Daniel Solis

The Going Last podcast is a great, friendly show for tabletop game news and banter. I started listening back when it was hosted by the DoubleClicks, but new hosts Rich and Kenna have done a wonderful job shepherding the podcast into a new era. It's a great breezy listen for your commute. I was on the show a few months ago to talk about Trickster , Kigi , Heir to Europa , and the general topic of how I'm kinda-sorta making a living as a game designer. It's funny listening to it now because I had to be so coy about Action Phase games, the American publisher who would eventually develop Kigi into the new game Kodama. The interview is still a fun one and I'm amazed how well Rich and Kenna managed to make me sound. It's almost convincing! I hope you'll enjoy listening to it. :) P.S. Speaking of Kodama, it is blowing up on Kickstarter. 200% funded on day one. Nearly 300% funded as of this post. Funny how quickly these things come together, eh?

I'm very lucky to be a part of the Game Designers of North Carolina collective. We're all tabletop game designers organized by Matt Wolfe to playtest each other's games and help each other get published.We see each other iterating game design pretty rapidly, making small refinements or major changes between versions. In our guild's podcast, Matt Wolfe invited Graham Russell and me to talk about iterating a design. We cover quite a bit about: How to know how much to change between revisions. How to know when a game is done. When to shelve a project you know won't get finished. Recognizing a potentially fun game earlier in the process.  Good stuff! Check it out! ( Image source )

This week I'm on the Game Design Round Table podcast mainly to ask advice of the prestigious hosts. The topics range from international licensing, to crowdfunding, to generally how to make a living as a game designer. I ramble a bit, as is my habit, but hopefully there are a few cogent points scattered amidst my mad ravings. Please enjoy! Game Design Round Table Episode 129 0:00:26 – Daniel’s background 0:07:01 – Card counts 0:11:10 – Sharing ideas 0:15:27 – Playtesting 0:18:31 – Kigi 0:22:04 – Publishers in different regions 0:33:39 – International legal matters 0:39:49 – Royalties and crowdfunding 0:53:58 – Upcoming projects   Subscribe and review the show on iTunes as well ! Please support high quality game design discussion like this show. Thanks!

The Inquisitive Meeple just posted a very long interview with me over here . We cover a LOT of territory there, including graphic design, getting started in the game design craft, and the false binary choice of print-on-demand vs. traditional publishing. Here's a snippet: When you talk about elegant games or game design – what do you mean? Daniel: Smarter people than me have talked about this at length, but these days I prefer the term “ eloquent” over “elegant.” The past few years, “elegant” has become synonymous with “minimalist,” but that is not always the case. Elegance is simply a ratio of the complexity at the start of the game to its complexity in the middle-to-late game. A game can have a relatively high learning curve, but if it opens up into a constellation of even more interesting choices, then it’s still elegant. A game can have a very shallow learning curve, but not open up at all, so it’s not elegant. Meanwhile, I like “eloquence” because it im...

Thanks to all the playtesters who have joined in the March playtests for A La Kart so far! It's been wonderful seeing so many people take interest in this odd little idea for a card game series. I paid a visit to The Dice Section podcast headquarters last week to talk about how the playtests are going. You can listen to that episode here. We talked about classic video games, playtesting with a large community, and just general geekery. It was a blast! Also! This is just a reminder to sign up if you want to access the live rules doc, download print-and-play files, and join discussion about deck balance or card redesigns. Sign up today!

This weekend I was on Something From Nothing talking about my first foray into the realm of CCG design, or as I more often call it "cards with words," or "cards with effects." Chevee Dodd had lots of really good advice for how to model the kart racing theme of A La Kart. In response, I had rambling, ambiguous answers to his questions. Oh my god, I just would not shut up. Not my best showing. :P

Christine Gertz from the University of Alberta's Career Centre interviewed me recently about how I use Google Helpouts for my business . It's a short conversation covering a lot of ground including education, time management, picking your first project, and the advantages of video conferencing vs. asynchronous communication. For the past year or so, I've offered 30min consultation sessions for $15. So far the reviews have been great and I'm eager to do it more often.  Here's a link to further reading compiled by Christine, including my recorded Helpout sessions with Jaren Maddock.

I just did an interview this week with the Escapist's Tabletop Podcast, hosted by Jon Bolding! We chat about the history of Smart Play Games, odd business models, microgames, card games, my design philosophy, and what's coming in the future! Direct link to the audio Subscribe on iTunes  Or watch the video below! Watch Jon and I get progressively sweatier as the interview goes on. IT WAS THAT INTENSE. The Escapist : Escapist Podcast - Tabletop : 007: Smart Play Games 

Last week, I got into a little discussion with Kory Heath (designer of Zendo and co-designer of Criminals ) about his preference to spend more time on a single game to make sure it meets his very high standards, rather than releasing more frequent games that may be of a lower standard. My internet connection at the time was really dodgy, so we get cut off at around the 30min mark. Still, the short conversation covered lots of tantalizing topics, including the different goals of game design when it is a hobby vs. when it is a business. Eventually we got to talking about our "perfect games." For Kory, it's Take It Easy. For me, it's No Thanks. We got to wondering if the designer of No Thanks would himself consider his game to be of a very high standard. Well, industrious friend T.C. Petty actually contacted Thorsten Gimmler on German facebook to ask the man himself! Check out Thorsten's response on T.C.'s blog : "Hi Thomas, Do I have a perfect...

Wow, it's been an amazing campaign for Belle of the Ball so far. We just passed $50,000 in funding! Incredible! Throughout the past month, Chris Kirkman and I have been lucky enough to be interviewed on several podcasts and websites. If you've had trouble keeping up, here's a complete roundup. Podcasts Going Last : OMG! The DoubleClicks! AAHH!! *cough* ... Why, yes, enjoy this entirely serious discussion with Angela and Aubrey of the DoubleClicks (and Justin the Bard). Indie Talks : Ben Gerber catches me when I'm loopy tired and gets a bit of my casual silliness. Video BoardGameNews : Chris demos Belle of the Ball for BoardGameGeek's very own Eric Martin, live at Gen Con! Master Plan : Ryan Macklin interviews me on his brand new Master Plan series. Words, Words, Words Stonemaier : Jamey Stegmaier interviewed Chris and I about our experiences together, developing Belle over many years. Father Geek : Cyrus Kirby has a positively glowing review ...

I've been on several podcasts over the past few weeks promoting Koi Pond , Belle of the Ball , Princess Bride: Battle of Wits and my upcoming card design class . Of course each show is different and topics drift wherever the conversation may go. Here's a roundup of some of those interviews and a special treat at the end of the post if you want to hear me get absolutely crushed in Twilight Imperium. Happy Mitten Podcast: Episode 5 First up, the new baby of the podcast scene is the Happy Mitten Podcast. This show focuses mainly on the business side of the hobby, including how I started my career in gaming and how it's been progressing this year. Listen to this one if you'd like to learn a little about how I try to keep my brain in one piece despite having so many responsibilities at once. Little Metal Dog: Episode 61 It's always great coming back to the Little Metal Dog Show. This is my third appearance on the show, if my count is correct. In this episode, I ...

A few months ago I wrote a piece for Casual Game Insider magazine about how to design what I've been calling "casual strategy" games. These are hybrids of the deep thinky games that wrack your brain for hours and the fast light games that spark for just a moment. Now, I never really consider myself writer, so by way of example, I included a new game called Royal Draft . It's an experiment in chaos vs. order choices in game design playable with a simple deck of playing cards. It's really quite cool and will be further developed in the near future. Even if you don't dig the article, I think you'll dig the game. And besides, it features far more qualified contributors from Tasty Minstrel Games, The Game Crafter, and many more. Check it out here!

Heyo! It's been a while since I've done many podcast interviews. I was doing a TON in 2010-2011 promoting my games or the 1000 Year Game Design Challenge. This time around things are much more casual. Here are some recent appearances that you can put in your ear holes. The Dice Section 12: Survive I stop by to visit my good friends at the Dice Section to chat about the current events of gaming and to play a rowsing game of Survive: Escape from Atlantis . We also talk about the current iteration of Belle of the Ball and how it was refined from a particularly rough playtest last Fall. Jennisodes 143: Sidekick Quests James Stowe, Lyndsay Peters, and I team up to talk about Sidekick Quests , James' adorable webcomic about youthful adventuring sidekicks. Lyndsay and I are still tinkering with the card game. We talk about our design goals, how the game works, why it's great for kids, and list several of the cute D&D-inspired quests in the game. Look for more on S...

Waaaay back in September, I was interviewed on the G*M*S podcast to talk about graphic design in board games. The conversation quickly turned to game design itself and some of the creative constraints I put on myself. Mainly, that constraint has been avoiding designing games with a combat or violent theme. I've also been avoiding games with colonial themes and, by extension, avoiding games about farms. So between those two constraints, I've left myself out of the most populous genres across gaming: The American fantasy combat and the European colony simulation. What's left is odd themes like parties competing for guests , or raising dragons for their dung , and flying kids helping strangers . (Later this week I'll talk about the intersection of new or familiar themes with new or familiar mechanics.) Anyhoo, you should listen to this episode if you like hearing about the craft of rules presentation, game design. Also to find out why the host calls me the Quentin T...

Earlier this year, shortly after Do: Pilgrims of the Flying Temple won a special judges' award at Origins, Booklife requested an interview. Do's editors Ryan Macklin and Lillian Cohen-Moore joined me to discuss the finer points of editing RPGs, how to edit mechanics, and writing for games. Here's a snippet! BW: As editors, how does your approach differ when you edit a game versus other kinds of manuscripts? Ryan Macklin: I’m primarily a game editor. A game has many different contextual channels, more than fiction or even most text books. Games books need to serve as instructional text (along with examples and other methods that facilitate learning) and sources of inspiration. That means text flow is as much of a page design consideration as what’s on a given page. Since people learn by different methods, including having others read a book and teach, a given section needs to take that into account, as well as blend in evocative tone and color to facilitate learning the...

Listen to this episode of The Dice Section as we discuss Do: Pilgrims of the Flying Temple's latest award , examine the state of crowdfunding and play the latest version of Belle of the Ball . I am so pleased with how this session turned out. Here are key highlights so far. There are several paths to victory, some of them convergent with each other, some of them divergent from each other. The first time you play, you're constantly just on the edge of fluency. There are one too many gears turning for you to keep track of in the first session, but that is fun for many people. Thought you don't achieve fluency in the first game, you get so close and the game is short enough that it calls for one more play. The theme really fits the mechanics well. So much so that it even got past Micheal's skeptical first impressions. But let's hear the guys speak for themselves! » The Dice Section: Episode 6 - Belle of the Ball

Heyo! I have new interviews to share with you on this fine Tuesday morning. Get your headphones on and prepare to have your ears caressed by my dulcet tones. First up, I pay a visit to the State of Games podcast, live in their studio! We talk about Luck in Game Design . How it works, how to design around it, and how to channel it into a successful game. We also spend some time talking about luck from the game-buyer's perspective. Do you prefer to respond to luck or prepare for luck? That preference can help inform your next game purchase. » State of Games: The One About Getting Lucky Next, I talk to the Law of the Geek about the long saga of the Happy Birthday, Robot! license to the Sandstorm. I'm joined by Tim Koppang, my legal counsel during those negotiations. Together, we outline the timeline of events and the legal protections Tim made sure were in place just in case. There is a lot of law geekery here, watch out! For my own take on this legal journey, check out ...

And then there was that time I stumbled into a radio show. Let's back up... I ran into my buddy Michael Harrison near my office. We got a pint at the bar (cappuccino stout!) and chatted about all sorts of stuff. Smart guy, that Michael. And it turns out he was about to go into a radio interview with a live audience. Sounded interesting, so I came to watch. Then they gave us both mics. I reacted with my usual poise. On Runtime Expectations , the normal topic is programming and stuff. Michael came on to talk about web analytics and its variety of uses in the real world. He goes from the basics of data aggregation to how to interpret that data for actual action. If you need any kind of in-depth analysis, you want to talk to Michael . On the Little Metal Dog Show , I recap the Thousand-Year Game Design Challenge and how we selected a winner. But really, you should listen to the episode to hear Rob Daviau talk about RISK: Legacy. A local group has been playing it for a while here a...

Expeditious Interview - Daniel Solis from Obsidian Portal on Vimeo . Right after a seminar, the dudes from Obsidian Portal did an expeditious video interview. Why did I choose to do the interview under harsh convention lighting instead of moving over to the giant bay window just a few feet away? Ah well. Watch as I decide who would win in a fight between Harry Potter and Optimus Prime.

WGN - Thousand Year Game Design Challenge Interview by Daniel A Solis Nick Digilio interviewed me on WGN Radio about the Thousand-Year Game Design Challenge . It's a lively conversation with a surprise call-in at the end. This went much less awkwardly than my first radio interview.