Tabletop Games Blog · May 26, 2026 · 10 min
Intentional Experience - designer intent and player experience (Topic Discussion)
Designers don't like it when players criticise their board game, and the response often is that the game was intentionally designed that way. Players complain that a strategy feels unfair, a mechanism is frustrating, or a game simply isn't very clear. Designers reply that that just misses the point. Similar disagreements exist in films, novels, and art, yet board games seem to have them more often, and they are often more personal. Part of the reason may be that board games are not passive experiences. Players are not simply watching events unfold, but instead are interpreting rules and shaping the experience themselves every time the game hits the table. Read the full article here: https://tabletopgamesblog.com/2026/05/26/intentional-experience-designer-intent-and-player-experience-topic-discussion/ Useful Links Dune review: https://tabletopgamesblog.com/2020/02/08/dune-saturday-review/ BGG article The Design Process by Gerry Paquette : https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/550/blogpost/2529/the-design-process What is Player Experience? : https://bg-px.com/what-is-player-experience/ UX in board game design by Jason Kogan : https://uxdesign.cc/ux-in-board-game-design-97bfcdb1d581 Perception vs Reality in Game Design by Joseph Z Chen : https://fantastic-factories.medium.com/perception-vs-reality-in-game-design-67181c0e6b0e Music Intro Music: Bomber (Sting) by Riot ( https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary/ ) Music: "Inspirational Flight", "Documentary Soundtrack" and "Success" by AShamaluevMusic. Website: https://www.ashamaluevmusic.com Support If you want to support this podcast financially, please check out the links below: Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/TabletopGamesBlog Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/tabletopgamesblog Website: https://tabletopgamesblog.com/support/ (Photo by Daman IAm on Unsplash)