A Cozy Little Game Design Retreat

Game design isn’t just about making good rules—it’s about making them in the right place. In our latest dungeon-delving RPG, we’ve tried to keep the fighting simple and instead focus on the game’s main themes: envy, greed, and madness. To do that, the rules had to move. Episode mentions: Cairn TTRPG - Yochai Gal MÖRK BORG TTRPG - Pelle Nilsson and Johan Nohr  Indiana Jones (1981 - Steven Spielberg) The Mummy (1999 - Stephen Sommers) The Witch / The VVitch (2015 - Robert Eggers) Episode credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Design Doc is hosted by the One Shot Podcast Network. Find and support other network shows here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://oneshotpodcast.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Turtlebun links: Patreon:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠⁠

Hannah and Evan talk about balancing work and play during a creative retreat. Three days surrounded by trees and friends yielded a heap of proofreading, some reluctant game design, and, triumphantly, reading an actual book! Episode mentions: Martha Moody (novel, Susan Stinson) Episode credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Design Doc is hosted by the One Shot Podcast Network. Find and support other network shows here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://oneshotpodcast.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Turtlebun links: Patreon:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠⁠

It would seem like creative inspiration should come from favorite films, classic works of art, and the world’s best novels. But sometimes, it can be hard to draw inspiration from perfect, untouchable things. In this episode, we take on the imperfect—bad movies from favorite directors, books that over-indulged in nostalgia, and video games with terrible final acts. Maybe the best inspiration comes from the things you most want to fix. This episode is a re-air of a fan favorite: Imperfect Inspiration, first aired in July 2022. Episode mentions: Hannibal (2013 TV show) The Princess Bride (1987 film) His Dark Materials (Book Trilogy by Philip Pullman) Ready Player One (Novel by Ernest Cline) First Kill (2022 TV show) (Also Euphoria, also Twilight) Neil Breen (Filmmaker) NuTrek (Star Trek: Discovery, Strange New Worlds) Flight (2012 film) Indigo Prophecy (2005 video game) The Prisoner (1967 TV show) Dead Petz (2015 album, Miley Cyrus in collaboration with The Flaming Lips) Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006 film) Crimes of the Future (2022 film) Honorable mention: Morbius Episode credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Design Doc is hosted by the One Shot Podcast Network. Find and support other network shows here: ⁠⁠⁠https://oneshotpodcast.com/⁠⁠⁠ Turtlebun links: Patreon:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠⁠

What do the sequences (3-4-5-6), (5-2-5-2), and (1-1-1-1) have in common? They’re all random dice rolls! Sometimes randomness seems random, but more often than you’d expect, it looks like an obvious pattern. When relying on dice or cards as randomizers, how do you account for the edge cases and anomalies that can lead to repetition, unfair player imbalances, or long waits to get the results you need? Episode Mentions: It Follows (2014 film by David Robert Mitchell) Design Doc ep. 112: Queuing for Canoeing Episode credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Design Doc is hosted by the One Shot Podcast Network. Find and support other network shows here: ⁠⁠https://oneshotpodcast.com/⁠⁠ Turtlebun links: Patreon:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠⁠

Hannah and Evan tackle the question of reprinting versus redesigning an older game, Noirlandia. It’s a game that still sells well after all these years, but there are many tempting improvements to make. Where’s the line between editing a word here and there and getting drawn in by the siren song of a new edition? Episode credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Design Doc is hosted by the One Shot Podcast Network. Find and support other network shows here: ⁠https://oneshotpodcast.com/⁠ Turtlebun links: Patreon:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠⁠

Hannah and Evan talk about the next steps involved in releasing a new draft of the Escape from Wonderland beta. The sprint to publish a public version of the rules involved a ton of time and effort, but the work isn’t done yet! The newest release includes incorporating changes based on playtester feedback, fancying up flavor text, and releasing online play tools for the first time. Good news—that version is out now! Find Escape from Wonderland 0.6 here. Episode credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Design Doc is hosted by the One Shot Podcast Network. Find and support other network shows here: https://oneshotpodcast.com/ Turtlebun links: Patreon:⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website:⁠⁠ ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram:⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky:⁠⁠ ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠⁠

A quick announcement episode to let everyone know that the Escape from Wonderland beta rules are live. This is a draft of the game rules, publicly available for anyone to read and play. To share your thoughts, join us on Discord. Links below: Turtlebun discord: https://discord.gg/h6JsahwgH Link to the beta rules doc here: https://turtlebun.com/products/escape-from-wonderland Episode credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Turtlebun links: Patreon:⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website:⁠ ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram:⁠ ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky:⁠ ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠⁠

Hannah sits down with rules editor and game designer Josh Yearsley (Root, Arcs) for a conversation about public playtesting. After more than a decade of editing rulebooks, Josh has developed a keen eye and intuition for playtest feedback. Josh talks about playtesting as a fluid conversation, incorporating feedback on a community scale, and staying true to your own voice when it starts to get lost in the shuffle. Links to episode mentions: Buried Giant Studios Double Fine PsychOdyssey Episode credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Turtlebun links: Turtlebun Discord: https://discord.gg/h6JsahwgH (this link expires after 30 days—if you click and it's expired, email us!) Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website: ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky: ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠

We're taking a short break to focus on finishing a game. See you back soon! Links Turtlebun Discord: ⁠https://discord.gg/ajP36nzPb2⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Patreon:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Credits Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get in touch Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠⁠

Evan and Hannah talk about two separate playtests—Evan’s playtest of the near-complete Escape from Wonderland, and Hannah’s playtest of the just-begun Seekers of the Thrice-Lost Crown. Both games went well, but surprises lurk around every corner, and sometimes someone has to die on the first turn. Episode mentions Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders (2018) Links Discord:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://discord.gg/ajP36nzPb2⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Patreon:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Website:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Credits Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get in touch Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky:⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠⁠