Who runs the
site?
Boardspace.net is a hobby, not a
commercial site under
development, not a technology demonstration for a software
company. There is no hidden catch. Just enjoy it as
my
guest. My home page is here.
What's the process? How
do you decide
what is included?
Starting at the beginning, game #1
was Zertz because I was obsessed with it. Game #2 was Lines
of
Action, because I had already written the applet for it, and just had
to adapt it to my new framework. Game #3 was Plateau, because
I
really liked it and already had a working relationship with the
inventor. After that, it got more
complicated. Some
games were momentary obsessions. Others were chosen in the
hope
that they would be popular, yet others chosen as representatives of
some larger category. I've made notes on the "about this
game"
page for about the particulars for each game. Perhaps
surprisingly, the process of choosing and developing a game doesn't
have to involve a lot of actual play. Part of the point of
the
site is to get to play games that it's hard to find an opponent for.
How do you get permission for
these games?
I
like
to paraphrase Surely
You're Joking Mr. Feynman, "You
have to ask". It's generally pretty informal, and
no money
ever changes hands.
Where do you get the actual games? There are several answers to this, but the most common
answer
is that I buy them. Commercial games are easy. Ebay
and
BoardgameGeek marketplace account for most of the rest - you just have
to be patient to get the games you want for a reasonable
price. I've made a few games myself, and some are
completely imaginary - they exist only on your computer
screen. For the most part, I don't get free games
(but I do
accept them with a provision of "no strings attached").
What about community input? Santorini and
Micropul are
on Boardspace
primarily because they had a loyal following on BoardGameGeek, and rose
to the top of the "Proposed Boardspace.net games" geeklist I
maintain there. Games that other people like (and
are the
kind of games I like too) definitely get promoted on my list of
candidates for inclusion here..
What's the
Master Plan?
The
plan
is
to
build the site into a place where you can
drop in anytime for a game with a human opponent.
It has
reached the point where other players are likely to be present, but
with so many games, finding one you both play is still
iffy. The best strategy is to learn to like all of
the
games, or bring
your own opponent.
More Games!
Better Robots!
Better Graphics! Etc. etc. etc. I'm always interested in
suggestions, especially suggestions with a lot of support in the player
community. Easy things and things that really grab my attention are
much more likely to be implemented. If you want to
help, lets talk.
What does it
take to make a site
like this? No actual spit or baling wire is involved.
Here's the rundown in general terms. If you're a programmer, it's all open source on Github
