

The Game Design Round Table
Dirk Knemeyer & David V. Heron
Covering the full breadth of digital, tabletop, and role playing games, The Game Design Round Table inspires and educates aspiring and experienced game designers.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 20, 2019 • 53min
#220 New Directions with Dirk and David
Dirk and David catch up with each other and what’s new in their game design careers. They talk about the new direction for the show and announce a new series for the podcast: “Designing Thematic Games.”

Aug 6, 2019 • 1h 1min
#219 Cole’s Thoughts on Pax Pamir: Second Edition
Dirk catches up with Cole Wehrle, designer of Root, and they discuss Cole’s latest game Pax Pamir: Second Edition. Cole also talks about starting Wehrlegig Games with his brother while continuing full time with Leder Games.

Jul 23, 2019 • 42min
#218 Geoff Engelstein and Isaac Shalev: Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design
Dirk speaks with game designers Geoff Engelstein and Isaac Shalev about their co-authored book, Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design: an Encyclopedia of Mechanisms.

Jul 9, 2019 • 1h 7min
#217 Soren Johnson and his 4X Game: 10 Crowns
Dirk speaks with former co-host and former Civilization designer Soren about his next game, 10 Crowns. This episode will be the first in a series with Soren that follows different steps in the game’s development.

Jun 25, 2019 • 36min
#216 Playtest Groups and Guilds with Tony Tran
Dirk speaks with Skye and Tony Tran about their experiences attending and starting local game design guilds and how those groups helped them progress as designers.

Jun 12, 2019 • 43min
#215 Tabletop RPGs and Streaming with Adam Koebel
Dirk and David speak with TTRPG game designer and streamer Adam Koebel about how RPGs often influence one another and how to get your TTRPG in front of an audience.

May 28, 2019 • 40min
#214 Game Themes with Will Thompson
Dirk talks with digital and tabletop game designer Will Thompson about game themes, including the recent controversy surrounding the game Scramble for Africa.

May 14, 2019 • 27min
#213 Carla Kopp, Kickstarter and Big Easy Busking
What happens when a Kickstarter doesn't go as planned? Dirk speaks with Carla Kopp from Weird Giraffe games about publishing, Kickstarters, and the game Big Easy Busking.

Apr 30, 2019 • 34min
#212 Tabletop Prototyping Highlights
Take a look back at previous TGDRT episodes with a focus on tabletop prototyping. Dirk, David, Kathryn, Harrison, and Isaac Shalev are all featured in this retrospective episode.

Apr 9, 2019 • 46min
#211 Slay The Spire - A Designers Deep Dive with Anthony Giovannetti
David and Dirk are joined by Anthony Giovannetti, designer of the game Slay The Spire. Together they take a deep dive into the creation and game mechanics of the game.