Howdy. I have a boardgame called “Seventh Street” that I’ve developed. It’s kind of a complicated project but the best way to describe it is that it’s a real-estate trading game with elements of deduction and deception. (If it helps, think of it as Monopoly with incomplete information and without the death spiral and player elimination)
Point is, I think it could work as a product. I just don’t know how to turn it from a bunch of PDFs that you print on cardstock into a product, nor do I really know what I need to do to refine it, and what to look for in playtesting.
Does anyone have experience kickstarting a board game and have any advice?
I don’t have any experience with creating a Kickstarter but I do have some experience with both playtesting board games and with proofreading board game manuals. If you need an extra pair of eyes or another players perspective, I’d be happy to lend some help.
I don’t have experience with kickstarter for boardgames specifically, but I can help using Kickstarter. Feel free to DM me if you need help for it.
No experience here, but I know someone who did turn a game into a moderately successful game. What helped him were the local industry veterans who saw his product and game him the connections and backing. So I think to start with, you should see if there are any publishers or popular boardgames shops in your area who are willing to take you under the wing.
Also you might want to speak to a lawyer about copyright-related stuff to see what IP you can secure too.
I don’t have the source but I saw an interesting interview by Eric Lang where he said he would go to local communities and ask players to play the game. He wouldn’t introduce himself as the designer, he just ask people to play “this dumb game” or something, so people would feel more confortable in being honest and bashing the game.
All I can say is good luck, I wish you the best success!
I’m currently on this path, happy to share what I’ve learned so far. Hit me up on DM (wait, does Lemmy have DMs??), to connect and talk shop on Discord.
Develop a prototype. I like to do this digitally (tabletop simulator, tabletopia, screentop.gg). I made a YouTube video on how to make cards, there’s plenty of tutorials on making a digital prototype for the platforms I listed (here’s a video tutorial for screentop that a friend made). For physical prototypes, Adam in Wales covers the basics.
Playtest. You’ll need to playtest, a lot. Like way more than you think. Friends and family don’t count, they’re obligated to be nice and supportive. Bring your game to your local boardgame store and cajole and/or bribe people to play. As the other comment suggests, best results will come from saying you’re testing someone else’s game. Anonymous feedback forms can work well too. Be gracious about receiving feedback, these folks are helping you make your game better. Don’t argue even if you disagree, accept it all and thank everyone for their time.
Join a game design / playtesting community. Lots of these for digital playtesting on Discord (protospiel, break my game, virtual playtesting, remote playtesting, indie game lab, etc). If you’re in or near a metropolitan area there’s a good chance of a local game designers meetup. Boardgame conventions usually have an Unpub room where you can book a table and folks will stop by and play. Playtesting with game designers is the best way to get really insightful feedback into your game.
Once you’ve done all that and still have a game you’ll have to decide whether to pitch to publishers or self-publish. There’s pros and cons to both sides so do your research here. Lots of content out there on this, Stonemaier Games blog is a good starting point.
