Make Your Own Board Games

Many people have ideas for new board games. Turning these ideas into reality can be a challenge, though. Sure, you may be able to raid your game closet to borrow gamepieces, dice, and play money from the games you already own. But then the next time you go to play those games, there are pieces missing. A better option is to get one of these do-it-yourself game kits, which come with all the gaming supplies you'll need, as well as help in designing and printing the game boards themselves.

Kits To Make Your Own Board Games

• Flibbix
  Make and break the rules and customize your board game play with Flibbix! You'll make your own custom game board using the magnetic double-sided Flip 'N' Click tiles that you can flip or rearrange during the game to quickly change how your Flibbix game plays. Making your own rules is as simple as checking boxes using the unique game rules sheets. You can also make up your own serious or silly rules - it's up to you! Choose the game cards you want to play with and start your wacky way to the finish line. The Quick Start Sheet will have you playing in no time and the goal is to simply have fun and be the first to make it to the finish in the ever-changing, build-it-yourself game of Flibbix!
  
• Make Your Own Opoly
  With Make Your Own Opoly, players can construct a custom made Monopoly type board by using some scissors, a PC and virtually any printer! This game contains everything you need to hand customize the game board, cards, and play money for your very own property trading game. Now you can play the best board game you've ever owned, because you created it yourself!Please Note: Some computer knowledge is required to complete the board, but TDC Games has a very helpful customer support line.
• Journey to Gameland
  Take a journey through your favorite book and transform it into a board game! Choose your characters, design your board, and create obstacles and other fun activities all according to what happens in your favorite book. Learn how to take the joy of reading to another level and discover your own creativity. The book shows how you can have hours of fun creating the board game--and then have lots more hours of fun playing! Journey to Gameland encourages children to develop their own creativity.
• Paid to Play: The Business of Game Design
  Do you have game ideas collecting dust in the back of a closet - or the back of your head? Dust them off, pick up this book, and discover the simple steps to turning your concept to cash in today's game market. Long-time industry veteran gives a concise and complete insider's view of this fascinating world and shares the process of licensing or publishing your board game, card game, or party game for profit. Learn how to protect your idea and how to strike a deal when the call comes. It is all covered step-by-step in this easy-to-follow guide to game design.
• The Game Inventor's Guidebook
  How to Invent and Sell Board Games, Card Games, Role-Playing Games, & Everything in Between! The definitive guide for anyone with a game idea who wants to know how to get it published from a Game Design Manager at Wizards of the Coast, the world's largest tabletop hobby game company. Do you have an idea for a board game, card game, role-playing game or tabletop game? Have you ever wondered how to get it published?
• The Toy and Game Inventor's Handbook
  Everything You Need to Know to Pitch, License, and Cash-In on Your Ideas - The toy industry is a 30 billion dollar-a-year business. It's also the last frontier for aspiring independent inventors, with an annual new product turnover of 60 percent and plenty of opportunities for the creative mind. Here, one of the most recognized and successful toy and game inventors in the business teams up with the former head of research and development at Hasbro to bring clear, comprehensive information to aspiring toy and game inventors...who just might bring us the next hula hoop!

Other 'Make Your Own' Kits

Other Sources of Information About Making Your Own Games

• Board Game Designers Forum
  This web site is "a helpful resource for all aspects of designing board games: game design, prototyping, playtesting, publishing, and much much more!"
• Discover Games
  Discover Games is the Internet's largest game promotion community - a resource for inventors to show their board games to retailers and game lovers. Discover Games will allow you to show your game(s) at game shows/conventions, be part of mailings to catalog houses, media and retailers, network with other Independent Designers and much more.
• Gameparts.net
  Game Parts is the nation's largest custom imprinter of dice, sand timers, poker chips, and many other select gaming pieces.
• LoveToKnow: Make Your Own Board Games
  Sometimes making your own board games is more rewarding than buying ready-made ones. You can tailor the game to anything you want: your interests, your family, or your friends. The possibilities are limitless.
• Make Your Own Board Games Article
  An article describing the basics of creating your own board game from scratch. Lots of great suggestions.
• Manufacturing or Marketing your own Game
  An article that describes the manufacturing and marketing options for new game concepts. Includes a list of manufacturers of games parts and boxes, as well as turnkey game manufacturers.
• Ready-Made Games and Game Boards
  Design and print your own game boards, or use one of the many free ready-made game board templates listed on this site.
• The Game Crafter
  The Game Crafter is a service for prospective board and card game designers. You can self-publish your own game, with a custom board, cards, pawns, and dice. You can even sell the games you produce, right from the site.
• Toy & Game Inventor Conference
  This annual conference brings together the nation's leading toy and game industry experts and the independent inventing community to share knowledge, pool resources and generate business opportunities.
• Toy and Game Invention Forum
  Discuss making your own games with other game inventors. Learn techniques and skill from the community, including how to contact publishers and manufacturers, prototyping, patents, licensing, legal issues, and much more.
• WikiHow: How to Make Your Own Board Game
  Follow these simple step-by-step instructions to make your own board game using your computer and printer.