Prototype on paper
Test a game idea in an hour with paper, dice and cards, and improve it one rule change at a time.
THE KIT
Paper works for video games too
Many designers test a video game's rules with cards and dice before writing any code. The core loop from lesson 2 is the same whether a computer runs it or a person does, and on paper you find out fast whether it's fun. What you need: index cards, a pen, two six-sided dice, coins or beans as tokens, and a grid drawn on paper.
A dungeon video game on paper: the grid is the map, a bean is the hero, cards are monsters face down. Roll a die to see how far you move; flip a card when you step on it. In half an hour you know whether exploring feels tense or dull.
Check yourself
Hana has an idea for a racing game where you can boost but risk crashing. What should her first paper prototype try to answer?
- Does the box art look good?
- Is deciding when to boost a fun, tense choice?
- How many tracks should the full game have?
- Which music fits the menu?
Show the answer
Is deciding when to boost a fun, tense choice?
Yes. That's the core choice of her game, and a few cards and a die can test it in an hour. If it isn't fun, art and tracks won't save it.
Two six-sided dice, added together.
Ways to make each total (out of 36):
2 # 1
3 ## 2
4 ### 3
5 #### 4
6 ##### 5
7 ###### 6
8 ##### 5
9 #### 4
10 ### 3
11 ## 2
12 # 17 is the most likely total: 6 ways in 36 (about 1 in 6).
2 and 12 are the rarest: 1 way in 36 each.One die is flat: each face 1 to 6 has a 1-in-6 chance. Two dice added make a hill. Use it: put common events on 6, 7 and 8, and something dramatic on 2 or 12.
Check yourself
In Kaveh's paper game, you roll two dice and add them. He wants a "treasure" result that happens rarely. Which total should he pick?
- 7
- 6
- 12
- 8
Show the answer
12
Right. Only double six makes 12: 1 way in 36. A 7 is the most likely total, with 6 ways in 36, so it would make treasure common.
KEEP IT SHORT
One-page rules
Write the rules on one page with four headings: Goal (how you win), Setup (what's on the table at the start), A turn (what you do, in order) and The end (when the game stops). If it doesn't fit, you have too many rules for a prototype: cut until it does. The page is also what you hand testers in lesson 10.
Goal: first to 10 beans. Setup: each player takes 3 cards. A turn: draw a card, play a card, roll for beans. The end: someone has 10 beans, or the deck runs out.
Check yourself
Does it belong on a one-page rules sheet for a first prototype?
- How you win
- A two-page history of the kingdom
- What you do on a turn, in order
- Notes on what colour the final box should be
- When the game ends
- Ideas for three expansion packs
Show the answer
Keep it: How you win, What you do on a turn, in order, When the game ends
Cut it for now: A two-page history of the kingdom, Notes on what colour the final box should be, Ideas for three expansion packs
The iteration loop
- Play
Play it yourself first, then with others. Don't wait until it feels ready: it won't.
- Note
Where did people lean in? Where did they hesitate or get bored? What broke?
- Change one thing
One rule, one number, one card. Save the old version as v1 and write the new one as v2, so you can always go back.
- Play again
See whether that one change helped. Then go round again: v3, v4, v5. Most good games take many loops.
Check yourself
Which is the iteration loop, in the right order?
- Change everything → play → note → throw away the old version
- Play → note → change one thing → play again
- Note → polish the art → play once → launch
- Play → change three things → note → play again
Show the answer
Play → note → change one thing → play again
Yes. Play, note what happened, change one thing, and play again. Keeping the old versions means a bad change costs nothing.
Find the fun
- Watch for the moment players lean in: a tense choice, a lucky swing, a groan when a plan fails.
- That moment is your game. Build around it and make it happen more often.
- Cut what players skip, rush through or forget to do. If nobody misses a rule, it wasn't earning its place.
- Surprising fun counts. If testers love a side rule more than your main idea, follow them.
BORROW FREELY
Mechanics you can start from
You don't have to invent from nothing. Board game designers reuse a set of well-known building blocks: push-your-luck (stop safely or risk it for more), set collection (gather matching things), area control (hold more of the board than others), hand management (choose which cards to use and when), racing on a track and bluffing (hide what you have). Pick one, add a twist, and test.
Push-your-luck plus a theme: divers keep diving for pearls, but each dive risks a shark. That's the game you'll build in lesson 12.
Check yourself
Match each mechanic to a rule that uses it
Show the answer
- Push-your-luck → Keep rolling for more points, but a 1 loses them all
- Set collection → Score when you hold three cards of the same colour
- Area control → Whoever has the most tokens in a region scores it
- Bluffing → Play a card face down and claim what it is
Lesson recap
- A prototype answers one question about the core as cheaply as possible; paper is the fastest way.
- Paper works for video games too: the core loop is the same whoever runs it.
- One die gives 1 to 6 evenly; two dice added make 7 most likely (6 in 36) and 2 or 12 rarest (1 in 36).
- Fit the rules on one page: goal, setup, a turn, the end.
- Iterate: play, note, change one thing, play again, and keep v1, v2, v3.
- Find the moment players lean in, build around it, and cut what they skip.