Paper first vs Digital First
Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2017 3:50 am
My long suffering BFF, Byrn, does well to point out that whatever gets designed digitally must be possible on paper. I completely agree. But do you design on paper first or go digital first? Let me specify those things...
This is where you use a computer to do everything up front; you work out the numbers, probability, order of turns actions, designs of character sheets, maps, etc. All of it is digital. Once you have the game pretty much ready you then start printing and scribbling.
Leaving the digital world to the side, you begin by rolling dice, scribbling maps, drawing out character sheets and trying to write into boxes, write and explain and draw. You then take to the computer to firm up the probabilities and so on.
This has come to the forefront with the redesign of Icar. I am simplifying the core mechanics but there is one area that will remain a little complex and that's the creation of bionics. It's so complex right now that it's very difficult to do. I've got the whole thing running in a spreadsheet (digital first) but I do need a way of doing it on paper. It's not an easy thing to work out.
If it can't be done on paper (I am pretty sure there is a good way, I've just yet to find it) then the system must be changed for something that can. It's sort of an old-fashioned view but for the sake of this argument, it's a core requirement.
How do you think about your designs? Paper first or digital first?
This is where you use a computer to do everything up front; you work out the numbers, probability, order of turns actions, designs of character sheets, maps, etc. All of it is digital. Once you have the game pretty much ready you then start printing and scribbling.
Leaving the digital world to the side, you begin by rolling dice, scribbling maps, drawing out character sheets and trying to write into boxes, write and explain and draw. You then take to the computer to firm up the probabilities and so on.
This has come to the forefront with the redesign of Icar. I am simplifying the core mechanics but there is one area that will remain a little complex and that's the creation of bionics. It's so complex right now that it's very difficult to do. I've got the whole thing running in a spreadsheet (digital first) but I do need a way of doing it on paper. It's not an easy thing to work out.
If it can't be done on paper (I am pretty sure there is a good way, I've just yet to find it) then the system must be changed for something that can. It's sort of an old-fashioned view but for the sake of this argument, it's a core requirement.
How do you think about your designs? Paper first or digital first?