Game Study Day @ Museum of Childhood 1st April 2017

Playtest UK will be at the V&A Museum of Childhood, Bethnal Green, London as part of the Game Study Day on Saturday 1st April 10am - 4pm.

The event costs £20 (£15 concessions).

Here is a link to the Playtest UK meetup page: https://www.meetup.com/Playtest/events/238759196/
 
Here is the webpage to buy tickets: http://www.vam.ac.uk/moc/events/game-contemporary-board-games-study-day/

(The event is to tie in with their 'Game Plan - Board Games Rediscovered' exhibition which is running from 8th October 2016 - 23rd April 2017.)

The evening will have two strands:

1st strand: Game-related talks

Ian Livingstone, Quinns for Shut Up & Sit Down, Esther MacCallum-Stewart, James Wallis, Holly Nielson and Nia Wearn.

2nd strand: Game Design Jam

Teams of members of the public will try to design a game inspired by the Museum of Childhood and their new exhibition. All game design materials will be provided, just bring your ideas and amazing creativity. There will be cool prizes.   
Ominoes by Andrew Harman, In a Bind by Behrooz Shahriari and Elemons by Eiman Munro will be on show during the event.

Hippodice 2017

Congratulations to Playtest UK member, Albert Ma on gaining 3rd place in the Hippodice Board Game Design Competition 2017 with his game, The Lucifer Effect.

After winning last year's competition, Playtest UK member, Fabio Lopiano was also on the Recommended List this year with his game, Ragusa. Both games were playtested at our meetups.

The Hippodice competition is one of the prestigious in the world of game design. Playtest UK member, Brett Gilbert also won in 2012 with his design, Brethren of the Coast.

MtM Designer/Publisher Networking @ UKGE2017

The Meet the Makers Designer/Publisher Networking event at the UK Games Expo 2017, will take place on Friday 2nd June at 9pm.

This private event is for designers, publishers and other members of the gaming industry to meet up for a drink and a chat, as either a follow-up to the Speed-Dating event or as a way to unwind after a long day at the show. (There will be gaming tables available for playing prototypes if required.)

If you would like to register an interest in attending the networking event, please follow this link to a google form to enter your details: https://goo.gl/forms/d5fGUBaXfmQwhxtG3

If you have any questions please feel free to contact Rob Harris via the usual contact form.

MtM Designer/Publisher Speed-Dating @ UKGE2017

The Meet the Makers Designer/Publisher Speed-Dating event at the UK Games Expo 2017 will take place on Friday 2nd June from 6.30pm-8pm.

This private event gives designers the opportunity to pitch their completed game designs to 12 publishers. You will get just 5 minutes to explain your game, field questions from the publisher and make an impression. When the time is up the publisher moves on to the next game. 

Mayfair, Wizkids, Spiral Galaxy, Braincrack Games and Alley Cat Games have been confirmed so far and more publishers will be added shortly.

As we only have space for 12 designers at the event, we are running a sales sheet competition to help us to shortlist the designs. Entries are open now and will close at midnight on Saturday 29th April 2017. The sales sheets will be given to the publishers, so they can decide which games they are interested in seeing. Early entries will be looked at first.

To enter the competition you must:

1. Fill out your details here on the entry form: https://goo.gl/forms/YLsqUNH2aI9VVt4R2

2. Send a sales sheet detailing your game to the email address on the entry form.

FAQ

What is a sales sheet (sometimes called a sell sheet)?

A sales sheet is a single-sided A4 sheet detailing all of the relevant information a publisher might want to know about your game design: title, number of player, duration, quick overview, list of components and most importantly your contact details.

There are plenty of resources on the internet about how to create sales sheets. Here are a few of our favourites:

https://inspirationtopublication.wordpress.com/2010/10/03/step-14-create-sales-sheets/

http://www.leagueofgamemakers.com/how-to-build-a-sell-sheet-for-your-game/

http://www.rockmanorgames.com/2016/06/how-to-make-a-professional-looking-sell-sheet/


Why sales sheets?

If you are serious about getting a publisher interested in your game design then you have to be able to show them everything they need to know as easily as possible. It is unlikely that at a first meeting a publisher will be able to play a game prototype to conclusion, so this is a good way to pass on information about your game. They can take the sales sheet away with them and it has your contact details. Making a sales sheet is a really useful skill for designers.

What format?

We would prefer you to send your sales sheet in the .pdf format as this is easily-readable across a variety of computers. (Feel free to contact Rob Harris via the website contact form if you are having format problems.)

But I'm not a graphic designer. I don't know where to start.

The most important quality of a sales sheet is clarity and not a specialised font or image. Learning to put together a sales sheet will help you identify the important parts of your pitch and this is invaluable when pitching your game to a publisher.

Who is eligible to enter?

Entry is open to any game designer with a completed game ready for publication. Please feel free to ask for advice if you have any questions.

What stage should my game design be at?

Your game design should be as complete as possible. You are showing the publisher that the game design is viable to publish, so it must have been playtested properly and in an advanced stage of development.

Can I submit more than one entry?

Yes, you can submit more than one entry. Put the details for the other games in the comments section of the online google form and remember to send a sales sheet for each game.
 
If you have any questions please feel free to contact Rob Harris via the usual contact form.