Rob Daviau, designer of Pandemic Legacy, and I discuss how to run playtests like an absolute pro.
Rob started designing games for Hasbro before moving into the designer game space, and he has a TON of insight on how to playtest your way to an amazing game.
2 comments on “How to Playtest like a Pro with Rob Daviau”
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Gabe,
Wonderfully long interview…it was packed with a lot of great stuff. I don’t listen to too many podcasts, so I had never heard Rob’s background before. Having had a design job at Hasbro’s is fascinating, especially the difference the company makes between “toys” and “games” as we move forward in this hobby.
I was particularly pleased to hear the comment that one should not focus on seeking any type of validation from others…that’s a dangerous proposition. As a designer, one would actually never complete a game. The conversation was quite interesting and I particularly liked his level of humility at the same time he has a megahit on BGG, plays games with Eric Lang, and is clearly a household name (those households where designer board games are played).
Finally, it’s also great to hear from someone who, at least by age, is a rough contemporary of mine…I was born in ’67, got into D&D in the 80s, and continue to play it today via Skype (and oh, how I loved those early adventures!
Cheers,
Joe
J T Smith played our game for 10 minutes and suggested that we remove 2 things and bam the game was made supremely better in flow. https://www.facebook.com/notmyeyeballgames/