Board Game Business Podcast

How-to-play videos are used more and more by designers to show potential publishers or playtesters their game and by publishers after a game has been released to teach customers how to play them. In honor of April Fool's Day, we give tips on how NOT to make a how-to-play video. I know, we're not supposed to tell you, but we really don't want people actually taking our advice. Here's the gist of the tips we cover, but backwards:

  • Prepare so you can keep it concise.
  • Keep it short. You don't need to say every corner case, but make sure to cover any confusing ones.
  • Use consistent terminology.
  • Use at least two camera angles so it's not just a talking head.
  • Layer in photos to help make your point and show examples.
  • Lighting is important! Light up your face with multiple lights at different angles so there are no shadows. (3-point lighting)
  • Light up your components to show them too, but with not glare. Don't use sleeves if they add glare.
  • Use a microphone close to you for clear and consistent audio. Clean the audio afterwards.
  • Make it easy to find the video online.
Direct download: BGBP054.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:50am PDT

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