UW-Stout has recently seen the introduction of a new class, DES-322 or Tabletop Game Design and Development. Which, as the name suggests, focuses on the process of designing, developing, and eventually publishing board games. As a student in this class, I’ve seen some of the exciting games being cooked up for our final project. So, with the Stout Game Expo (SGX) fast approaching, here’s some games to look forward to! 

Anything But Chicken: 

Created by: Alex Owens, Annmarie Morrison, Caleb Bare, Leo Dresang, Micah Bernard, Sai Poeschel

In Anything but Chicken, players take the role of a group of animals united through being compared to tasting like chicken. These animals, an alligator, rabbit, frog, and python, band together to step out from the shadow of chicken, combine into a chimera, and take down the chicken horde and save the island! 

A cooperative deck builder, Anything but Chicken takes inspiration from board games like Pandemic. With an event deck which forces players to stay on their toes and make the most of their unique abilities to help each other solve problems. 

What One Covets: 

Created by: Andrew Hirl, Avery LaLonde, Brandon Baler, Jess Haapoja, Jonah Bechard, Zak Suhajda 

What One Covets is a game centered around creating rings, discovering their history, and attempting to make the biggest profit. For those interested in trinkets this game boasts many 3D printed rings for players to put together to build up their burgeoning jewelry business. The core gameplay of What One Covets centers around players attempting to gather the right parts to make rings which match goal cards. All the while weaving a narrative as to the history of the ring they’re creating. 

Bog Born: 

Created by: Amanda Gagnon, Gray Ozark, Logan Mentjes, Madi Moseng, Quinn Zwolanek Laird, Yeeleng Vang

Have you ever wanted to fish against your friends while being hunted by a leviathan? In Bog Born, players do just that. Playing as an aquatic creature called a “dredgling”, players move around the board to catch fish, all the while being mindful of how much commotion they’re causing so they don’t get the attention of the ever-looming leviathan. Bog Born is heavily based around risk reward. Players can do things like make more progress towards catching a fish or move further across the board, but each extra action makes you a bigger target for the leviathan. 

Brambled Dreams: 

Created by: Benita Close 

Brambled Dreams is one of two grad student projects coming from DES-322. Players find themselves whisked away to a fantastical world of fae and dreams, where they must wake the summer queen Celestial to return to their world. What’s more; you’ve all shrunk! This is represented by charming pop-up components on the board. Work together with other players to handle events, make potions, and eventually make your way out of this dream. 

Tables and Taverns: 

Created by: Savannah Rickert 

Tables and Taverns is the second grad student project coming out of DES-322 and the last game we’ll be talking about today. As the name suggests, Tables and Taverns centers around players managing their tavern and the tables there-in. Specifically making sure the guests placed at each table get along as best as possible to keep your tavern in one piece! Players draft guests to their tables and manage their boards as they work to keep each guest happy while completing sets to gain as many points as possible. 

All of these games are currently in development, so what you’re seeing here isn’t 100% representative of the finished products. But if you’re interested in checking out these games in their finished states, be sure to drop by the Memorial Student Center for SGX on December 10th, at 6:00p.m.!