Blog Posts
Running a Curry and Board Game Night for Non-Gamers
Last weekend Tony and I helped to run a Curry and Board Gaming fundraising event for our local theatre group (which we and my wife are members of). It was a lot of fun but we learned a few good lessons about running a board gaming event for ‘non-board-gamers’.
Post-Expo Breakdown for Small Exhibitors
Overview Tinkerbot Games is a small publisher with 3 members, none of whom work full time for the company. Everything we do is evenings and weekends. This year (2017) we had our first proper stand at the UK’s biggest board game convention, the UK Games Expo in the NEC in Birmingham. The following information is […]
What is a Board Game Design Hack?
Ok, so you’re probably at this page because you’e wondering what a board game design hack is. Here’s the general idea: What’s a design hack? A design hack is an event where like-minded people get together to share ideas, discuss new concepts and have an opportunity to practise their design skills. We’ll be taking this […]
Intuition in gameplay and design
This week I’d like to talk about an article from my new board game design go-to book, the Kobold Guide. In this article, Rob Daviau (designer and co-designer of Risk 2219 A.D., Heroscape, Axis & Allies:Pacific, Risk Legacy, SeaFall and more!) talks about intuitiveness in game design. The example Rob uses is an experiment he […]
Damage Orbs! (Board Games Anagrams)
Can you figure out all 10 board game anagrams? Hey folks, how about a bit of light fun today? Below you’ll find 10 board game anagrams, how many can you solve without looking it up? (click on the anagram to reveal the answer)
‘AndHe’ Games interview with legendary designer Bruno Faidutti
This week I read a wonderful article, an interview with Bruno Faidutti (Citadels, Red November, The Queen’s Necklace, the list is enormous) by ‘AndHe’ Games. Bruno answers with such honesty in his replies to the interviewer questions, and I just can’t get his final statement (about life not being a game, but a mess) out […]
Are we about to ruin our board game with this idea?
Some of you may already know that the three of us are working on Ghostel. It’s Bevan’s design but Me and Tony are helping him out with development. We’re getting ready for the Kickstarter campaign and got onto the subject of this blog post: Game Art So naturally, with 3 people working on a project you’re eventually […]
The 3 Distinct Stages of Prototyping
When I started working on my first design I made a monumental cock up and, after speaking to other designers, I’ve discovered I’m not alone in this. Prototyping. It’s really easy to get excited by your first design and you want to get stuck in as soon as possible. You know it’s going to need […]
Tales from Wyrm Farm: Designing with the Kitchen Sink
Hi all! So this week’s post should be short and sweet, as we made a big announcement on the podcast regarding Ghostel, a board game we’re hoping to bring to the general public in the near future. I won’t repeat what was said, you’ll just have to pop over to the podcast and give it […]
TT #20 – Board Gaming Etiquette, The Bespoke Geek and More Beeps Than Ever!
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_20.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:20:17 — 73.5MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSIn this episode Gino and Bevan discuss the Dos and Don’ts of board gaming etiquette! Also Bevan interviews Kara Gander about her Kickstarter campaign ‘The Bespoke Geek’ for geeky clothing, and we give you a Ghostel update.
Ghostel Design Blog 2 – Scoring Big
This week I’d like to look at the mechanics used for scoring points. For those who haven’t had a go at Ghostel, players roll dice at the start of each night to determine how scary they are. The players then place their dice on the people in the house, trying to equal or beat the […]
Ghostel Wins Family Silver Award 2017
Today the Imagination Games (IG) Awards were released and we’re very proud to announce that Ghostel was awarded a Silver Award for Family Games. Imagination Games used the following criteria for the Family Game category: The key element of a good “family” game for us, is that everyone can play it… with everyone else… […]
Ghostel Design Blog #6 – Breaking the rules with Spookie Favours
Hi there folks! For what is probably my last design blog piece for Ghostel, I wanted to look at the part of the game which gives the most variety to game play, the Spookie Favours. These are cards bought from The Ghost in the Attic during the Day Phase. Each one allows you to bend […]
Mouldy Money – Saving $7500 in Board Game production costs
In one of our podcast episodes I described how we may have found a way to save $7500 in the cost of producing a board game with miniatures. I’m going to summarise the main points here because I know not everyone listens to podcasts. We approached board game manufacturers to get quotes on the cost […]
Game Designer vs Game Reviewer Pt 1 – The Pros
So for today’s blog piece, I want to touch on a notion that’s been tickling at the back of my brain box ever since I made the decision to put pen to cardboard and design my own board and card games; is it OK to be a Game designer AND a Game reviewer? Before I […]
Designing Gnolems – UK Redesign Competition 2015
A few weeks ago myself and the rest of the Tinkerbot crew attended the UK Games EXPO, the biggest hobby gaming event in Britain. Last year we had an absolute blast, including demonstrating a couple of games we’d entered into the Redesign Competition and had the good fortune of reaching the Finals with. Well, this […]
Game Designer vs Game Reviewer Pt 2 – The Cons
Hi folks! This week is the second half of my look at Game Designer vs Game Reviewer (see my last blog for a recap if you missed it!) so I’ll just get straight into the cons of mixing these two elements of the table top industry. A designer can sometimes view a game how THEY […]
Board Game Design Hack – A Review
On Friday 12th June, Tinkerbot Games held it’s first Design Hack at the Katiwok Restaurant in Cardiff. For the full details of what a ‘design hack’ is then check out this link, but in a nutshell a Hack is a short presentation concerning an aspect of the design world, followed by a workshop (the hack) where […]
5th Street Games declares bankruptcy
So last week I got the sad news that 5th Street Games has had to file for Bankruptcy. As a big user of Kickstarter for funding their game production, this has led to several projects entering the zone of no fulfilment. This includes one I myself backed, the cute and intriguing Ghosts Love Candy. The former […]
Get Your Face in a Board Game For Free
Be a character in our board game – Ghostel Yes, that’s right! If you’ve ever wanted to be a character in a board game then this may be the opportunity you’re looking for!
TT #10 – Kickstarter leaving Amazon, Holiday Gaming and The Clumsy Cat and the Radiator
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_10.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 31:29 — 28.8MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSIn episode 10 of Talking Tinkerbots: 0:26 – Kickstarter is leaving Amazon 13:40 – The games we played/got over the holidays 15:50 – The clumsy cat and the radiator
TT #4 – The Jumanji Question and an Interview with Jon Adams (Cartography)
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Talking%20Tinkerbots%20Ep4_1.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 41:18 — 37.8MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSAll three tinkerbots are joined by game designer and kickstarter campaign runner Jon Adams of Cartography! Also on this episode: – Board Game Mashup follow up – The best of the suggested mashups from our listeners. – Feedback – The […]
TT #5 – A Woozling Magic Moment, The Apprentice and Ignoring First-Time Designers
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_5.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 43:08 — 39.5MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSThis week is brought to you by Gino and Bevan! On this episode: – A Board Game Magic Moment about Christmas games for Niblings (Feed the Woozle: http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/130624/feed-woozle) – Bevan tells us about an episode of The Apprentice all about Board […]
TT #15 – Exciting News and Interviews: Tabletop Day Special (Hi Steve!)
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_15.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:02:52 — 57.6MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSIn episode 15 of Talking Tinkerbots: 0:24 – Finding Tony 1:02 – Follow-up: Luck in board games 5:08 – Why tweets are 140 characters 14:48 – Exciting news! 21:35 – Tabletop Day 25:10 – More things speeled wrong 26:25 […]
UK Games Expo Redesign Competition Finalists!
Exciting News! Some of you may remember that we entered our game Epic Lab Time into the UK Games Expo Redesign Competition, well we’ve just been selected as finalists!
Chaos Unpub – Tinkerbot Review
Bevan’s Bit Last weekend myself and the rest of Tinkerbot Towers were lucky enough to attend a board and card game design event known as Chaos Unpub (check here for more details). We got the chance to meet many great designers and play-testers, show off a few of our own designs and check out the […]
S3E1 – We’re Back! Season 3 Starts Here with special guest Mike Barnes
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_27.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 57:58 — 53.1MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSBevan and Gino host with special guest Mike Barnes from Who Dares Rolls. They discuss BGG ratings, Who Dares Rolls and Gino talks about the power of Thumbnails for Kickstarter Campaigns on our new section Getting Kicked!
Kickstarter to leave Amazon payments
On 06 Jan 15, Kickstarter announced they would be moving from Amazon payments to a new service called Stripe. KS reported that this would speed up payments, both for Creators (who would no longer need to wait for Amazon to approve a business acocunt) and for Backers (who would no longer be directed to Amazon’s […]
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Is Tabletopia the future of tabletop gaming?
Some exciting news from the world of tabletop gaming. A new digital board game client has come onto the scene, boasting all manner of features and a slick 3D presentation as of yet unseen in the industry.
Ghostel Design Blog 4 – Stacking the deck
Hi all! For this week’s article, I’d like to discuss the use of variable difficulty on the human visitor cards used to occupy the ghost house. Right at the beginning of Ghostel’s development, I always intended there to be different difficulties of humans in the house, with a corresponding increase in victory points. This was […]
The 2015 Tinkerbots 5×12 Challenge
Last year we had the 10×10 Board Game Challenge. The challenge was to pick 10 board games you want to play more of, and over the year 2014 play those games 10 times each. The purpose of the challenge was to encourage people to play more games over the year. This year we decided […]
Ghostel Kickstarter live date announced
Hey folks! So things are really hotting up on the Ghostel Kickstarter campaign and I just wanted to give you guys and gals an update. So the big question is: When will we be going live? Well, the campaign itself is done in terms of all the elements needed to get us going. However, there […]
A trip to the Thirsty Meeple!
This weekend I celebrated my 31st rotation of the Sun on this little blue-green planet of ours, and to make it special me and a few friends visited one of the first board game cafes in the UK, Thirsty Meeples of Oxford. Needless to say, I was pretty excited! I dashed ahead of the rest […]
399 Days of a Kickstarter Campaign – A Ghost Story
This infographic may be useful to people planning a board game Kickstarter campaign. For everyone else it’s an interesting look at the timeline for fulfilling a campaign like ours. On January 26th 2016 we launched the Kickstarter Campaign to produce our game Ghostel. We set ourselves a deadline of fulfilling all pledges by the end […]
S4E1 – Rob Daviau, Emma Larkins and Matt Leacock
https://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/S04E01-Talking-Tinkerbots.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download () | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSRob Daviau, Emma Larkins & Matt Leacock – Game Design & Pitching Panel Discussion Join host Gino from Tinkerbot Games as we hear from our panel of board game design experts as they share their insights and experiences about designing and pitching […]
TT #3 – Board Game Mashups
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Talking-Tinkerbots-Ep3.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:40 — 24.4MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSGino and Bevan talk about Board Game Mashups! The episode begins with our latest board game magic moment from listener Richie Janukowicz. Then we discuss board game mashups – merging multiple games into one super-game! Following on from this Bevan […]
Great Games and Good Eating for June
Last month, I was lucky enough to play a test version of Throw Throw Burrito and I loved it! In this card/agility game, players aim to get sets of 3 to earn points, but there’s a twist…if you get a set of burrito cards, you start a version of burrito dodgeball and whoever gets hit […]
TT #14 – Luck in Board Games and a BIG SCARY Announcement
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_14.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 38:24 — 35.2MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSIn episode 14 of Talking Tinkerbots: 1.00 – The best method ever for picking a topic 2:08 – Luck in Board Games 23:45 – Ghostel!
Happy Halloween – Spot The 10 Scary Things!
Happy Halloween everyone! For a bit of halloween fun, can you find all 10 of the spooky things hiding on the Ghostel box cover? Click the image to download a high-res version of the file and see if you can find: All Four Ghosts A Snake A Doll A Clown Face Three Spiders
Break the Block
Hi folks! So last week I posted an update which included my unfortunate realisation that at some point in the last few months I’d hit something all designers dread; Writer’s Block. Now this really sucked, but I was super lucky to have a very supportive family and friends around, in particular my wife who helped […]
The Tinkerbots at the UK Games Expo 2017
The Tinkerbots are going to the UK Games Expo with Free Stuff! What are we going to be doing there? A few things! Ghostel – We will have a demo of Ghostel on display for you try, and copies of Ghostel available for you to buy! Board Gaming Accessories – We’ll be selling a variety […]
TT #13 – Aether Magic: An interview with Jeff and Lee of Happy Mitten Games (inc the Jumanji Question!)
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_13.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:12:50 — 66.7MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSIn episode 13 of Talking Tinkerbots Gino and Bevan interview Jeff and Lee from Happy Mitten Games about their experiences so far in their Kickstarter campaign Aether Magic. We discuss: A secret campaign update! Hear it here first! Asking […]
Please don’t be a lie – Portal Boardgame to be released
Bevan takes a look at the news of a Portal boardgame being released by Valve and Crytozoic:
Great Games and Good Eating – September
September is a time for new beginnings, and back to school so this month I’ve suggested some word games to play with friends. Given the season, and the amount of vegetables we had in the garden, I recommend serving with one of the soup recipes here. Use a cup rather than a bowl so you […]
TinkerVlog Episode ?? – The Pilot
Hello and welcome to the inaugural episode of what I hope will be a series of vlogs on board game design. This one is a simple pilot where I go over what I hope to achieve with these little videos and try to engage with the community in a different way. Enjoy!
TT #11 – Crowd Sales, UK Games Expo, The 5×12 Challenge and a baby!
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_11.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:12 — 27.7MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSIn episode 11 of Talking Tinkerbots: 0:32 – Bevan’s board game magic moment 5:30 – Crowd Sales from The Game Crafter 21:15 – UK Games Expo! 22:20 – Meeting people in real life 24:20 – Jamie’s blog about podcast 25:47 – The Tinkerbots […]
Ghostel gets the Seal of Approval from The Dice Tower
“I think a lot of people are really going to enjoy this one” – Tom Vasel
Kanzume Goddess – What can it teach?
This weekend was one of those rare ones where the schedules amongst my gaming friends matched up and we were able to get together Saturday for some tabletop cardboard-based hijinks. Amongst the great games we played (Ticket to Ride, Risk Legacy, Waggle Dance) was unfortunately a bit of a stinker, the deck builder Kanzume Goddess. […]
TableTop Day Infographic
In honour of International TableTop Day we here at Tinkerbot Games have put together a TableTop infographic just for you guys!
Great Games and Good Eating – October
I think October is my absolute favourite month, mainly because I love Halloween! This post brings us to a year of great games and good eating so enjoy this selection of spooky games and recipes to go with them. First off, make your best “woooooooo” ghost impression for Ghostel (shameless plug – this is available […]
MONSTROUS is (hopefully) going to release the Kraken!
MONSTROUS is a gloriously illustrated deluxe Greek Mythology game from new publishers Good Games Publishing. We reviewed the game and also interviewed designer and publisher Kim Brebach on our podcast. If you hadn’t already guessed, we like the game (we gave it 3 out of 3 approval spanners) and in fact I’ve even backed it […]
TinkerVlog Episode 01 – Omni Designing, I Heart Whiteboards and Star Wipes!
Hello! For my first proper episode, I thought I’d share one of the mantras I try to follow when thinking about new designs, plus I show my love of white boards and star wipes. Want to get involved? Send us your comments, links and videos, we’d love to know what you think and what you […]
Ghostel Design Blog 1 – Why a ghost game?
For the first blog piece, I thought I’d start at the very beginning: why a ghost game? Well, in a bizarre twist, it was actually the mechanics of Ghostel that I designed first, with the idea of a haunted house just kind of wrapping neatly around them. So where did the mechanics come from? Well, […]
Ghostel Appears in Tabletop Gaming Magazine
Exciting news in Tinkerbot Towers! Recently the latest issue of Tabletop Gaming Magazine was released and guess who appeared in it?!….go on guess….no…..no…..YES! It was us! Well, it was Bevan to be specific and his game Ghostel! Check out the nice things they had to say about it!
Dragons, Gold, Ghosts and Jugglers…it’s the Tinkerbots’ Story of the UK Games Expo 2017
This year was our first time at the UKGE as proper stallholders, we had tables and everything! We tried to make a time-lapse video of setting up the stand but we had to stop halfway through, still, this is what we got. (Note Tony doing the setup while Gino does all the heavy lifting). […]
WizKids to release Marvel Dice Masters Game before end of April
WizKids have announced the release of their latest Dice building game, Marvel Dice Masters! Using the critically-acclaimed Quarriors ruleset as a basis, MDM will see players building their team of heroes from the Marvel universe, along with special powers before attempting to smash their opponent into the floor!
TT #6 – Meeple Lovers, Mega Feedback and a Magic Moment
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_6.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 29:23 — 26.9MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSGino, Bevan and Tony are all present in this episode! This week: – We’ve had the biggest feedback ever and we discuss what we can do to improve our podcast – A magic moment about old friends and new games […]
Great Games and Good Eating – Expo (part 1)
This weekend should have been the UK Board Games Expo and guess who had an article in the magazine! As it isn’t going ahead right now, I’m posting a series of articles that pair some of the 2018 winners of the UK Board Games Expo awards with a recipe to make your next games evening […]
Where the blog have we been! Oh yeah…
Hello Tinkerbot Fans! I’m afraid I’ve been away from this blog for far too long, and I can only apologise for slacking off. To tell the truth, the last few months have been pretty manic. I took over full time care of my own little Tinkertot, which has been an amazing experience (I promise not […]
TinkerVlog Episode 02 – Helping Me, Helping U!
Hello! Managed to make it to Episode 2, and in this one I fill that gap in my whiteboard with a new idea I’ve been noodling around in my head, Helping Me, Helping U. Enjoy! Want to get involved? Send us your comments, links and videos, we’d love to know what you think and what […]
Ghostel: A Post Kickstarter Campaign Analysis
This post is an analysis of some data from our Kickstarter campaign for Ghostel. It may be useful for future campaign creators. The information we’re going to discuss: Total Backers Total Pledged Average Pledge per Backer And this will be analysed in 3 different areas: Countries Source/Referral Pledge Levels
Great Games and Good Eating for November
Bonfire night, fireworks, plots. November is a brilliant month for spending time with family, so many activities to do, and of course this includes board games. Here are my suggestions for great games to try in November and I’ve also included ideas for snacks to help get your gaming night off to a bang.
Bevan’s Top 8 games of 2014
2014 was a great year for games, and I was very lucky to get a chance to play A LOT of games. Some were great, some were terrible, and some just went past with nary a blip on the Game-O-Radar. Since it’s a new year though, I’d like to start on a positive, hence my […]
TT#21 – New Music, Ghostel is coming and Spreading the Love!
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_21.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 9:07 — 8.3MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSIn this short and sweet episode Bevan is going solo! There’s a quick set of updates of all that happening on the upcoming Ghostel Kickstarter campaign, and a few shout outs to a couple of industry chaps and chapettes […]
Great Games and Good Eating – Expo (part 2)
In this series, I’m pairing 2018 winners of UK Games Expo Awards with tasty recipes. Enjoy! Ticket to Ride: New York 8 This game is a great introduction to the Ticket to Ride franchise – 2-4 people can experience drawing tickets and then collecting cards to claim routes and the smaller map of Manhattan (and […]
UK Games Expo Redesign Competition Playtest Day
So today all of the finalist teams were invited to Leisure Games in London for the opportunity to have their game playtested (via Playtest UK) and receive feedback. One of the initial judging panellists welcomed us to the event as we arrived. There’s nothing quite like the following conversation to get the day off to […]
TT #16 – We’ve got chemistry with John Coveyou!
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_16.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 51:19 — 47.0MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSThe tinkerbots interview featured guest John Coveyou. John is a successful board game designer and kickstarter campaign runner! He shares with us some excellent insights into running a crowdfunding campaign as well as design tips so if you’re one day hoping […]
Get Your Face In Ghostel Winners Announced!
The Winners Have Been Picked! Yes, that’s right! Do you remember this competition we ran? The one about getting your face into a game? Well here are the winners! What was the plan? Here at Tinkerbot Games we’re currently on the earliest stages of artwork with our artist Tyler Johnson for our board game Ghostel. We’re going to have […]
TinkerVlog Episode 3 – Back to Bubbles
In this episode I look back at the first design I took ‘all the way’, and try to figure out why I shelved it. Enjoy!
Ghostel Design Blog 3 – The Phobias
This week I thought I’d look at one of the more thematic elements of Ghostel; the Phobias. Update: Since the writing of this blog, the Phobias have been renamed as scare tactics. The Phobias started as an evolution of the ghost theme, and were a clear candidate for thematic shoe-horning: I knew I wanted Phobias […]
Ghostel Expansion: Trick or Treaters, Families, Basements and New Ghosts
I was wrong. So very, very wrong. You see, after the campaign for Ghostel had ended, we at Tinkerbot Games had a sit-down and decided on what we should do next as a company. Bevan felt like we should expand Ghostel, offer new and exciting ways for players to enjoy the game, and add more […]
Great games and good eating for December
December always brings me fond memories of hours playing board games with my family, sometimes falling out, often going over the allowability of certain two-letter words in scrabble that certain family members insist on playing – you know who you are! I can’t promise the suggestions here will stop any falling out but they should […]
TT#23 – It’s a MFGCast/Talking Tinkerbots Cross-over!
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_23.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 45:58 — 42.1MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSGino and Bevan chat to Kurt from the MFGCast, a cracking podcast about tabletop and video gaming from across the Pond. In this cross-over episode, we discuss the the difference between board gaming in America versus in Britain, and […]
Great Games and Good Eating – Expo (part 3)
In this series, I’m pairing some of the 2018 winners of the UK Games Expo awards with tasty recipes. In this hot weather, here’s a nice refreshing beverage to enjoy whilst gaming. What “secret brew” would you pair with your games? Comment below, we love hearing from you. Quacks of Quedlinburg In this game, between […]
Gaming at the Gate: Playtesting Epic Lab Time with Rules of Play
Our brilliant Friendly Local Game Store – Rules of Play – hosts a free monthly gaming night for anyone to participate and this month they’ve invited us to host a playtest of our game Epic Lab Time which has been selected as a finalist for the UK Games Expo Redesign Competition due to take place at […]
[TRANSCRIPT] Talking Tinkerbots #16 – We’ve got chemistry with John Coveyou!
In episode 16 of our podcast we had a great discussion with game designer John Coveyou about how he successfully funded his 3rd Kickstarter campaign in under 24 hours. We were contacted by someone who was interested in knowing what John had to say but couldn’t hear the podcast because they were deaf. Thankfully […]
TinkerVlog Episode 4 – Spoonicorns and Bringing the Theme
It’s episode 4, where I fluff up the opening gag (sorry!), talk about a new design called Spoonicorns and discuss the concept of better integrating theme. Oh, and I mention the word ‘moist’. Sorry again…
S3E2 – How many players?!
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/TT-Episode-2-Season-3-FINAL.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 47:41 — 43.7MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSBevan and Gino on the podcast this time, talking about designing with regard to player counts in games. We espouse one of our favourite games in Show Me Yours, and Gino talks about the getting those funds after a […]
The Best Board Game Video Ever?
Greg Cornell has just released quite possible the most amazing board game video ever. It’s about Ghostel, so I might be slightly biased, but check it out! It’s stop motion and truly brilliant. The stop-motion ghosts …. just watch. (Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEMkEZMzsJs&feature=youtu.be&a=)
Games to help with your New Year resolutions…or Great Games and Good Eating for January
Happy New Year! How often do we start with great intentions and before January’s ended, so has our willpower? To help keep those resolutions, here’s some ideas for board games to try before you give in to temptation… If you need a caffeine fix, try Cappuccino. This fast-paced game lets 2-4 players stack cappuccino cups […]
TT#24 – Ghostel is ALIVE! (on Kickstarter now!)
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_24.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:42 — 1.6MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSGhostel is live on Kickstarter right now! https://www.tinkerbotgames.com/ghostel
Great Games and Good Eating – Expo (part 4)
In this series, I’m pairing some of the 2018 UK Games Expo Award winners with tasty recipes. I was debating whether to include this one, given the current Covid-19 situation, but it’s a good game and seems unfair to exclude as it did win people’s choice for best new dice game in the 2018 Awards. […]
TT #17 – UK Games Expo Advice, XCOM Giveaway, Funky Dice & We Do a Video Review
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_17.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:08 — 32.2MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS1:50 – A transcript of our interview with John Coveyou for a deaf follower (Thanks Terrance) 3:00 – Banana Banana Banana 6:20 – Gino is betrayed by Bevan and Tony 7:15 – Tips and advice for the UK Games Expo […]
TinkerVlog Episode 6 – Pretty Bubbles
A quick recap of my week in #CoffeeBreakBGD, and a look at a new prototype from the GameCrafter, Bubbles!
Ghostel Design Blog 5 – The importance of turn order
For this week’s Ghostel blog piece, I’d like to look at the player order impact. A quick warning: this piece will talk a bit about the strategy of Ghostel and as such could be considered spoilers for those that like to learn as they play. If your that kind of player, I advise you to […]
S3E4: – Gino is missing, Bevan wipes a guest’s memory, and everyone learns 3 heads are better than one in a game design challenge.
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/TT-Episode-4-Season-3-FINAL.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 42:44 — 39.1MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSBevan leads this podcast, introducing Mark and Eric from his designer play test group. We attempt the ten minute design challenge using themes and mechanics randomly generated by the excellent Boardgamizer website. Can we each come up with something […]
Ghostel Top 10 Family Game Celebration Sale!
To celebrate Ghostel being named in The Dice Tower’s Top 10 Family Games of 2017 by Tom Vasel, Tinkerbot Games are going to run a sale from now until the end of January! You can get Ghostel for a discounted price of £29 with FREE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE. So if you have a bit of Christmas […]
Love is in the air…or Great Games and Good Eating for February
February, a month to curl up by the fire with loved ones, playing board games of course. Here are some suggestions for lovely(!) board games and snacks to help you enjoy February.
A Trivial Christmas Pursuit
Christmas 2014 may be a rapidly dwindling memory, but even during this break from work I was still presented with a learning opportunity for board game design.
TT#25 – Solo gaming and an interview with Ghostel artist Tyler Johnson
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Talking_Tinkerbots_Ep_25.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 36:16 — 33.2MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSBevan and Tony host as they talk about the seeming increase in board games featuring a solo mode, and Bevan interviews Ghostel artist Tyler Johnson. We finish up with an update on the Ghostel Kickstarter campaign.
Great Games and Good Eating – Expo (part 5)
In the final part of this series pairing some of the winners of 2018 UK Games Expo awards with tasty recipes, I look at a game that is almost as good as going outside for real and won people’s choice in best new strategic card games for 2018. Hope you enjoyed this Expo series – […]
Board game design The Apprentice way
The Apprentice, for me, has always been a bizarre programme. Contestants are split into teams and forced to rush through business projects in an attempt to out sell their opponents, all for the opportunity to become partners with Lord Sugar himself in a new venture, along with £250000 investment dosh. It all seems a bit […]
TinkerVlog Episode 7 – Changing Themes: Building Bad Robots!
So Spoonicorns as a theme no longer matches the mechanics and weight of the game, so what do I do? Change theme or change the game? Spoiler: Now you build bad robots!
Play more, learn more, improve more
For Christmas, I was given a copy of ‘The Kobold guide to Board Game Design’. After being assured by the gifter that it wasn’t given as a comment on my abilities as a designer (not that this even crossed my mind, I need all the help I can get!), I got to consuming the knowledge […]
TT #0 – Board Game Magic Moment (Pilot)
http://media.blubrry.com/talkingtinkerbots/tinkerbotgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Podcast-Magic-Moments-Ep-0.m4aPodcast: Play in new window | Download (8.2MB) | EmbedSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSSIn this pilot episode Gino talks about Board Game Magic Moments – Moments where something has happened in the board game related world which makes you smile. Gino talks about his favourite Board Game Magic Moment when a father has gone to […]
Flipping awesome..or Great Games and Good Eating for March
I love March, despite the mixed up weather and never knowing if I need a coat or sun cream, as it has one of my favourite days of the year in it…pancake day! This month, I suggest serving either classic pancakes or american-style pancakes with any of these games.