#steamscouts

Just a quick note this morning.  Dormouse Games is going to be using the hashtag #steamscouts.  We will be collecting feedback, both good and bad, via twitter, and communicating with our players.  While there's nothing there at the moment, follow it to find out what's going on via the twitters.  We will continue posting things elsewhere as well.

"The Lean Startup" vs Spaghetti Sauce

Our investors suggested I read “The Lean Startup” by Eric Ries.  


I’m glad they did.  The book is well written and filled with examples from either the authors own experience or companies operating under similar circumstances.  All suggestions came from practical experience and are immediately relevant to my current experience as a start-up.  If you're starting a company, or running a project with vaguely defined goals, it will be relevant to you too.


Overall this book is really about applying the scientific process to business; specifically the product development cycle.  This book helps you understand what to measure and why.  Although the focus of the book is mostly on new businesses the process presented could be used by project managers to create small scope projects in existing organizations…  Assuming they can get autonomy.  As my Project Management professor said “Get permission in writing.”

In a way Malcolm Gladwell: Choice, Happiness and Spaghetti Sauce is a better argument for a lean startup in established organizations then the book Lean Startup is.  There are very similar themes running through this book and the presentation.  Gladwell’s discussion of large companies finding the perfect products through metrics driven iteration might sell the strategy, while The Lean Startup elaborates on the specific tactics which might otherwise scare an established corporate machine.

If you’re an entrepreneur starting a new venture, of just about any kind, giving The Lean Startup a read will get you started off on the right foot.  Your scope will shrink, your costs will decrease, and your chance of success will increase if you take his lessons to heart because you will realize that bloated scope, high costs and high risk aren’t necessary for making big changes in today’s world.  Iterative design fits in very well with the work of paper prototyping, and right before (and during for best results) all the marketing that needs to happen.  But really Lean Startup is a methodology for how to behave as a company in the modern world.

Board Game Review: Lords of Waterdeep

Lords of Waterdeep
is an amazing game in the Euro Resource Style. My wife has never been a D&D player, but as a huge fan of Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne she loves this game. Although I was never particularly into Forgotten Realms, the game is still amazingly entertaining for my wife, me and my friends. The setting never gets in the way, but often adds interesting flavor. The games play-ability by non D&D fans is a testament to its amazing design.

Busiest Week Ever

March is a super busy month for game developers on the East Coast.  There is no end to the parties, events, and talks being held.  The week before gets busy because there is a captive audience.  Game developers from all over the eastern sea board, and some from CA (Such as the creators of PAX themselves) meet, greet, and hang out before during and after PAX East.

How the new Xbox is like the old Steam.

The next Xbox is starting to get teased by Microsoft. The new Xbox will require an ‘always on’ connection to the internet. This will be used with some form of DRM to prevent used games from functioning. Business Insider has the basics. More about what that means below the jump.

Great board games.

TempleCon was amazing!  On the ride back home from Warwick to Boston all we could talk about was going back next year.  Considering that this conversation took place immediately after a 6 hour game of Arkham Horror, that's high praise indeed.  If you live in the New England area, definitely attempt to make it next year.

We spent the majority of our time in the Board Game room.  Played Carcassonne, Small World, Lords of Waterdeep and Arkham Horror.  Lords of Waterdeep is an amazing game.  I loved it, and reviewed it.  It is based on a D&D game world, but that does not get in the way of a great European Resource style board game.  Even folks who know nothing about D&D (such as my wife) love the game.  But then she's a sucker for a good resource game mechanic.

The Pro's and Con's of resource game design on The Game Design Round Table Episode 2.

Pretotyping Review

Paper Prototyping, or pretotyping, has been a valuable tool through the year, as well as developing into a bit of a skill.  There is still lots to learn, but we're putting that skill to work at Dormouse Games.  Here are some blog posts about the philosophy of paper prototyping, the use of wire framing as a prototype, and finally some practical tips learned while prototyping in public.

As an amateur game developer you should be spending at least some time developing a game on paper before developing anything digitally.  In the long run it saves time by identifying areas of a game which need improvement, don't work, or have to be cut.  Most folks prototype with Unity, Game Salad, or other game development platforms.  What are the benefits of going digital for prototyping?