeur