Designing Games with Your Kids with Patrick McNeil

June 1, 2022·58 min·5 clips

Patrick and his daughter Maisie bonded over picking unicorn art, sparking their first successful game collaboration.

The ad read comes first. Once the Kickstarter marketing and fulfillment sponsor notes are out of the way, Gabe Barrett settles into a useful conversation about making board games. Patrick's entry point is parenting. He describes a child who learns games incredibly fast and plays above his age, so adults tend to underestimate him. At proto spiel, that changes fast. The kid stands up, uses the terminology, and spots loopholes in a design. Pretty soon people are pulling him from table to table because he can say what he likes, what he dislikes, and why. Patrick sounds proud, but the sweet part is more specific than simple bragging. The hobby gives the kid practice talking with adults. Game design becomes a place to build confidence, explain ideas clearly, and give feedback people can use. Patrick then talks about scale. Maisie wants to design games with him because it is fun, and because she wants time with dad. They keep those games small enough to actually make and play, which is the whole trick. The family design work does not need to become a big production. It just needs to fit the people at the table. Patrick keeps the advice casual, turning family stories into craft notes without squeezing them too hard. The ending stays practical: mcmeeple.com, Gabe's thanks, and the usual reminder to keep designing, keep playtesting, and keep making games people love.

As heard by us

A family project becomes a clear lesson in confidence, scale, and play.

Designing board games with kids is presented as a practical window into confidence, scale, and play. Patrick McNeil's account of a child growing up around games, picking up the language fast, and pushing back on adult designers at proto spiel tables gives the discussion a…

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

When you want kid-sized design talk with real craft takeaways.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Board Game Design Lab