Game Design Exercises

(This is a guest article by Jacob Davenport, designer of Covert Action and owner of Play Again Games. You can read more of his excellent articles about games and game design at his site.)

Every designer has to design in his or her own way. For me, game designs don’t spring from nothing, I have to be thinking about it and working on it. I don’t wake up from sleeping with a good design in my head, I don’t gather them as I am paying attention to other things. I need to work at designing, and here’s a bunch of exercises to get my mind working. I do these with a time limit, because I find that a deadline, even an artificial one, pushed me forward and prevents me from doing any self-editing. I sit with a two-minute sand timer and my notebook. This is how I work.

Most of these exercises follow the same pattern: brainstorm, churn, brainstorm, design. None of these exercises is supposed to get in the way of good design. If a promising game idea brews up in the middle of an exercise then ignore the exercise, ignore the timer, and let the ideas flow.

CTMG: 45 minutes. Most games have clearly defined components, themes, mechanics, and goals. For two minutes each, make a list of each of these four areas, broad or narrow. Randomly put together one piece from each of the four so you have a list of about ten games that have these disconnected parts. Then, for two minutes on each game, design each game. Lastly, for two minutes each, design three games that use any combination of components, themes, mechanics, and goals that you’ve written down or have thought of.

Compel: 30 minutes. Games capture compelling activities in competition. For two minutes, write down a list of compelling activities. Then spend two minutes putting two or three of the items on your list together, so that you have a list that uses all of your activities at least once. You’ll have about six items, so spend two minutes per item designing a game that would feature all the activities listed. Lastly, for two minutes each, design three games that use any combination of these compelling activities.

Steal: 30 minutes. Many times a new game idea comes from existing games, so intentionally steal ideas. For two minutes, write down the key idea used in as many good games as you can think of. Then spend two minutes matching those ideas together into a new list of ideas. You’ll have about six items, so spend two minutes per item designing new games that do not look at all like the original inspiring games. Lastly, for two minutes each, design three games that use any combination of these ideas.

Feel: 45 minutes. A good game evokes strong feelings in the players. For two minutes, write a list of specific feelings that a good game should have. For each item, write for two minutes how you might create those feelings. Spend two minutes pulling the ways of creating feelings into lists of methods. You should have about ten sets of methods, so spend two minutes per set designing a game that would use them. Lastly, for two minutes each, design three games that use any combination of these methods.

Reversals: 30 minutes. Turn good games inside out or upside down. For two minutes, write down a list of good games. Then, for two minutes each, design the opposite game, one that runs the game backwards in time, has the opposite goal, has the opposite mechanism, or somehow turns the original game on its head. Lastly, for two minutes each, design three games that combine the best elements of the games you’ve just created.

Combine: 30 minutes. Look through your design notebook and find games that don’t work and list them in combinations, with the ideas from two or three different games on one line. Then, for two minutes each, redesign those combined games. Lastly, for two minutes each, recombine parts of these new games into three new games.

Problems: 30 minutes. There are many problems that plague game design. For two minutes, list them. Then, for two minutes each, write new ways to attach each problem. For two minutes, combine those ways into games. Spend two minutes on each game designing it. Lastly, for two minutes each, make three new games that combine several of these solutions.

Drawing: 15 minutes. For two minutes, draw game boards, cards, pieces, and other components. Then design six games, for two minutes each, that use the game components you have drawn.

Meta: For two minutes, write down game design exercises that follow the brainstorm – churn – brainstorm – design model.

MetaMeta: For two minutes, write down other possible game design exercise methods.