. . . is Time Management. Before you rush off to look that up on BGG, don't bother. I mean, it may be a game listed on there, but that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about actually figuring out how your day is going to be spent and then executing that plan. (That laughing sound you hear is my wife reading those words on this page.)
These past two weeks, I've been redesigning a game, organizing playtesters, thinking about this other game I need to redesign, contacting various people about various, non-related projects, answering rules questions about Kingdom of Solomon, finishing a proposal for another game, teaching a class, tutoring, taking an online class in math education, preparing lessons for church, reading, getting things packed up to move later this year (house needs to be ready by March), all while helping to babysit my very active nephew and my four daughters. I'm really glad my wife does 99% of the homeschooling. And I'm also glad I make enough money from all this to survive, because it would stink to have to WORK in addition to all this stuff!
I'm not terrible at this important skill, but I'm also easily distracted. I've noticed a correlation between my strong inclination to switch strategies halfway through a game and my knack for starting a new project at exactly the halfway point of the old project. This is a recipe for lots of projects. Which is good for a game designer, I think. Keeps us sharp.
This is that part of the post were I explain my secret technique for managing my time. Except . . . I don't really have one. I only started writing this entry because I was waiting for something to upload for a different project I'm supposed to be working on. !!! That's what I'm dealing with here! Again, I don't have a magic formula, but I can at least give you my (non-original, captain-obvious) steps:
1. Write stuff down. Before you go to bed or when you get up. What do you need to do tomorrow? What do you want to get done if you have extra time?
2. Spend a few minutes every month/two weeks to sit and think about what you want long-term. Write this down, too. Sometimes you have to break these up into smaller bites to get them to fit on your day-to-day list.
3. If you're not getting stuff done, re-evaluate. Do you really need/want to get it done? If so, then you may have to go to step 4.
4. Do that really hard/boring thing you wrote down for today. Ouch.
I guess that's how I juggle all my many responsibilities (occasionally dropping something) and still keep my head screwed on.
Oh, and I'm going to be attending a Revolution! tournament a week from Saturday. Should be a blast!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Winning the Revolution
Just the other day, Phil Reed of SJG asked me to write a short article on Revolution! strategy. Of course, I jumped at the chance--it's one of my favorite topics! Now that I've had some time to really reflect on the game and read various theories on BGG, it was nice to tie it all together into a little package. The article is called Winning the Revolution. What do you think? What's your favorite strategy? Got any good tips or tricks? And let me again thank you all for being such great fans of the game--you guys have helped the revolution swell to unforeseen heights of chaos and glory!
Friday, December 30, 2011
Christmas Gaming
I got three very nice games for Christmas this year. Here's a quick summary of my initial thoughts.
1. Dominion: Hinterlands - We only got to play one game of this. We used all new cards, so it was a bit confusing at first. The game was fun--this is the first game we'd ever exhausted the entire Silver pile! I'll have to try the other cards out when we get back from our trip.
2. Eminent Domain - I had been wanting to try this deck-building entry for some time. Our first game was difficult and full of errors, but still pretty entertaining. We started figuring it out by the end. A few days later my daughter and I played it again. She still hasn't got it down, but I started buying lots of the tech cards and ramping things up. Final score was 44 to 22, with Isabel declaring that she would never play again. Maybe she'll come around. Bottom line: this is a good game with lots of interesting mechanics but it has a bit of a learning curve for new players. Multiple plays are required to figure it out. But it's really quite fun after that!
3. Quarriors! - I was just curious enough to put this on my list. First off, I hate the theme. It looks like playing Pokemon. I'm nearly 35. I'd feel really dumb playing Pokemon. That said, Quarriors is pretty fun and quick. I'm curious to see how the expansion plays . . .
In addition to the new games, we also continued our fascination with Pirate Dice. I have two sets now, so we can play with up to eight. It's become our party game of choice. Highly recommended, especially for new players!
Hope you have a great new year--see you in 2012!
1. Dominion: Hinterlands - We only got to play one game of this. We used all new cards, so it was a bit confusing at first. The game was fun--this is the first game we'd ever exhausted the entire Silver pile! I'll have to try the other cards out when we get back from our trip.
2. Eminent Domain - I had been wanting to try this deck-building entry for some time. Our first game was difficult and full of errors, but still pretty entertaining. We started figuring it out by the end. A few days later my daughter and I played it again. She still hasn't got it down, but I started buying lots of the tech cards and ramping things up. Final score was 44 to 22, with Isabel declaring that she would never play again. Maybe she'll come around. Bottom line: this is a good game with lots of interesting mechanics but it has a bit of a learning curve for new players. Multiple plays are required to figure it out. But it's really quite fun after that!
3. Quarriors! - I was just curious enough to put this on my list. First off, I hate the theme. It looks like playing Pokemon. I'm nearly 35. I'd feel really dumb playing Pokemon. That said, Quarriors is pretty fun and quick. I'm curious to see how the expansion plays . . .
In addition to the new games, we also continued our fascination with Pirate Dice. I have two sets now, so we can play with up to eight. It's become our party game of choice. Highly recommended, especially for new players!
Hope you have a great new year--see you in 2012!
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Merry Christmas!
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Tiger Stripes 20% Off Sale!
In honor of Isabel being on TV (for just a few seconds at the end of the clip), we are offering a 20% discount on Tiger Stripes. Have any kids or grand-kids learning about addition and subtraction? Get them a great Christmas gift for just
Friday, November 25, 2011
I Hate It When
. . . this happens.
You design a game (or at least come up with a cool new idea), and then someone else beats you to the punch. Keep in mind, I'm not accusing anyone of theft or anything. I believe this is a total coincidence, but enough of a coincidence that I wanted to share it with you.
I have been shopping around a game I call Square Off for a couple of years now. The other day, I learned of a new product from Gamewright called City Square Off. The games are nothing alike--it's only the names (and logos) that are similar. Or is it just me?
Anyway, it's just weird. Now to think up a new name.
You design a game (or at least come up with a cool new idea), and then someone else beats you to the punch. Keep in mind, I'm not accusing anyone of theft or anything. I believe this is a total coincidence, but enough of a coincidence that I wanted to share it with you.
I have been shopping around a game I call Square Off for a couple of years now. The other day, I learned of a new product from Gamewright called City Square Off. The games are nothing alike--it's only the names (and logos) that are similar. Or is it just me?
Anyway, it's just weird. Now to think up a new name.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Checking In
In case you haven't noticed by my total lack of posting, I've been swamped lately! A combination of substitute teaching, family projects and some fresh design work as kept my nose firmly against the grindstone. So, here are a few random and/or interesting bits of news:
I helped organize a program for Nation Game Day at my local library. Unfortunately, only one kid showed up! :( I'm choosing to put the blame for this squarely on the lack of advertising by the library and the insanely beautiful Saturday afternoon weather.
Saturday, Isabel and I participated in a little Dominion tournament at Gateway Games. Isabel had a better score than I did and just missed second place by a few points. Very nice time regardless!
Also, BGG.con just wrapped up down in Texas. James of Minion Games was able to attend and gave me a good report of the demos he ran of Kingdom of Solomon. However, we recently learned that Ludofact will not be able to ship all our games (my game and two others have to be shipped in the same load) for a bit longer. This means the boat will be a bit later and then US distribution will be a bit later. Right now it's looking more like January or even February before the games make it to local stores and people's doorsteps. We are so sorry to be missing the holiday season--and extremely sorry to disappoint anyone's gift-giving plans.
Let me leave you with something nice: I have become a diehard fan of the Ludology podcast. These guys do the Game Tech feature on the Dice Tower podcast. The show is fantastic--you almost need to take notes! If you're a game designer, or just curious about game mechanics, give it a listen.
I helped organize a program for Nation Game Day at my local library. Unfortunately, only one kid showed up! :( I'm choosing to put the blame for this squarely on the lack of advertising by the library and the insanely beautiful Saturday afternoon weather.
Saturday, Isabel and I participated in a little Dominion tournament at Gateway Games. Isabel had a better score than I did and just missed second place by a few points. Very nice time regardless!
Also, BGG.con just wrapped up down in Texas. James of Minion Games was able to attend and gave me a good report of the demos he ran of Kingdom of Solomon. However, we recently learned that Ludofact will not be able to ship all our games (my game and two others have to be shipped in the same load) for a bit longer. This means the boat will be a bit later and then US distribution will be a bit later. Right now it's looking more like January or even February before the games make it to local stores and people's doorsteps. We are so sorry to be missing the holiday season--and extremely sorry to disappoint anyone's gift-giving plans.
Let me leave you with something nice: I have become a diehard fan of the Ludology podcast. These guys do the Game Tech feature on the Dice Tower podcast. The show is fantastic--you almost need to take notes! If you're a game designer, or just curious about game mechanics, give it a listen.
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