How to Create a Board Game (and What Not to Do)
The Journey to Popularity
After years in the making, we're finally ready to publish Popularity — The Party Game for Friends and Foes! It's been a rollercoaster journey filled with unexpected twists, hair-pulling moments, and valuable lessons. Here's a glimpse into how we got here, what we learned along the way, and what you might want to avoid if you're thinking of making a board game.
It all started in late 2019 when we launched our first project, The Art of Murder, a murder mystery game designed for in-person events. Just as we were testing it, the pandemic forced us offline. So, we adapted and created THIS IS REALITY 2000, a Zoom-based game for up to 12 players inspired by reality TV.
People mostly loved it (with some tweaks along the way), but after months of staring at Zoom squares, we were done with online games. We wanted to create something physical. The reality TV theme didn't survive the transition, but the spirit of rivalry and creativity evolved into what is now Popularity.
Things We Learned (the Hard Way)
Barcodes are a thing (and not cheap). Who knew there was a whole system for barcodes? Certainly not us. A £50 subscription later, we had a GTIN-13 code for the box and a GTIN-14 code for the carton that ships six boxes. Lesson learned: do your research early.
Design tools are amazing — until they aren't. Figma was our go-to for designing the game. It's great for creating components and syncing data with Google Sheets, but the differences between RGB (digital colours) and CMYK (printable colours) nearly broke us. Vibrant, neon colours? Out of the spectrum. Cue the tears.
Then there was the struggle with converting pixels to millimetres and exporting files that inexplicably didn't work on other people's computers. If we had to give one piece of advice here: simplify, simplify, simplify.
Feedback is essential (and can be painful). Testing your game is vital, but hearing people's opinions can be hard when you've agonised over every detail. Creating an environment where feedback is helpful and constructively given is key. Looking back at early versions of Popularity, we laugh at how overly complicated it was. And we're sure we'll laugh at this version in a few years too.
Partnerships make it possible — and more probable. We attended the London Toy Fair twice, sneaking in our (very expensively printed) prototypes to get people to play. Those events were a game-changer, leading to partnerships with experts who've been invaluable in getting us to the finish line. Moral of the story: you don't have to do it alone.
And Here We Are… It's Here!
Making Popularity has been an unforgettable journey. We've poured so much into this game — creativity, persistence, and probably a few too many late nights — but we couldn't be prouder of what we've made.
It's been about more than just creating a board game. It's been about bringing people together and making socialising genuinely fun.
To anyone thinking about creating their own game: do it. Just be prepared for setbacks, learn to laugh at your mistakes, and keep going. We promise, it's worth it.
Here's to making socialising fun, one game night at a time!
Chris and Dean