Despite some of our regular members heading over to Germany for the annual Essen Spiel Expo, we had 14 playtesters arrive to try out each other's games.
There was a great mix of prototypes, ranging from 'Starfighter', a miniatures-based space combat system to an immersive drag-racing sim for two players sitting side-by-side in chairs, which will be incorporated into a freeform game later this year. Other games included a whist variant with a clever twist and a family/children's game with a World travel theme and an inventive moving board. There was a light eurogame about fishing and a 6-player paranoia-filled adventure game set in the Arctic, followed by an alien combat game, an as-yet-untitled prototype and a fantasy-themed trading game. All in all the assembled group played their way through 12 different game designs and everyone who brought a prototype got it played at least once. The feedback for my own game designs was very constructive. There was an important breakthrough for the gameplay in one of my prototypes in particular, which had left me stumped for months.
At the meetup, there was a good discussion with several members about sourcing game components and game design competitions. Some of this information will soon be posted to the website as a resources page, so that members can pool their knowledge.
Amid all the excitement I forgot to take any photos this month or put out any Playtest signs, although that might have been because of the excellent ESB!
