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Board game design
August 2022
Tac-tiles A game you play by touch.
Board games bring people around a table. For people who are visually impaired, most games depend on someone else to read, wait and move for them. I designed an abstract strategy game they can play on their own, by touch.
Design for a cause: a board game for the visually impaired
Blind People’s Association, Ahmedabad
Oak hex board, 30 circular and 30 square chips, 10 playing cards, brailled rulebook
2 players, ages 12+
Why
India has about 12 million visually impaired people.
Design for a cause has always pulled me in. I wanted a project that made a real difference to a part of society that design often leaves out. Design is problem solving, and this felt like the best use of it.
Research
Learning how someone sees by touch.
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The problem
Most games are adapted, not designed for them.
Many games have braille versions, but they are versions of games built for sighted players. Talking to people and the association surfaced the same problems again and again.
What stakeholders asked for:
Ideation
Plain forms, clear rules, skill over luck.
I mapped needs, problems and ideas on the wall, then landed on an abstract strategy game. Abstract games are simple at their core and run on skill, which kept the rules easy to learn and every piece easy to feel.
First prototype
A hex board where every piece stays put.
The first version was a board of about 30 by 32 cm, with hex coins sitting in grooves so nothing slides when someone feels around the board. I playtested it blindfolded to find where it broke.
Final design
Oak, magnets and two shapes you can feel.
The final game is built for touch and for sound. Chips snap into magnetic grooves, which also make a sound so other players can follow where pieces go. One player uses circular chips, the other square, so you always know which are yours.
How to play
Make a sequence before they do.
Two players take turns placing chips. The center hexagon is fixed and works as a neutral chip for both. A sequence is a connected series of 4 same-shaped chips, in a straight line or diagonally. Playing cards add twists. A Queen lets you remove your opponent’s chip and place one of your own.