Board Game Designer’s Glossary: 50+ Terms Every Designer Should Know

Whether you’re designing your first board game or preparing to launch your tenth Kickstarter, the language of board game design can feel overwhelming. From technical terms like “point salad” to production lingo like “punchboard,” there’s a lot to keep up with.

This glossary is designed to help you speak the language of game design — and understand it, too. Bookmark it as a handy reference or share it with friends who are just getting into the hobby!

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Core Board Game Design Terms

• Mechanic: The core rules or systems that drive player actions (e.g. worker placement, deck-building).
• Theme: The story or setting of your game — often influences aesthetics and player immersion.
• Component: Any physical piece of the game (cards, boards, tokens, dice, etc.).
• Win Condition: What players must do to win the game.
• Player Agency: The ability for players to make meaningful decisions.
• Replayability: How well the game holds up over repeated plays.
• Downtime: Time when a player isn’t engaged (usually during other players’ turns).
• Fiddliness: When a game has too many small rules, exceptions, or pieces to track.
• Scaling: How well the game adjusts to different player counts.
• Balance: Ensuring that different strategies or factions have fair chances of winning.

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Player Interaction & Experience

• Take That: A mechanic where players directly sabotage each other (e.g., stealing or blocking).
• Kingmaking: When a player who can’t win decides who does.
• Quarterbacking (in co-ops): When one player dominates the decisions for the group.
• Analysis Paralysis (AP): When players freeze due to too many choices.
• Catch-Up Mechanic: A feature that helps losing players stay competitive.
• Push Your Luck: A mechanic where players risk gaining more but might lose it all.

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Mechanics & Systems

• Deck Building: Building a custom deck over time, as in Dominion.
• Drafting: Selecting from a shared pool of options, often passing to the next player.
• Worker Placement: Assigning tokens to take actions, like in Agricola.
• Action Points: Players spend points each turn to do actions.
• Tile Placement: Adding tiles to create a game board or space (Carcassonne is classic here).
• Set Collection: Gathering related items for bonuses (e.g., matching colors, symbols).
• Area Control: Competing for dominance in certain regions on the board.
• Roll and Write / Flip and Write: Using dice or cards to generate inputs that players write on sheets.

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Development & Prototyping

• Prototype: The early version of your game, often made with paper, pens, or software tools.
• Iteration: Making continuous tweaks based on feedback or testing.
• Blind Playtest: A test where players try your game without your explanation or help.
• Rulebook: The instruction manual — a crucial and often underestimated part of the game.
• Component Fatigue: When too many physical elements cause confusion or frustration.
• Table Presence: How visually engaging your game looks on the table.

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Publishing & Kickstarter Lingo

• MSRP (Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price): What the game will sell for in stores.
• Pledge Manager: A tool for backers to confirm orders after a Kickstarter campaign.
• Stretch Goals: Bonuses unlocked when Kickstarter funding passes certain thresholds.
• Fulfillment: Shipping your game to customers or backers after production.
• Lead Time: The time between ordering production and receiving finished games.
• Punchboard: Thick cardboard sheets used for tokens and tiles.
• Meeple: A human-shaped wooden piece, first popularized by Carcassonne.
• Shrinkwrap: The plastic seal around finished products — adds that “new game” feel.

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Bonus Concepts & Terms

• Point Salad: A game where nearly every action gives points, often criticized for lacking focus.
• Eurogame: Games that emphasize strategy, low randomness, and indirect interaction.
• Ameritrash: A (sometimes pejorative) term for games that emphasize theme, conflict, and luck.
• Table Hog: A game that takes up a massive amount of table space.
• Rule Ambiguity: When a rule isn’t clearly written, leading to confusion.
• Iconography: The use of symbols instead of words for actions or effects.

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Final Thoughts

Learning the language of game design can help you communicate better with other designers, improve your own creations, and navigate the publishing world with more confidence. You don’t need to memorize everything overnight — keep this glossary handy and refer to it whenever you need.