Brandon the Game Dev

Dev Diary posts are made to teach game development through specific examples from my latest project: Highways & Byways. Just here for Highways & Byways updates? Click here.

---

Highways & Byways is basically complete. I’ve started the final 100 play-tests. This is a process I follow to ensure a game’s quality. This method may not be appropriate for every developer, every team, or every game, but it is one I like. I’ve done this with War Co. and I’m doing it again with Highways & Byways.

The final 100 play-tests start once I feel a game is basically where I want it to be. I start the final 100 play-tests after I’ve done a substantial amount of blind play-testing. I wait until I have all the art assets I need. I only start the final 100 play-tests when I need to test the game for outliers.

When I use the phrase outlier, I’m referring to something really specific. To quote my good friend, Wikipedia: “[i]n statistics, an outlier is an observation point that is distant from other observations. An outlier may be due to variability in the measurement or it may indicate experimental error; the latter are sometimes excluded from the data set. An outlier can cause serious problems in statistical analyses.“

In English, that means that the more times you do something, the more weird stuff you’ll see. With enough games, outliers tend to balance each other out. That’s called the law of large numbers, but I’m not going to get into this because this isn’t Brandon the Statistician.

When people play a game, their expectations are formed by whatever happens in their first game. On average, the game is average. Shocker, shocker. But every once in a while, somebody’s first game is an outlier. That’s not necessarily good or bad, but it’s something game devs need to be wary of. Outlier games still need to be a good experience.

The only way to catch outliers is to just play a lot of games. For some games, 25 is enough, for others, it could take 500. Considering where I am with Highways & Byways, 100 games seemed like an appropriate goal. It’s a big enough sample size to suss out statistical curveballs, but small enough for me to actually produce the game in a reasonable time frame.

This is a checklist I like to check off before I start final testing:

1. Get the physical prototype ready. It’s too much of a pain in the butt to try to do this on Tabletop Simulator and you need data based on the real physical experience.
2. Get all the print files ready and perfect aligned with the manufacturer’s templates.
3. Check everything for grammar and clarity.
4. Make sure all the components are good, especially in terms of accessibility (physical, visual, etc.)
5. Make sure there are no broken parts left in the game.
6. Proofread everything again.
7. Create a spreadsheet to track the following: game number, date, time, players, length of game, critical stats*, and comments.
8. Find play-testers 🙂

* For Byways: vehicle, start space, and spaces left at the end of the game

Once all the prep work is done, I start thinking about my main objectives for the final 100 play-tests. I like to keep it simple:

• Play enough to catch outliers.
• Correct minor mistakes.
• If there is something seriously wrong, iterate again and reset the count.

It’s gritty work and it’s meticulous, but it’s straightforward. You want to put your best foot forward for both your players and your business. Players in the Board Game Geek age don’t accept anything less than very polished products. You need to stand out in a crowded market and you want to get positive reviewer feedback. There are both morally high-minded and economically self-interested reasons for putting yourself through all this effort.

It helps when going in to have an idea of what kind of situations could cause a problem. For War Co., I flagged about 50 cards I thought could have dangerous synergies and play-tested with them slightly more often. Highways & Byways, mercifully, is simpler to test, but I’ve still got some concerns. I’ll just spell them out here so you have concrete examples. Maybe hard examples will get your juices flowing for when you do your own hardcore game testing.

What if certain Start Spaces give players an unfair advantage? This one is pretty straightforward. In Highways & Byways, there are six start spaces represented by stars on the map. If one puts you close to every other road, that makes the entire route shorter. That’s a flaw in a racing game. If statistics prove one Start Space to be clearly superior, I’ll simply move the Start Space. I’m awfully suspicious about that one near Scranton, PA…

What if there is a first player advantage? Just about every game has some variation of this concern at some point. Highways & Byways is no different. Only thing I can do is test.

What if one Vehicle is stronger or weaker? There are six Vehicles in the game. Each one has a special ability. These special abilities have changed a lot since my original intentions. Like the class cards in Pandemic, your ride determines your game’s strategy. If one Vehicle has an unfair advantage or disadvantage, I better nerf that now. The only way to find out is, as you guessed it, raw statistics.

What if some Event Cards have overpowered synergy with Vehicles? All Vehicles play with Event Cards to some degree, except for Rustbucket, but there are two that I’m worried about right now. Stationary Wagon lets you churn cards in your hand twice as fast as other Vehicles. It has no immunities and the action still requires you to move less to use it, but – I don’t know – I could conceive of this being overpowered. On the other hand, Five-O lets you move four extra spaces when you draw a Distance card. Distance cards already tend to let you move more in a turn, so this can lead to turns of dramatic and extraordinary movement, although very irregularly.

What if somebody drafts a really easy route and others draft really hard routes? The drafting mechanic allows for players to plan their road trips to a limited degree. It’s possible to get royally screwed over and have to pick something way out of your way. You do have some limited degree of control because you can pick better roads and draw up to 2 of 12 that are just not working for you. Yet at the same time, it’s totally possible for someone to get roads clustered in one region while others have to go to multiple. It’s rare and Event Cards mitigate this, but I still have to test it out to see how fair the game’s drafting really is.

Testing a lot will soothe my mind. I want this game to be not merely good, but great. I want every experience on the tabletop to be amazing for everyone involved. That’s why I’ve got to play tons and tons until I know it’s fine tuned. Only then can I put it in a box with my name on it. Only then can I ask for people’s money without guilt.

Are you in a similar place in your projects? Have you been there before or perhaps think you’ll be there soon? Leave your thoughts in the comments, I’d love to hear them 🙂

---

Most Important Highways & Byways Updates

• I’ve started the final 100 play-tests.
• All art is done.
• I’ve ordered an updated version of the prototype.
• I am play-testing as much as I can simply to assure quality at this point.
• I want to be ready to print review copies on January 1 – it’s an ambitious goal, but doable.

Dev Diary posts are made to teach game development through specific examples from my latest project: Highways & Byways. Just here for Highways & Byways updates? Click here.

---

I’ve been making games for about 2 1/2 years now, and a lot of things in my life have clicked because of the ways of thinking I have adopted by making and playing games. I understand personal finance better because heavy euro games are about allocating resources. My anxiety has improved because I’ve sent thousands of messages to strangers online to build my Discord server. Even my fitness has improved because of this sedentary hobby. That’s because the strain of running a business teaches discipline.

Every once in a while in the board gaming community, you’ll see an article circulate about how board gaming is good for your brain. I firmly believe that playing and making board games can teach you some practical skills that transcend the tabletop. That’s why I’ll share my experiences.

1. Games trained me to start with the end and work backwards to achieve a goal.

Just about every game has a clear objective. It’s usually in the first paragraph of the rule book. Board games make the objectives clear, but they don’t make the path to achieving the objectives clear. When the goal is not crystal clear, I’ve now been taught to seek it out, whether or not it’s a goal in a game.

Clear goals make everything a little easier. In games, it’s victory points. In life, it might be retiring early, putting on lean muscle mass, or releasing a game. Once you pick a goal – even if it’s an imprecise one – you can start working backwards. I’ve learned to spot “victory points” in real life.

2. Games trained me to determine cause and effect when it’s unclear.

We live in a distracted world rife with an incredible number of possible lives. We’re forced to make decisions everyday about which path we go down. That can be overwhelming, but it’s not too unfamiliar to folks who’ve played euro games. A lot of times, victory points are determined at the end and there are a bunch of ways you can get those points. Nobody will tell you which path is the best, so you have to make educated guesses and adjust as you go. Sounds a bit like real life, doesn’t it?

Returning to my earlier examples…

• If I want to retire early, I need to learn to invest. Learning to invest requires learning how to allocate assets and pick the right funds. Getting money to fill up those funds involves budgeting and taking advantage of tax breaks.
• If I want to put on lean muscle mass, I have to eat a little more and lift heavy objects.
• How do you go about developing a game? Well, that’s what this blog is for 😉

3. Games taught me when to look and when to leap.

A lot of times, intelligent people won’t get anything done because they’ll overthink things. In board games, when you sit at the table forever and fail to make a move, you’re said to have analysis paralysis. You put everybody at an inconvenience. Eventually, you’re pressured into making a move – any move!

You can get analysis paralysis in life, too. Sometimes goals seem too big to grapple with, so you don’t start. It can cause you to procrastinate. I’ve been known to do this. Board games taught me that sometimes any move is better than no move. Sometimes getting started is good enough. Very rarely in well-designed games, or in life, will you get yourself into bad situations that you can’t fix.

4. The gaming business gave me basic business experience in a safe environment.

For all the expenses and public embarrassment that come with business failure, board gaming is still a pretty safe industry to fail in. Provided you bankroll your own game, don’t take out loans, and don’t make hard promises you can’t keep, you’ll land on your feet if your business collapses. It’s not like owning a restaurant or real estate.

Good thing, too. Running a business is hard as hell. I got an MBA and it still took me a couple of years to break even and get my feet under me. No matter what business you’re in, you have to learn to manage finances, create sales funnels, build an audience, and…oh yeah…make good products! The learning curve is steep, and frankly, I have a hunch that 90-95% of business hopefuls could benefit from struggling those first few years in a place where they won’t lose their shirt. There’s a lot of safe ways to get started in business, board gaming being thankfully among them.

5. Releasing a major product with my name on it taught me to be meticulous.

I like to go fast. Sometimes that leads to rushing through things. I figure many teenagers and young adults can relate to this. Releasing War Co. and getting ready to release Highways & Byways is slowly training me out of that bad habit and teaching me to be meticulous. Can you imagine how embarrassing it would be to release a product with a typo in the rule book? The fear alone was enough to slow me down. As a side benefit, I got better at my day job because I started slowing down when it was right to do so.

6. Learning to sell decreased my social anxiety.

I used to struggle with social anxiety a lot. I still kind of do, but it’s not as bad these days. Strangely enough, the act of building up a Discord server and selling games has helped a lot, even though I primarily do this online through social media direct messages. Why? It’s simple…I’ve been rejected a bunch. Tons and tons and tons of rejections. Rejections by the thousands.

Even though it’s digital, I’m calmer in face-to-face interactions as well. I know that somebody saying “no” to my request or even – gasp – somebody not liking me is not the end of the world. Simple exposure to things you’re afraid of in small doses over a long period of time can do wonders for your confidence. Plus, now I have a server of over 1,000 board game professionals and fans whose company I consistently enjoy to show for it.

7. The heavy load of running a business taught me sheer discipline.

It’s hard work running a business. You can’t do it in a four-hour workweek. Likewise, you can’t overcompensate and work 100 hours per week every week to push it along. It’s a long, slow process that takes years of consistent effort and 10, 15, 20, 25 hours per week. No matter how well you optimize your processes, how well you manage your time, or how much raw talent you have, systemic issues like building an audience will force you to take it slow.

I’ve spent hours at a time sending direct messages by hand. I’m writing two posts per week. I play-test my games until I’m nearly sick of them. Sometimes you just have to do that and it’s as simple as that.

Fortunately, discipline can be taught with repeated effort. It pays off in every other area of life. It shows in how consistent your workouts are, how regularly you fund your retirement accounts, and how nice you are to your spouse. Learning to do the same thing over and over again with poise even when the passion is (temporarily) gone is a great quality.

Has making or playing board games taught you any valuable skills? Has it made you smarter? Share your experiences in the comments below!

---

Most Important Highways & Byways Updates

• The rule art is done.
• The box art is in progress.
• I’m testing version I-4. It’s looking optimistic so far. Is this…the one?

Dev Diary posts are made to teach game development through specific examples from my latest project: Highways & Byways. Just here for Highways & Byways updates? Click here.

---

Last week, I talked about how time-consuming and difficult it can be to get a board game working. It takes a long, long time for a board game to be fun. Fast forward to the future, though, and let’s say your game has been working for a while. People are enjoying it, and some even love it. Yet you still frequently get a lot of suggestions on how to refine the game. Feedback may be hedged with “this is a really polished product, but…”

Congratulations, you’ve created an Almost Finished Board Game! This is where Highways & Byways is right now. I’d like to talk about this part of game development. I think it could scare a lot of talented people like you off the journey if you don’t know what to expect.

Once the core engine and mechanics are in place, board games can be dragged down by easy-to-fix but hard-to-identify issues. In Highways & Byways, I had a simple rule where you discard every turn under certain conditions. It was a sentence. It was dragging down the game’s flow, adding several minutes to the play time, leaving inactive players isolated, and reducing the physical accessibility of the game. One sentence.

Here’s another simple example. After Protospiel Atlanta, I made some fixes – going from version I-2 (20) to I-3 (21). I reduced the number of spaces on the board. It made the whole map feel less cluttered. The routes stayed in the same place, but the whole game became less of a visual burden. It also cut the play time by about a third, which was a desired effect. One little baby problem, though: suddenly some vehicles became super powerful while others didn’t have enough play time to become relevant.

None of these issues are enough to break the game. They just lessen the experience. Because board games are complicated systems, you will also reach this point one day. You’ll reach a point where there is nothing left to do but tweak the game. Yet there are so many tweaks that will need to be done. That is the Agony of the Almost Finished Game – an endless series of tweaks.

This stage can feel interminable. I’ve been in it for close to two months now. With that in mind, when you find yourself in the midst of the Agony of the Almost Finished Game, here are some pieces of advice I’d like you to remember:

1) Set a hard “win condition” for your project.

Art is never finished, just shipped. You will never be 100% happy with your project. You need to pick a condition under which you’re willing to ship the game and commit to that condition.

For Highways & Byways, my condition is simple: play 100 times without making a major change before sending to reviewers.

There is nothing magical about 100 times. It’s arbitrary – it could be 44 or 516. It’s a handy number that gives me a large enough sample size to use statistics to find broken strategies. It’s enough games for me to be sure it’s working before I spend a few hundred bucks printing sample copies and sending them to board game reviewers.

2) Reset the clock if you have to.

If your win condition involves playing a certain number of games before shipping, you must be mentally ready to reset your play count to zero if you make a major change. I’d racked up a few plays on version I-3 of Highways & Byways, but changing Event Card discard rules is a big mechanic change, so I reset the count to zero.

3) Write down everything your play-testers say even if you disagree.

You should already be doing this, but this is especially important once you hit the Almost Finished state. Because the slightest tweaks can have massive positive impacts at this point, you might find yourself reviewing your notes later. A single piece of advice – even a weird one – could be the fix you need. This is roughly akin to adding salt at the perfect time when you’re cooking – it takes like 15 seconds and can dramatically improve the end product.

4) Almost Finished Games are sell-able, but they won’t build your legacy.

Once you reach this point, your game is sell-able. It can fund on Kickstarter, get enough good reviews for pull quotes, and get a 6.0 – 7.0 on Board Game Geek, but…

Do you want to be the designer of a good game or do you want to be the designer of a great game?

Once you start getting people who love your game and who come back to it, you know it’s sell-able. That doesn’t mean it’s a good game, that it’ll get $100,000, or that you should ship that version. It just means that you can sell it with a strong enough marketing system. I don’t know about you, but understanding this reduces my stress and allows me to work better. With survival stress out of the way, I can focus on creating something people will really enjoy and remember. You might work the same way.

5) You will eventually finish the game.

If you stick to your game, you will eventually be able to finish it and make a great game. You might have to push your timelines back. You might have to do loads and loads of play-testing. Yet you will eventually finish the game if you stick to it. Game development is a marathon, and this is the 20-mile mark where you hit the wall. To extend the analogy, once you hit this point, you’re like 80% of the way to publication, but it’s too soon to see the finish line.

---

Most Important Highways & Byways Updates

• I’ve incremented Highways & Byways to version I-4. That’s the 22nd total version.
• I-3 is sellable, but I want to make the game excellent. I-4 comes with art applied, slightly simplified rules, and tighter balance.
• If I-4 survives 100 tests, I’m considering this game ready for review.