The Game Design Round Table

Jon announces that he’ll be retiring from the podcast in order to focus fully on At the Gates. Piggybacking on this topic, he and Dirk discuss workflow, where AtG is at now and highlight what’s next for it. Dirk finishes up the episode by sharing his plans for TGDRT going forward.---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:01:10 - Jon’s Last Ride0:03:52 - Work Patterns0:09:42 - Splitting Attention0:22:32 - The Impact of Art0:30:21 - Future of At the Gates0:41:15 - Travel & Convention Plans0:45:24 - Marketing0:51:43 - The Future of the Podcast

Jon, Dirk and David discuss the idea of players as designers within the context of house rules, modding and optional rules. Other topics covered include: how much control should players have? When are house rules bad? How much creative control over the core game design should developers give out?---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comDavid Heron - @DavidVHeron---------------------------Episode Outline0:00:38 - House Rules0:07:20 - Modding0:17:48 - Tabletop Games0:30:30 - Optional Rules0:38:55 - Our House Rules0:43:58 - Allowing for Player Creativity0:55:40 - Opening Up the Design Process1:03:35 - From Modder to Designer

Soren joins Jon and Dirk to discuss transparency: what a game does and does not reveal to players. The discussion ranges from unpredictability in deckbuilders like ‘Dominion’ and ‘Ascension’, to fog of war in ‘Civilization’, ‘At the Gates’ and ‘War Stories’, to the need to memorize past actions in games like ‘El Grande’. They wrap up with a lengthy discussion about the transparency problems Dirk and Soren have with the baseball sim ‘Out of the Park’ and why Jon still loves it all the same.---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comSoren Johnson - @SorenJohnson, www.Designer-Notes.com, www.MohawkGames.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:00:24 - What IS Transparency?0:13:50 - Deckbuilders0:18:02 - Fog of War0:26:12 - Dirk’s Games0:31:15 - Replayability0:38:18 - Memory0:45:35 - The Designer’s Preference0:50:04 - Out of the Park Baseball1:12:00 - Designing

Rob joins Jon and Dirk to discuss phases (the early game, the late game, etc.) and ‘pivot points’, which are moments when focus shifts from one aspect of a game (such as economic engine building) to another (scoring points). Some of the titles brought up during the conversation include Chess, Monopoly, Dominion, Lords of Waterdeep and Zimbabwe, the game that got Rob thinking about this topic.---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comRob Daviau - @RobDaviauGamer, Rob.Daviau@IronWallGames.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:00:22 - Pivot Points0:15:00 - Pacing Point of No Return0:21:20 - Chess0:27:14 - The Designer’s Perspective0:34:35 - Game Phases0:42:00 - Pivots in Mechanics

Jon and Dirk cover many a topic in this episode, but the main discussion revolves around Jon’s plans for diplomacy in ‘At the Gates’, how they’ve changed, and why. Also covered are game structure in Starbound, the business of games and a brief update on Dirk’s projects.---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:00:56 - Games we’ve played recently0:08:08 - Diplomacy in AtG0:31:30 - Asymmetry in diplomacy0:45:10 - Planning fatigue0:51:50 - Dirk’s projects1:01:34 - Business stuff

Dirk and Jon are joined by Geoff Engelstein to talk about his work, design philosophies and podcast. How do you create a real-time tabletop game? What makes inspirations special? How important is theme compared with mechanics?---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comGeoff Engelstein - @GEngelstein, www.ludology.net, geoff@ludology.net---------------------------Episode Outline0:03:30 - Real-time tabletop games0:12:29 - Inspirations0:16:22 - Wargames0:24:52 - User experience0:29:59 - The road to tabletop0:33:22 - Designing with your kids0:43:58 - Future projects0:49:31 - Theme & learning1:01:46 - Kickstarter

Jon and Dirk are joined by Soren Johnson once again, this time to discuss conflict in games. Topics covered include: What is a conflict? Why is its representation in games nearly always violent? What other types of conflict are there, and how can designers best utilize them?---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comSoren Johnson - @SorenJohnson, www.Designer-Notes.com, www.MohawkGames.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:00:58 - What IS a ‘conflict’?0:09:18 - Asymmetric conflicts0:32:18 - Duels VS Multiplayer0:41:05 - Lopsided conflicts0:46:35 - Why are most game conflicts violent?0:47:30 - Conflict in Soren’s game ‘Mars’1:01:02 - Eurogames1:05:49 - Politics

Rob Daviau pays a visit for a discussion about theme. How much theme is enough? How much is TOO much? How do you actually translate theme into gameplay mechanics. And heck, what IS a ‘theme’, anyways?---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comRob Daviau - @RobDaviauGamer, Rob.Daviau@IronWallGames.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:00:58 - How much theme is enough?0:06:42 - Translating theme into gameplay0:18:40 - Steering the theme0:22:25 - Bad themes0:27:37 - Choosing your themes0:35:48 - Shared themes0:42:00 - Themes in games we’ve played0:55:22 - What IS a theme?

Why do people cheat? What can designers do about it? SHOULD they do anything about it in non-competitive single-player games?---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comDavid Heron - @DavidVHeron---------------------------Episode Outline0:02:00 - Competitive games0:10:50 - Cheating & technology0:18:25 - Non-competitive cheating0:32:01 - Reloading & defeat0:42:30 - Protecting players from themselves0:52:55 - Taking back moves1:04:52 - Allowed cheating

Jon and Dirk are joined by Kevin Forbes of Klei Entertainment to talk about Don’t Starve. Topics covered include environmental cycles, crafting, and the unique challenges and perks of developing a systems-based game.---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comKevin Forbes - @TheKRF---------------------------Episode Outline0:00:27 - Kevin’s design background0:03:06 - What is Don’t Starve?0:05:56 - Environmental cycles0:08:33 - Balancing & playtesting0:13:39 - Crafting0:28:55 - Death & resurrection0:31:35 - Sanity0:34:02 - Audience0:36:30 - Klei0:38:56 - Developing a procedural game0:53:43 - Advice for designers

Jon and Dirk hand out awards for the mechanics and games they played in 2013 that stood out - for better and worse.---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:02:19 - Best Light Game0:12:02 - Best Integration of Theme0:22:31 - Best Mechanic0:28:32 - Most Elegant0:37:41 - Most Innovative0:42:30 - Best Feature in a Disappointing Game0:51:15 - Most Fun1:01:05 - Most Disappointing1:11:10 - Game of the Year

Board game designer Tom Lehmann joins Jon and Dirk to talk about Race for the Galaxy, co-designing on existing games, and his design methodology.--------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comTom Lehmann - http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/150/thomas-lehmann--------------------------Episode Outline0:00:46 - Building on an existing design0:05:29 - Race for the Galaxy0:09:16 - Cards as resources0:17:20 - Economics & strategy0:26:26 - Victory points0:31:00 - Iconography & learning0:36:49 - Tom’s design background0:39:22 - Tom’s design approach

Jon, Dirk and David discuss the role of death in games. What is it for? How does it interact with narrative? What games has it been represented well and poorly in? And how can it be improved?---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comDavid Heron - @DavidVHeron---------------------------Episode Outline0:01:58 - Why has death changed in design history?0:06:00 - What should death’s role be?0:21:16 - Death in persistent games0:27:10 - Permanent loss0:34:05 - Death done well and poorly0:45:00 - Can death help players?0:52:55 - Ideas for improving death

Jon and Dirk discuss general design topics relating to their recent work, including playtesting, extending the development of projects, providing players with goals, instilling a game with good pacing and ensuring there are always interesting strategic options to choose from.---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:01:10 - Playtesting0:06:55 - Extending Development0:15:17 - Goals & Structure0:22:08 - Pacing0:47:01 - Strategic Variance

Jon and Dirk are paid a return visit by first-ever TGDRT guest Rob Daviau to talk about ‘SeaFall’, his new exploration legacy tabletop game, Rob’s company ‘IronWall Games’, and his hopes for further innovation in the genre he helped create.--------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comRob Daviau - @RobDaviauGamer, Rob.Daviau@IronWallGames.com--------------------------Episode Outline0:01:00 - Balancing Risk: Legacy0:06:06 - SeaFall0:11:44 - Core mechanics0:15:30 - Victory & legacy0:27:24 - Balancing legacy VS individual playthroughs0:35:19 - Exploration0:40:36 - How do you design a legacy game?0:52:55 - Inspirations behind SeaFall1:03:50 - Rob’s company: IronWall Games

Jon, Dirk and David share design concepts they find interesting and hope to incorporate into future (or simply hypothetical) projects. The group also digs into why developers are sometimes reluctant to share and discuss design ideas.--------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comDavid Heron - @DavidVHeron--------------------------Episode Outline0:00:57 - Tabletop game physicality0:10:18 - Pitching game design ideas0:14:20 - Legacy and variable tabletop games0:17:20 - Riffing off of other ideas0:24:17 - Licensed games0:29:15 - Living worlds0:34:25 - Making magic interesting0:39:50 - Procedural content0:45:16 - Design pipe dreams0:53:30 - Secrecy in game design

Jon and Dirk meet up to play several tabletop games and discuss what works and what doesn't. Included in the discussion are Ploy, Race for the Galaxy, and Hansa Teutonica.---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:00:30 - Ploy0:18:58 - Race for the Galaxy0:36:04 - Hansa Teutonica

Jon and Dirk are paid a visit by regular guest Soren Johnson, who stops by to talk about his brand-new studio ‘Mohawk Games’ and their first project, ‘Mars’, an economic RTS built out of the legacy of Dani Bunten’s venerable M.U.L.E. They discuss the challenges of and goals behind Soren setting up his own shop, and what he hopes the unique game will achieve. Soren also reveals the first game to ever make him cry. And trust us, it’s fitting.---------------------------Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comSoren Johnson - @SorenJohnson, www.Designer-Notes.com, www.MohawkGames.com---------------------------Episode Outline0:01:00 - The story behind Mohawk0:08:12 - ‘Core’ strategy games0:14:50 - Kickstarter & Steam Early Access0:35:44 - Mohawk’s first game: ‘Mars’0:48:40 - The ups and downs of economic competition0:54:22 - Real-time VS turn-based1:02:48 - M.U.L.E.1:14:50 - The tech behi

Jon and Dirk are joined by David for the special 1-year anniversary show. They point the magnifying glass back at themselves in this episode and share their design processes, challenges they’ve overcome, the tools they use and how to build a good team. They wrap things up by talking about ways the show has given back and made them better game designers and developers.Contact InformationJon Shafer - @JonShaferDesign, www.JonShaferOnDesign.com, Jon.Shafer@ConiferGames.comDirk Knemeyer - @DKnemeyer, www.artana.com, Dirk@Knemeyer.comDavid Heron - @DavidVHeronEpisode Outline0:03:57 - Serial VS parallel design0:13:15 - Life as a designer/producer0:17:20 - Dirk’s crazy schedule0:23:40 - Google Docs & Software0:38:10 - Playtesting0:45:10 - Building a good team0:56:24 - How has the podcast changed our hosts?

Jon and Dirk are joined by Brian Reynolds, designer of ‘Civilization 2’, ‘Alpha Centauri’, ‘Rise of Nations’ and more. They discuss Brian’s career as a designer, his approach and what makes ‘Alpha Centauri’ stand up so many years later.