The biggest divide in board game design is theme versus mechanics. Which is more important? Which comes first? I reject the premise that it is 'either/or' and contend that both are elements of a whole design, the success of which relies on all elements being well designed and integrated.
First off let's review the definition of design: Design is an aesthetic organization of elements; creative problem solving; the relationship between content and aesthetics (or form and function); and a way of communicating intended use or expected response.
Which brings us to how elements are divided in the Principles of Design. All of design consists of form and content. Content is the subject, the information, the thing you want to convey. Form is the shape the content takes, the way the content is conveyed.
In board game terms, content is the pieces, rules, mechanics. Form is the box, rulebook, components, theme, art, lore, and overall experience. It is possible for the roughest prototype and the glossiest published game to have the exact same content (by virtue of being the same game); the difference between the two is the form they take.
Both form and content are a part of design. A good designer should consider all elements of the game play experience. A well-designed game doesn't have to be fully immersive, but it should be fully designed.
Now I am going to disagree with myself and say that if the theme is the heart of what you want your game to convey and why you are designing your game, that is your content and the mechanics are your form. It isn't about theme vs. mechanics. It's about what you are trying to accomplish and how you get there. If you feel you could cut an element from your game or change it, it's not your content. Content is your design vision. You should be able to write a one to two sentence design vision statement for your game. The elements mentioned in a design vision statement are your content. Everything else is how you get there, your form. Each individual element is also made up of form and content, in that each element should have a specific purpose and also aesthetics that help it mesh with the overall design.
The rest of this series will detail the principles of design, so now seems like a good idea to introduce them: unity, emphasis, scale, balance, and rhythm. By using these principles, we can make better, more cohesive designs.
In this series, I'm outlining the principles of design from a perspective of how they relate to board game design. If you want to read more on your own, the main reference I use is Design Basics by David A. Lauer and Stephen Pentak. Available here.
First off let's review the definition of design: Design is an aesthetic organization of elements; creative problem solving; the relationship between content and aesthetics (or form and function); and a way of communicating intended use or expected response.
In board game terms, content is the pieces, rules, mechanics. Form is the box, rulebook, components, theme, art, lore, and overall experience. It is possible for the roughest prototype and the glossiest published game to have the exact same content (by virtue of being the same game); the difference between the two is the form they take.
Both form and content are a part of design. A good designer should consider all elements of the game play experience. A well-designed game doesn't have to be fully immersive, but it should be fully designed.
Now I am going to disagree with myself and say that if the theme is the heart of what you want your game to convey and why you are designing your game, that is your content and the mechanics are your form. It isn't about theme vs. mechanics. It's about what you are trying to accomplish and how you get there. If you feel you could cut an element from your game or change it, it's not your content. Content is your design vision. You should be able to write a one to two sentence design vision statement for your game. The elements mentioned in a design vision statement are your content. Everything else is how you get there, your form. Each individual element is also made up of form and content, in that each element should have a specific purpose and also aesthetics that help it mesh with the overall design.
The rest of this series will detail the principles of design, so now seems like a good idea to introduce them: unity, emphasis, scale, balance, and rhythm. By using these principles, we can make better, more cohesive designs.
In this series, I'm outlining the principles of design from a perspective of how they relate to board game design. If you want to read more on your own, the main reference I use is Design Basics by David A. Lauer and Stephen Pentak. Available here.
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