Game Design 101 - Game Design Contests
- Mark Jambeck
- Apr 27
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 27
Game design contests are an excellent way to put some new eyes on your designs. On top of receiving recognition for your work, many contests provide opportunities to pitch to publishers and/or receive feedback on your game submission.
I typically divide game design contests into two categories:
"New Design" Contests
New Design Contests usually run for a period of time (anywhere from a few weeks to several months) and generally look for new designs created specifically for the purpose of the contest. These contests are usually created with certain criteria and rules for game submissions to follow. For example, a contest might require submitted games to use a certain theme, a specific player count, use certain components, a mechanism, etc.
These contests are a great way to get creative and think of new ideas within the bounds of the contest rules. They are also a great opportunity to work on a new design that you know will receive some sort of feedback and/or recognition by the end of the process. My most recently signed design, Azure, was originally created as a game design contest entry!
Below are websites that have frequently running new design contests:
The Game Crafter has contests hosted by publishers or other members of the community. These designs are incredibly fun and varied, with both community and contest judge voting. I’d recommend joining The Game Crafter’s Discord server as a lot of contest discussion happens there!
Board Game Geek has loads of game design contests running at the same time. The design contest community on BGG is huge and you can expect to receive feedback from many users. The contests are varied and some of them are very popular (some of the solo contests, PNP contests, etc.)
"Complete Design" Contests
Complete Design Contests are contests for games that have been playtested and are near-finished products (this doesn’t mean you need final or professional art or graphic design - just a tested and working game!). Winners and participants of these awards often receive feedback from publishers or other industry professionals, making them valuable for both the opportunity of recognition and publication but also for critical feedback. Some of these contests have a small entry fee to ensure works being submitted are meeting the contest qualifications (as well as for the time spent by contest judges reviewing entries).
Other Opportunities
There are so many board game contests and awards throughout the community that it is impossible to list them all. However, if you are looking for more opportunities, I’d recommend joining the Break My Game Discord community and taking a look at their “Opportunities” channel. Members of the community from all over will post the different challenges, contests, and awards available to designers with some really interesting and unique opportunities available.
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