In this episode…
We are joined by legendary tabletop game designer, Richard Launius. Richard has been designing games for decades (before it was hip) and is known for his deeply thematic designs. Notable titles he created include “Arkham Horror” and “Defenders of the Realm,” which have become staples for any board game collection. (Both are available in any fine book and retail store :)

As a young man, Richard enjoyed the board games published out of Avalon Hill. During that company’s prime, there were few games as thematic as an Avalon Hill game. When Richard designs, he begins with a theme and develops the game mechanics around that theme. That said, one of the his brilliant design qualities are the memories his game’s create. To those of you that have played Arkham Horror (or another one of his games), I bet you have a lasting memory of one of your playthroughs. Creating an environment within a game that produces memorable experiences is a design quality that’s hard to quantify, but part of what makes Richard’s work brilliant.

It was great to learn about Richard’s life growing up, his early jobs, and design philosophy. We hope you enjoy this episode and if you are unfamiliar with Richard’s work, please check out one of his titles. Richard is as professional as it gets and fortunately for us, he’s constantly designing games for us to devour.

Company Updates
We have improved the selection and shirt quality in the Happy Mitten Podcast Store. Our shirts are all blended fabrics and super comfortable now. Life is too short to clothe our bodies in cotton alone! Success means more fabrics.