When creating a game (especially a card game), keywords can be an extremely useful design tool. When used effectively, keywords can help convey a lot of complex information to the player in a quick and accessible way. But when used incorrectly, you can accidentally leave players overwhelmed and frustrated. So when should you use keywords in your game, and how can you use them effectively? Let’s learn the key to using keywords.

Due to current social distancing guidelines, it’s basically impossible to run in-person playtests anymore. This was a huge problem for us, especially since we had just unlocked a bunch of extra stretch goal content that needed to be tested ASAP. How are you supposed to playtest a board game if you can’t meet up with people anymore? Enter Tabletop Simulator.

If you’ve spent any time browsing around gaming forums, you’ve likely stumbled upon countless posts calling for nerfs. Players are often quick to point out what things they believe are overpowered and that need to be immediately addressed. A lot of this stems from the perception that the role of a game designer is to ensure their game is perfectly balanced, and that if the game isn’t balanced they must step in to fix their mistakes.

Here’s the thing though: game balance doesn’t really matter very much.