MY GAME DESIGN PHILOSOPHY
(1) I design card games and board games because I think youths today spend a bit too much time on the computer or their phones playing games which are essentially solo exercises. Even those playing online multiplayer games are usually playing with internet friends or even complete strangers. We're seeing an entire generation losing touch with people beside them and around them, and struggling to interact socially in the real world. I hope to change some of this with a return to face-to-face gaming among teens and young people.
(2) Games should be fun. That sounds absolutely trite and obvious but you'll be shocked at how many games on the market are not fun to play. Why do they exist? I can only surmise two reasons - firstly, they are the product of somebody's ego. Remember, every designer, poet, artist and musician thinks his creative work is the best thing in the universe but most likely everything hates it or just thinks it is nothing to shout about. Secondly, marketing people look at how much a good game earned and push for a sequel or expansion in order to make more money, even if creatively that is a bad idea or the designer can't come up with anything new. This is also known as the "bad sequel effect" in movie-making. You know what I'm talking about, people who've seen the Matrix movies. So for me, my games have to be fun to play, and not just fun for me, but fun for other people. If they aren't, I must be prepared to scrap them or drastically rework them, no matter how painful.
(3) Games can't be too niche. Again, this is similar to the "games must be fun" mantra above. If the game is only fun for a very specialised group of people, it's a failure. If I made a game only lawyers will play, it's a market failure, since there aren't enough lawyers in the world who play card games, who are also free enough to play, who also have lawyer friends who are free enough to play with them, who also actually like your game, and who also will in fact get off their ass to order a set from you. Failure, period. Go browse "games" in Kickstarter and see how many niche games end up unfunded. Games must reach a mass market or die a lonely death. Hence, as a designer, I have to avoid tickling my own ego and amusing my own little circle of friends with our pet topic, and instead work to actually create something that the rest of the world might in fact want to look at.
(4) Games should be educational. I've nothing against fun for the sake of fun, but I think if you can learn something while having fun, so much the better. In fact, it has been widely shown that people retain information better when they enjoy themselves while learning. So for me, I want to use gaming as a way to help young people learn things, not just to amuse themselves. It doesn't have to be esoteric or terribly deep, like how to perform open-heart surgery, but could simply be history or current affairs or facts of life. And some people learn best when they see things contextualised or role-played, which games are suited for.
(5) I like cards because they are portable. I like the idea that a kid can stick a bunch of cards in his bag and play with his friends during recess or lunchtime. I can't count how many times I've thought about bringing a board game to a barbecue or gathering only to change my mind because it's so cumbersome and sometimes heavy too. Of course, board games have massive advantages too - counters and map boards being the primary ones. It's all about trade-offs. My preference is therefore to work with card games, but you never know.
(6) However, I will not do collectible card games. No offence to the people who make stuff like Magic:The Gathering and the like, those are great products and great fun, but I personally won't do it. I feel that such products are designed to generate sales by feeding the lust for winning that inevitably arises in competitive situations. The more you spend, the more options you have to build a winning hand. Maybe among responsible adults who are earning their own money, this is perfectly fine, but since my target group are younger people and teenagers, I prefer not to go in this direction. As such, my games will always be about a level playing field, about everybody starting at the same line, and nobody can buy an advantage. Money spent on the game will go to just having a game to play with your friends, and winning will be entirely determined by your skill, not by the size of your wallet.
(7) You're never too old to play games. Especially if you are a busy parent with five kids. Because if you don't play with your kids, how are you going to bond with them? And if you're a retiree, it's so much better to be playing games with friends than just watching drama serials. You stimulate the brain and have social interaction at the same time. That's why mahjong has a place in Chinese homes, it's not just about gambling. So pick up a game or two, put down the remote control or iPad, and give your friends a call.
~Junyan
(1) I design card games and board games because I think youths today spend a bit too much time on the computer or their phones playing games which are essentially solo exercises. Even those playing online multiplayer games are usually playing with internet friends or even complete strangers. We're seeing an entire generation losing touch with people beside them and around them, and struggling to interact socially in the real world. I hope to change some of this with a return to face-to-face gaming among teens and young people.
(2) Games should be fun. That sounds absolutely trite and obvious but you'll be shocked at how many games on the market are not fun to play. Why do they exist? I can only surmise two reasons - firstly, they are the product of somebody's ego. Remember, every designer, poet, artist and musician thinks his creative work is the best thing in the universe but most likely everything hates it or just thinks it is nothing to shout about. Secondly, marketing people look at how much a good game earned and push for a sequel or expansion in order to make more money, even if creatively that is a bad idea or the designer can't come up with anything new. This is also known as the "bad sequel effect" in movie-making. You know what I'm talking about, people who've seen the Matrix movies. So for me, my games have to be fun to play, and not just fun for me, but fun for other people. If they aren't, I must be prepared to scrap them or drastically rework them, no matter how painful.
(3) Games can't be too niche. Again, this is similar to the "games must be fun" mantra above. If the game is only fun for a very specialised group of people, it's a failure. If I made a game only lawyers will play, it's a market failure, since there aren't enough lawyers in the world who play card games, who are also free enough to play, who also have lawyer friends who are free enough to play with them, who also actually like your game, and who also will in fact get off their ass to order a set from you. Failure, period. Go browse "games" in Kickstarter and see how many niche games end up unfunded. Games must reach a mass market or die a lonely death. Hence, as a designer, I have to avoid tickling my own ego and amusing my own little circle of friends with our pet topic, and instead work to actually create something that the rest of the world might in fact want to look at.
(4) Games should be educational. I've nothing against fun for the sake of fun, but I think if you can learn something while having fun, so much the better. In fact, it has been widely shown that people retain information better when they enjoy themselves while learning. So for me, I want to use gaming as a way to help young people learn things, not just to amuse themselves. It doesn't have to be esoteric or terribly deep, like how to perform open-heart surgery, but could simply be history or current affairs or facts of life. And some people learn best when they see things contextualised or role-played, which games are suited for.
(5) I like cards because they are portable. I like the idea that a kid can stick a bunch of cards in his bag and play with his friends during recess or lunchtime. I can't count how many times I've thought about bringing a board game to a barbecue or gathering only to change my mind because it's so cumbersome and sometimes heavy too. Of course, board games have massive advantages too - counters and map boards being the primary ones. It's all about trade-offs. My preference is therefore to work with card games, but you never know.
(6) However, I will not do collectible card games. No offence to the people who make stuff like Magic:The Gathering and the like, those are great products and great fun, but I personally won't do it. I feel that such products are designed to generate sales by feeding the lust for winning that inevitably arises in competitive situations. The more you spend, the more options you have to build a winning hand. Maybe among responsible adults who are earning their own money, this is perfectly fine, but since my target group are younger people and teenagers, I prefer not to go in this direction. As such, my games will always be about a level playing field, about everybody starting at the same line, and nobody can buy an advantage. Money spent on the game will go to just having a game to play with your friends, and winning will be entirely determined by your skill, not by the size of your wallet.
(7) You're never too old to play games. Especially if you are a busy parent with five kids. Because if you don't play with your kids, how are you going to bond with them? And if you're a retiree, it's so much better to be playing games with friends than just watching drama serials. You stimulate the brain and have social interaction at the same time. That's why mahjong has a place in Chinese homes, it's not just about gambling. So pick up a game or two, put down the remote control or iPad, and give your friends a call.
~Junyan