Designing Board Games at VCUarts Qatar

Four board games were developed. Our students were required to demonstrate a range of design skills in their production, especially systems thinking (both in design mechanics and game mechanics), typography, layout design, color usage, as well the production of packaging, 3D player pieces, as well as boards for play and game accessories such as cards or scorekeeping devices.

The games were named:
SPATIUM,
ART HEIST, BABY
CHARMS & CURSES, and
FALLEN ANGELS

The project supports the four pillars of our Graphic Design program’s philosophy:
Research
Making
Collaboration, and
Cultural Literacy.

The module was taught during the Spring Semester by Associate Professor Law Alsobrook and Assistant Professor Leland Hill from our Graphic Design department.

The project was timely. Conversations about the relevance of, and the need for, modes of entertainment with tactile and multisensory elements, especially in a highly digitized world, have been in the public domain recently.

For example, the mental math needed to add a pair of dice; the strategic engineering required to outplay an opponent; the social, mental and physical attributes of face-to-face interactions, including the need for eye-contact, hand-eye coordination and focus; as a means to reduce screen time for children, allowing them to take part in a process that can be both enjoyable and educational – the positives of playing board games are many, and designers such as these graphic design students have to be aware of these nuances when they design board games that appeal to a range of audiences.

Video by Sunny Dave.