Game Mechanics

Take charge of a smartphone manufacturing corporation in Smartphone Inc. by Arcane Wonders. Plus: modern alternatives to classic board games, player elimination, DIY game upgrades, Dized game tutorials, and a decade of Castle Panic by Fireside Games.

Race to the top of Yeti Mountain in Calliope Games’ new adventure dice game, Dicey Peaks. Plus: 10 categories of tile-laying games, building a game library in India, the cult of the new, "wasting time" with board games, and Gamewright's new "Play It Forward" game experience (Sneaky Cards).

Daily Magic’s Valeria: Card Kingdoms is designed to reward players as much as possible. Plus: highlights from Gen Con 2016, 10 steps to bring your game to market (part 1), how storytelling has driven the resurgence of board gaming, an inside look at the Watch It Played! YouTube channel, and the origins of the hit game SET.

Bezier Games' One Night Ultimate Vampire adds a new twist to the hit One Night series. Plus: the ins and outs of deck-building games, the surprising origins of seven classic games, teaching art and design with board games, volunteering in the gaming community, and Calliope Games' new Titan Series.

Build a galactic empire in Tiny Epic Galaxies, a 30-minute game by Gamelyn Games that offers an epic experience in a tiny box. Plus: the rise of board game cafés, highlights from Gen Con 2015, problems with the Roll and Move mechanic, changing a game with variants and universal mutators, and Bananagrams' journey from 0 to 6.5 million copies sold.

Lamp Light's Nautilus Industries takes players deep under the sea for an extraordinary gaming adventure. Plus: how tabletop games are manufactured, understanding game mechanics, the basics of board game crowdfunding, and the metamorphosis of Blue Orange Games.