Protospiel Online Design Challenge: Classic Bits

Join the Design Challenge Free Online Community!

protospiel.online/designchallenge

This is a community-based challenge with no contest, judging, prize, award, or deadline. Similar to the goal at our triannual online playtesting conventions, the focus is on connecting with other designers and gamers, trading feedback on design problems, and having fun!

Give a Challenge

Pick out a bits set and mail or pass it to a friend. If you have the bits set before gifting, fill in the included booklet cover with the recipient’s name for “Designer,” your name for “Challenged By,” and the “Bits Set,” “Mechanisim,” and “Theme” lines filled out. If you're mailing the bit set to them directly, encourage your friend to fill out the booklet cover once you’ve shared the mechanism and theme you’re challenging them to use.

The included booklet has instructions to help them join the free Discord community where they can create a design diary thread, find opportunities for online and offline playtesting, and, once they’ve completed their challenge, see it featured on a livestream!

Get a Challenge

To join the challenge for yourself, choose your own bits set to start with. Then, get someone else to challenge you with a mechanisim and theme.

To get this unique-to-you challenge, you can ask anyone you already know to pick the mechanisim-theme combo for you. Or, after joining the community at protospiel.online/designchallenge, send the /challenge-requested command in #clubhouse. At least one of your fellow community members will respond with a mechanism and theme. If multiple people respond, feel free to pick the mechanisim-theme combo that’s most interesting to you.

Complete the Challenge

Use the mechanism and theme plus at least 10 bits from your set to create a prototype. Add any other parts you'd like!

Protospiel Online will host periodic livestreams showcasing games whose designers have run at least one playtest with a first prototype and declaired /challenge-completed in thier design challenge diary thread.