Inspiration is a bit of a tricky topic in most board game design circles. To some it comes incredibly easily, to others it’s the hardest part, and some designers don’t even worry about it because they only work on one game. I thought it might be nice to go through some of the ways I’ve found inspiration

Observation

Every source of inspiration begins with noticing something. You have to be aware of your surroundings and thinking about them. Trying new things also exposes you to more things to observe. The trick to making it work, though is board games. Always be thinking about board games. Always. If you’re like me, where you consider game design something essential to your identity, then this might be easier. If you’re just a hobbyist, then maybe this is harder. But basically, always have board games on your mind, and look for ways to relate things in your life to board games. Be aware, this may have other repercussions in your life. Still pay attention to where you’re driving!

Novelty

One of the most common ways that I come up with ideas for games is just by seeing something special, or thinking of something unique. For example, I made an entire game based on the name “Two Rivers.” It’s the name of a city and when I heard it in passing I just thought “that sounds nice.” I could just so vividly picture two rivers in my head. I just started working from there, knowing nothing more about the game other than that it would feature two rivers. Another unique idea I had was when thinking about Christmas and Christmas-themed games, and I wondered if you could make a game about being Ebeneezer Scrooge. It’s such a unique concept, and the idea of starting with a bunch of money and having to get rid of it was inspiring to me. Anything that’s new and weird will have a lot of empty space that your mind will be able to fill.

Conflict

Something that I think most games have in common in some form of conflict, though not necessarily the type you expect. What I mean by conflict is just two things that are conflicting. I want more things, but I don’t want to spend money. I want to spread my reach, but I don’t want my forces to weaken. So, occasionally, I’ll notice something in the world that has a specific conflict within it. I remember watching a TV show and they had a scene where someone was hiding something from a police officer who was in their house. I was intrigued at the conflict of trying to move incriminating evidence around while trying to appear as though you aren’t. This works with mechanics, too. I was thinking about games where you give other players points. Why would you give another player points when you want them yourself? There’s a lot of directions to take that.

Jokes

I have made games entirely as a joke. Sometimes this is actually a hook: Shoot the Messenger was designed entirely because a friend told me “Don’t shoot the messenger” and I jokingly replied “well, what if I want to shoot the messenger?” And made a whole game around it. Now, the name is super memorable and people have a good idea of what happens in it. I’ve made a game about stinky cheese just because I think stinky cheese is funny, but it’s a hook! It’s tough to design a game around a joke without risking ruining the joke, but I think that’s fine. Sometimes a good game can come from a bad idea. The trick, like I menioned in the first section, is just to be thinking about board games every time you hear a joke.

Perspective

What happens when you look at games from a different angle? What are you affecting in a game, and what is affecting you? Some games are famous for this, like games where you hold your hand backwards so players other than you can see them, or hidden role games where there are more traitors than loyal players. One I’ve been working on for years is a resource management game where you play the resources. Really thinking about what happens in games and understanding what can be done with them can lead to a lot of ideas.

One Mechanic

Perhaps the most common trick among designers is to focus on a single mechanic. Not necessarily make it the center point of the game, but just something that you want to focus on personally. Maybe it’s a mechanic that you think is broken, and you had an idea of how to fix it. Maybe it’s a mechanic you like and you just want it to have a greater focus in the game. I have been trying for years to make a hidden role game that focuses on my favorite mechanic from werewolf: the masons. I don’t think I need to explain this one much; like I said, it’s a common idea.

Filling a need

Here’s the one that is most common for things outside of games. If you ever think to yourself “boy, I wish there were a game that does X,” then design a game that does X. If a friend says that, maybe make a game for them. It doesn’t even need to be a need, if you’re really looking for inspiration. A friend of mine’s birthday was coming up, and I was wondering what I could get him. I thought I could make him a game. I thought of things he liked, and tried to design a game based around something he likes. That’s all it takes!

Conclusion

Well, I tried to cover as much as I could recall, here. If you’re looking for inspiration, maybe try one of these ideas.