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Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design An Encyclopedia of Mechanisms

Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design An Encyclopedia of Mechanisms

Geoffrey Engelstein Isaac Shalev

CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group 6000 Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300 Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742 © 2020 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC CRC Press is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business No claim to original U.S. Government works Printed on acid-free paper International Standard Book Number-13: 978-1-138-36549-0 (Paperback) 978-1-138-36552-0 (Hardback) This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reasonable efforts have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the author and publisher cannot assume responsibility for the validity of all materials or the consequences of their use. The authors and publishers have attempted to trace the copyright holders of all material reproduced in this publication and apologize to copyright holders if permission to publish in this form has not been obtained. If any copyright material has not been acknowledged please write and let us know so we may rectify in any future reprint. Except as permitted under U.S. Copyright Law, no part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced, transmitted, or utilized in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the publishers. For permission to photocopy or use material electronically from this work, please access www. copyright.com (http://www.copyright.com/) or contact the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc. (CCC), 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400. CCC is a not-for-profit organization that provides licenses and registration for a variety of users. For organizations that have been granted a photocopy license by the CCC, a separate system of payment has been arranged. Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Engelstein, Geoffrey, author. | Shalev, Isaac, author. Title: Building blocks of tabletop game design : an encyclopedia of mechanisms / Geoffrey Engelstein and Isaac Shalev. Description: Boca Raton, FL : Taylor & Francis, 2019. | Includes bibliographical references. Identifiers: LCCN 2019010857| ISBN 9781138365490 (pbk. : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781138365520 (hardback : alk. paper) Subjects: LCSH: Board games--Design and construction. Classification: LCC GV1312 .E64 2019 | DDC 794--dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019010857 Visit the Taylor & Francis Web site at http://www.taylorandfrancis.com and the CRC Press Web site at http://www.crcpress.com

Geoff: To Susan, for a wonderful 40 years, and to our children, Brian and Sydney, for always challenging my strategies across the game table, and challenging my ideas across the kitchen table. Isaac: To my wife, a quick nod of appreciation. Let’s not make a scene about this. To my children, Jesse, Alex, and Maya, you are the gaming partners of a lifetime. To my design partner, Matt Loomis, from whom I learned more than I could contain in this slim volume. Lastly, to my brother, Kuty Shalev, my constant gaming partner, my first DM, my first co-designer, my Kickstarter patron and my coach, mentor, and cheerleader in all my pursuits.

Contents

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Foreword xiii Acknowledgments

xvii

Authors xix Introduction xxi 1  Game Structure 1 STR-01  Competitive Games 2 STR-02  Cooperative Games 4 STR-03  Team-Based Games 8 STR-04  Solo Games 12 STR-05  Semi-Cooperative Games 15 STR-06  Single Loser Games 17 STR-07  Traitor Games 19 STR-08  Scenario/Mission/Campaign Games 21 STR-09  Score-and-Reset Games 23 STR-10  Legacy Games 25 2  Turn Order and Structure 29 Terminology 30 T