Episode 249 - Interview with Blaž Urban Gracar
November 27, 2025
Ambie and Crystal interview Blaž Urban Gracar, the designer of All is Bomb, LOK, Abdec, LOK Digital, Workworkwork, and Herd! Check out all his games on his website Letibus Design. Herd figurines designed by Vojta Karen.
Intro: 0:00
Interview with Blaž: 0:36
Outro: 31:08
Bloopers: 32:03
Games mentioned this episode:
Wavelength: 02:02
Letter Jam: 02:10
Hive: 05:06
All is Bomb: 05:50
Catan: 08:05
Workworkwork: 13:44
Herd: 20:32
Abdec: 22:27
LOK: 28:01
LOK Digital: 28:14
This episode was sponsored by Grey Fox Games. Use the code "BLITZ10" to get 10% off your entire cart.
Board Game Blitz's theme song was composed by Andrew Morrow.
Transcript
[00:00:06:21 - 00:00:34:15]
Crystal: Hello and welcome to Episode 249 of Board Game Blitz, a podcast about all things board games that you can listen to in less time than it takes to figure out how to get little miniature figures printed in China. Board Game Blitz is sponsored by Grey Fox Games. This week we're talking to a very special guest, Blaž, about his game designs and game design aspirations. And now here are your hosts...
Ambie: Ambie
Crystal: and Crystal, with our special guest,
Blaž: Blaž
[00:00:34:15 - 00:00:57:23]
Ambie: Today we have a special guest on, yay! I've talked about on the podcast before the Puzzle Book LOK. I've also done a playthrough of the game All Is Bomb, which is a free print and play solo card game, so that's on our YouTube channel. And I've played a bunch of other games from this designer. So we have Blaž with us today. Do you want to introduce yourself?
[00:00:57:23 - 00:01:04:11]
Blaž: Hi, hi everyone. Yeah, I'm Blaž Urban Gracar. I come from Slovenia and I design games.
[00:01:04:11 - 00:01:08:07]
Ambie: Yes, all sorts of games.
Crystal: Well, thank you so much for joining us today.
[00:01:08:07 - 00:01:10:09]
Blaž: Yeah, of course, a pleasure. Absolutely.
[00:01:10:09 - 00:01:21:14]
Ambie: All right, so as I mentioned, I talked about LOK on the podcast before. LOK is a puzzle book. It's kind of like a word search with like lots of, what is the genre called? I'm not sure what the genre is called. Rule Discovery, I guess.
[00:01:21:14 - 00:01:22:15]
Blaž: Rule Discovery, yeah.
[00:01:22:15 - 00:01:22:20]
Ambie: Yeah.
[00:01:22:20 - 00:01:24:02]
Blaž: This is the best term.
[00:01:24:02 - 00:01:43:26]
Ambie: And you have lots of other books too. There's like Abdec also, which I have played, which was harder for me. There's newer ones, Workworkwork. And you're coming out with a more board gamey one called Herd, which is still like a puzzle book. But before we talk about all of those, we want to talk about you in board games maybe. So what board games do you like playing? Because this is a board game podcast.
[00:01:45:04 - 00:02:03:08]
Blaž: Yeah, well, I usually like smaller games, something that's not too much of a table hog. And for the past few years, I've gravitated towards two-player and solo games. But I also like big splashy party games. I think my favorite is Wavelength.
[00:02:03:08 - 00:02:04:25]
Crystal: Oh, yeah. Wavelength is great.
[00:02:04:25 - 00:02:10:28]
Blaž: Yeah. But also some of the more thinky party games. I mean, Letter Jam.
[00:02:10:28 - 00:02:13:28]
Crystal: Oh, yes. We're big fans of Letter Jam.
[00:02:13:28 - 00:02:19:01]
Blaž: I'm not sure if I would classify it actually as a party game.
[00:02:19:01 - 00:02:30:15]
Crystal: Yeah. We've discussed this before too. Because yeah, when it came out, a lot of people were calling it a party game. And we were like, just because you can play it with seven people does not make it a party.
Blaž: Yeah, true.
[00:02:30:15 - 00:02:33:09]
Ambie: It's my kind of party, though.
Crystal: I mean, it is.
[00:02:33:09 - 00:02:35:07]
Crystal: It's a nerd party is what it is.
[00:02:36:10 - 00:02:45:27]
Blaž: This is why it's my cup of tea. But yeah, mostly small, small stuff. Party games, maybe abstract strategy games and so on.
[00:02:45:27 - 00:02:51:13]
Ambie: And do those the games that you play, does it influence what you design? Or are they like unrelated?
[00:02:51:13 - 00:04:06:07]
Blaž: No, no, no, for sure. I mean, I was more into board games a few years ago. Actually, when I when I started playing board games, it was I think in 2018 or so. I really wanted to make a board game. But all prototypes that I've made, they didn't really click with me until I started making puzzle books. And then it was well, then I got more into the puzzle games, of course. But I think that the first transition from board games to puzzle games was more of an internal. How do I say? I think I just felt that paper and pen was more elegant for what I wanted to express whenever I tried using cards or dice or, you know, board game components. It all felt a bit too slow for my taste for the games that I wanted to make. So when I discovered that I can just make the player, you know, write something on paper and that's it. No other action is needed. That was really like an aha moment for me. And actually, after this realization, I got into puzzle games just because, you know, I felt so good in paper and pen environment.
[00:04:06:07 - 00:04:53:12]
Crystal: There's something in the simplicity of it, right? Because then the only complexity really that exists is in the puzzles themselves. You're not having to both get through how do I use these components in the process of playing this game? There isn't any barrier to entry there, right? So I think for somebody like you that seems to be very, you know, puzzle minded and the puzzle is kind of the key, that makes a lot of sense. But it's neat to hear that like over time, the way you've approached it has evolved a little bit. I imagine that's an interesting journey to go on as a game designer where the way you view games and the way you make games changes over time. Do you have any aspirations to make other types of games that you haven't explored yet?
[00:04:53:12 - 00:05:42:09]
Blaž: Yeah, absolutely. I really, really want to do an abstract strategy game. Like I want to have cute pieces that two players move around, I don't know, a board or even just a table. I really like Hive because,
Crystal: Oh, yeah
Blaž: it doesn't have a board, you know, it's again, it's minimal, it's elegant, you just have the pieces and you put them together and this design environment, this abstract strategy game stuff really inspires me. So I do hope that I'll make something. But it's very hard to come up with a good mechanic for a two player abstract strategy game because it's similar to making a puzzle system because you really want to have as few rules as possible. And every one of them should be, you know, a hit, just something that really sticks. So yeah, not there yet.
[00:05:42:09 - 00:05:44:10]
Crystal: Well, it sounds like you're definitely on your way.
[00:05:44:10 - 00:05:48:09]
Ambie: Yeah. And so far, all of your games are one player, right?
[00:05:48:09 - 00:05:52:03]
Blaž: Well, technically, All is Bomb, which is a card game.
[00:05:52:03 - 00:05:55:09]
Ambie: Oh, that's a co-op or something, I think.
[00:05:55:09 - 00:06:10:04]
Blaž: Yeah, it is co-op. For two players, but now that I'm making the second edition for it, I actually am considering eliminating the two player mode just because it doesn't, it doesn't click as well as the one player mode.
[00:06:10:04 - 00:06:16:19]
Ambie: On that note, you're getting a second edition of All is Bomb. So how do you decide when a game is finished?
[00:06:16:19 - 00:07:36:19]
Blaž: Yeah, I mean, All is Bomb is probably an exception just because when I made all this bomb, I was still uninspired. I mean, I was fresh, I didn't publish anything yet. I hadn't had my games on stock. Like I now have LOK and other puzzle books. Basically, I just want to have an officially printed version of All is Bomb, because I really liked the game. And I also think that it's very expandable, and that I could do more with it. Now that some time has passed, I think that I could, you know, maybe make more expansions or maybe even make another story within the system. But otherwise, I don't think that I'll return to the other designs.
But yeah, for the question, when do I know when to finish a game, when to finish development? Well, that's a good question. I usually just feel it. I say, okay, I made my mark with this game. I've said what I wanted to say. And I mean, especially with puzzle books, I think that when making a board game, it's a bit different because you can fine tune and tweak the mechanics, you know, ad nauseam. But with the puzzle book, you usually have a narrative, you have an arc. And you know, when you're going to the last puzzles, when you you're exploring the last mechanics, it's sort of sort of natural in this aspect.
[00:07:36:19 - 00:07:52:25]
Crystal: Yeah, no, that makes perfect sense. When you were young, did you have any particular games that you were drawn to, or that you kept coming back to? And that could be board games, video games, you know, anything, any genre, basically.
[00:07:52:25 - 00:08:37:28]
Blaž: Oh, I wasn't much of a gamer. When I was young, I did play, you know, the classics like Uno, Monopoly, and so on. But I got into board games in my 20s, into Catan, and then going from Catan like many people. And I remember I just had like a nostalgia moment, I want to, you know, sit around the table with some people and play something. And I went into a store, bought Catan, and then we had a few sessions and it really clicked with me. I really liked the experience. So this is why I got into board gaming. But before that, not really. I mean, I did play video games, but more like I opened up a game once per week, once per two weeks, something like that.
[00:08:37:28 - 00:08:49:23]
Crystal: So then where did the journey turn from I'm playing games to I want to design games? Did that itch hit you pretty quickly? Or was that did that happen more slowly?
[00:08:49:23 - 00:08:55:16]
Blaž: No, no, it hit me pretty quickly, probably in the first week of playing Catan.
[00:08:57:08 - 00:09:05:00]
Crystal: Yeah, I mean, you were born to design basically. And as soon as you started playing something, you were like, Oh, okay, now I know what I want to do.
[00:09:05:00 - 00:09:32:17]
Blaž: I guess that I created many fields, not just games. And I usually get like an urge to create something in genre that I also enjoy. This is why make music and so on because you know, I like to listen to music or let's try, try out something myself. And yeah, I really enjoyed the act of creation. And it was very natural to just have this Oh, I want to make something like this.
[00:09:32:17 - 00:10:07:12]
Crystal: It does seem that creative people in general do tend to be drawn to board gaming. And I haven't quite figured out exactly why that is. But a lot of the people that I know that enjoy board games also enjoy other creative endeavors, whether that's you know, going and watching musicals or other things of that nature that like not everybody is into. Although I admit I've said over the years that I truly do believe that board gaming is the hobby that every adult should have. And most of them just don't know it yet.
[00:10:07:12 - 00:10:36:07]
Blaž: Well, I did notice especially when you know, being in the online communities that especially board gamers tend to gravitate towards making board games as well. So people who play them not sure exactly why probably when you're playing all these systems, then your mind just gets all analytical and maybe I do it differently like this like this. And yeah, but I've noticed that many people want to make a board game when they play board games.
[00:10:36:07 - 00:10:54:11]
Ambie: It might also be like, because board games aren't rules enforced, like you enforce the rules yourself. Like people can play around with it more sandboxy. So that lends itself to like changing the rules as you're playing, whereas like in a video game or something, you can't really change the rules without like going into the code.
[00:10:54:11 - 00:11:44:02]
Crystal: Yeah, it's approachable too, right? Because like you as a human being who theoretically has no game design skills in any area, like you can take cubes and dice and paper and make a thing out of them, no matter who you are. But you can't code a video game unless you know how to do that. Although apparently, we're getting way closer to that than I like at this point. But that's a discussion for another day. But no, I it was funny years and years ago, I got that itch even like I consider myself a creative person. Also, I've you know, I sing and I used to do art a little bit. I'm a writer by profession most of my life. And I was like, I have to make a game. I just the same kind of thing. Like once I started playing games, I was like, I want to make one. And it does have an entry on BGG, but it's a print and play.
[00:11:45:05 - 00:12:19:08]
Crystal: It was for a GenCan't contest many years ago. But that it was fun. And I realized I think I was like, this is not something I want to pursue full time. But it was nice to get it out of my system. Because I did I felt like I was like, this is a space where kind of anybody can make anything for good or for bad. And I think, you know, people like you, when they get that itch, it's really neat to see the magic that comes after like you you know what you've got in your brain. And you're like, okay, what can I make with this? Yeah, it's inspiring to see.
[00:12:19:08 - 00:13:03:25]
Blaž: I really do like this aspect of, you know, physical game development, just like Ambie said that you take a few components in your hand, and you basically have a game if you think of a rule that would work with these components. And yeah, I think that more people should create in the physical game environment just because many people don't really do games because they don't know programming, but they're missing out on, you know, a whole world of possibilities. Because I think that physical games or board games or puzzle board games aren't necessarily worse than a video game just because they can't hide stuff under the hood. They, you know, offer other good things. So yeah, I do hope to see more of that.
[00:13:03:25 - 00:13:18:19]
Ambie: And like your puzzle books, they have so many like hidden things too. Like you wouldn't expect that from a physical game. But you have like secrets and stuff that I think they're very, very creative.
[00:13:18:19 - 00:13:27:15]
Crystal: And all of our listeners will have to pick up a copy of these books to know what the secrets are. So and we'll tell you all how to do that at the end of the episode.
[00:13:27:15 - 00:13:32:09]
Ambie: Yeah. But do you have a favorite, a personal favorite of the games you've made?
[00:13:33:12 - 00:13:35:28]
Blaž: Well, that's a hard one.
[00:13:35:28 - 00:13:38:18]
Crystal: Between your babies. How can we make you do this?
[00:13:39:22 - 00:13:40:23]
Ambie: Who's your favorite child?
[00:13:42:01 - 00:13:47:05]
Blaž: I think that actually probably Workworkwork the latest puzzle book that I've published.
[00:13:47:05 - 00:13:48:26]
Ambie: Yeah, I haven't done that one yet.
[00:13:48:26 - 00:14:17:16]
Blaž: Well, I did I did prepare the all three of them right here. I do have them. I can show them. Yeah. So Workworkwork is this one, this spacey one. I don't know. I feel like I was at my most mature when I made this one. Like I made the most specific surgical decisions when designing these puzzles. But I also know that it probably won't be a favorite of other players just because it's very difficult. But yeah, it's a darling of mine.
[00:14:17:16 - 00:14:23:22]
Ambie: Yeah, that one's like a more spatial one where you're connecting polyomino pieces in your head.
[00:14:25:03 - 00:15:13:00]
Blaž: Well, this is this is why what I really like about Workworkwork because yeah, on paper, it is about very hard visualizations. But I tried to design the puzzles in a way that you could break them open just with logic. So you are sort of learning about different approaches to puzzles, different logic tricks that you can pick up, which I tried to teach through the sequence. And basically, you build up a toolkit of different approaches that make the visualization part easier. This is why it's also called Workworkwork, because you're working, you know, you're working hard to get to to your goal, but it is obtainable in a very satisfying way. I hope. I tried to make it like that.
[00:15:13:00 - 00:15:17:21]
Ambie: Do you find it hard to come up with the names for your games? Or do they just come?
[00:15:17:21 - 00:15:26:21]
Blaž: Yeah, more or less. Yeah, I don't give it much thought. I just decide this is it like LOK, Abdec, yeah.
[00:15:26:21 - 00:15:34:23]
Crystal: I love it. Because I know I know there are other publishers who struggle endlessly to name their games. Yeah.
[00:15:34:23 - 00:15:39:06]
Ambie: Oh, what about the name? Is it Letibus? Letibus? How do you pronounce that?
[00:15:39:06 - 00:15:53:13]
Blaž: Well, I say Letibus, but I yeah, I'm fine with English pronunciation of it. Of course. The name means like a flying bus in Slovenian. Sort of.
[00:15:53:13 - 00:16:01:25]
Blaž: It's connected to a dream I had a while ago. I just really like it. I like the visual of a flying bus. I don't know why.
[00:16:01:25 - 00:16:17:11]
Ambie: And yeah, like, I think some people in your discord and also me didn't realize that the little logo was a bus. Until like we saw on your YouTube channel, like the animated intro that you made. It's like, Oh, oh, that's the name.
[00:16:17:11 - 00:16:39:29]
Crystal: When you're coming up with individual puzzles, what's your process? Like, do you kind of do puzzle ideas kind of just enter your brain kind of fully formed, then you just need to get them down? Or is it a I know what I want the end result to be and now I need to figure out how to get there? Like what what's your design process like when it comes up to creating puzzles?
[00:16:39:29 - 00:18:10:11]
Blaž: So at the start, I usually fish for a good inspiration, just for the whole system. And this is usually a moment that I just feel that something is correct. Something sort of.. sounds
Crystal: Feels right?
Blaž: Yeah, sounds nice in my brain before I even put anything to paper. And then I try out with a puzzle or two, not really knowing what I'm making and tweak it a little bit. But yeah, then when I get into making the puzzles themselves, when I'm comfortable with the system, I usually have an idea for each puzzle, I try to make puzzles have an idea. But in those first, let's say weeks of working on a new project, I throw stuff on the wall and I see what sticks. And some of these puzzles have a very strong energy to them. So I retain them also for the final sequence. But the deeper I go into the project, the more I'm precise, the more I know, okay, this is an aspect of the system that I haven't explored or haven't expressed yet. And I try to pinpoint it, I try to focus on it with, you know, puzzles with a specific puzzle. So it's a combination of Yeah, just seeing first what works, what the system is about. And I usually discover some unexpected stuff. Even if I have a system in my head fully formed, I most of the time for you know, the last few chapters, some stuff just gets discovered. And yeah, I just try to follow the system more or less.
[00:18:10:11 - 00:18:21:13]
Crystal: That's awesome. Do you ever does a puzzle ever have to hit the proverbial cutting room floor like something that you like the puzzle, but it just doesn't fit with what you're trying to do with it. Does that ever happen?
[00:18:21:13 - 00:18:48:20]
Blaž: Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. I mean, I've cut whole mechanics out of my books, it was painful, but it had to be done. Yeah, just because the more you work on a project, the more you see how the sequence goes, you want to tell a story, you want to start somewhere and then somewhere. And you know, it's important to not be too long with the beginnings to be as efficient as possible. You know, with sort of little tricks that you pick up when making these books.
[00:18:48:20 - 00:19:20:25]
Crystal: So if some of our listeners right now are thinking, I've never played a puzzle book before, I don't even really know what a puzzle book is, you know, should I get a puzzle book? What would you describe the experience as being like to somebody who's never played a puzzle book before? Just so they're like, Okay, you're telling me it's a book, it's got puzzles in it. Do I just, you know, solve puzzles in a book? Obviously, it's more than that. We know this. But you know, if you were trying to convince somebody to pick one of these up for the first time, how would you describe it?
[00:19:20:25 - 00:20:15:02]
Blaž: Well, I do think that the aspect of being away from screens is one of the biggest positives of, you know, having a puzzle book. And yeah, just, you know, having this small object that's full of content that you can go to the beach with on a walk and just sit on a bench and open up. Or when you're having your morning breakfast, just something that's yours, small, intimate, but I've also heard of people solving them together. So I don't know how this works. I haven't done it myself. And yeah, usually these puzzle books like mine, but also from other people, they're usually structured in a way that's gentle, that they don't just immediately trip you up. So you can basically pick up any of them and you'll slowly learn what you need to do and see if it works or not.
[00:20:15:02 - 00:20:24:05]
Crystal: That's awesome. Yeah, I know some people that I feel like maybe I should gift a couple of copies of your books too, because I think they would really enjoy them.
[00:20:25:05 - 00:20:41:13]
Ambie: Yeah, and I think your latest puzzle book might be interesting to the people listening to this podcast, because I think it's more board game adjacent is Herd, which is releasing around the time this podcast releases maybe before maybe after I'm not sure exactly when. But yeah, Herd, I'm really excited about Herd.
[00:20:41:13 - 00:20:49:16]
Crystal: For those of you listening to just the audio version of this and cannot see Ambie's face right now, she's glowing. She's very like,
[00:20:49:16 - 00:21:00:22]
Ambie: But yeah, I played like an early prototype copy and then I've been trying not to like follow along. I'm in the discord where you talk about design stuff and then I like see it and then try not to read it all.
[00:21:02:02 - 00:21:09:05]
Ambie: But yeah, in Herd, you have these figurines that look really neat. They're like 3D figurines that you move around on a board.
[00:21:10:09 - 00:21:13:23]
Blaž: I have the figurines. I don't have the book here.
[00:21:13:23 - 00:21:20:29]
Crystal: Once again, this is another reason to go look us up on YouTube for those of you listening to just the audio version, because we're going to get to see the figurines.
[00:21:20:29 - 00:21:27:26]
Blaž: Yeah, I hope the camera will pick them up, especially their faces. I'm not sure if the face is visible.
[00:21:27:26 - 00:21:28:23]
Crystal: Yeah, they have little faces.
[00:21:30:23 - 00:21:39:18]
Blaž: So these are, yeah, basically, we have two different types of figurines. We have the sheep figurines. Oh, we don't see the little faces. Sorry.
[00:21:39:18 - 00:21:42:10]
Crystal: The little face is harder to see on the white one.
[00:21:42:10 - 00:21:52:07]
Crystal: I see a little bit of it.
Blaž: And basically, they can stack. And we also have a three-part and a two-part type of sheep.
[00:21:52:07 - 00:22:17:20]
Ambie: Yeah, so in this puzzle, you're like stacking them and sliding them around on this grid paper on the page. So it's kind of like a board, but it's a book, like Stuffed Fables or something where you have the book with the board. And then you're sliding it around and trying to get the pieces to certain spots by sliding them. And you stack them and slide and move. And so, yeah, I played an early prototype and that was fun. So I'm excited. The figurines look really cool.
[00:22:17:20 - 00:22:20:14]
Crystal: They do look really cool.
Blaž: Thank you.
[00:22:20:14 - 00:22:25:09]
Ambie: But that seems more board gamey, because it has more physical components than just pen and paper.
[00:22:25:09 - 00:22:57:17]
Blaž: Yeah. After I made Abdec, which was the second puzzle book that I've published. Well, Abdec is a piece packing puzzle book. You're drawing in the pieces, but basically you could also play it with little pieces that you put on the pages. And this got me thinking, how could I expand on actually having physical pieces with a puzzle book? And I also wanted to explore the genre of SmartGames or ThinkFun, I think is one of those.
[00:22:57:17 - 00:22:58:09]
Ambie: Yeah, I love those.
[00:22:58:09 - 00:24:02:17]
Blaž: Yeah. I also really enjoy them, but I felt a lot of the times that each puzzle didn't really have an identity. You just had a board and then you recreated each setup and it all looked a bit the same. So I thought that I could make this a bit more interesting by having each grid on its own page. And I could go crazy with the illustrations or just the positioning. So yeah, this is sort of what started Herd. And yeah, just a quick shout out to Vojta Karen, who actually designed these models, these figurines. He's also part of the Letibus Discord, of my Discord. And he saw the early prototype, which only had an illustration of the figurines, how I sort of imagined them like this egg shape. And he basically made them for his own fun. And we started collaborating. So yeah, he tweaked them a lot. He made them new faces because I changed design during the development. But yeah, just shout outs to Vojta.
[00:24:02:17 - 00:24:11:25]
Ambie: So with Herd, like what have you learned from making a more physical product? And like, would you do another one like that? Another like more board gamey one?
[00:24:11:25 - 00:25:14:26]
Blaž: Yeah, Herd was quite an interesting project for me because I thought that it would be finished almost a year ago, actually in February, so eight or nine months ago. But then everything got postponed because of production problems. And I learned a lot just about working with the Chinese factory and making some bigger decisions in terms of making games and having a small publishing company. And it just pushed me into the cold water. And I learned really just from getting this project out a lot. And I think that I will make a similar game just because now I have the know how. And I do think that with the decisions that I made during the development of Herd, that I now will make better decisions with something similar. So this is what also excites me to make something like Herd 2. Not sure what. I do like the system a lot, but I do think that there's still room to expand. So let's see.
[00:25:14:26 - 00:25:15:18]
Ambie: I'm excited.
[00:25:16:26 - 00:25:30:13]
Blaž: And also, yeah, I mean, when I spoke about wanting to make an abstract strategy game for two players, now I have the knowledge to even make this because it's, again, it's figurines, it's a box, you need to package it. I know how to do it.
[00:25:30:13 - 00:25:37:13]
Crystal: Yeah, that barrier to entry, once you get past that, I imagine that it takes a lot of the stress out of the idea of just making another game.
[00:25:37:13 - 00:26:31:23]
Blaž: Yeah, I had a long walk because it was really stressful for me to wait for these figurines. I had everything ready. I had the boxes and the books ready made here in Slovenia for such a long time. And I got the figurines past Friday. And after I got it, I had a really long walk thinking about Herd and what I learned. And I remember I just I had a thought that I could probably invest one or two or three more years to make her a little better. But at the same time, I would just be postponing this final realization of finishing such a project. So I do think that there is room for improvements. Sorry for you know, speaking a bit badly about this project, I love it. But I do think that maybe I could fine tune it a little bit more. But I'm happy that I finished it when I finished it, that I went through it, because I think this is a very important part, just for me for as a designer to see through.
[00:26:31:23 - 00:26:52:01]
Crystal: I think it's you know, that that what like what is perfect, right or done. And it's something that is both visible and unachievable in the same breath. And so I think if what you've created has fulfilled your vision and makes you happy, and you think people will enjoy it, then yes, it is done.
[00:26:52:01 - 00:27:26:14]
Blaž: Yeah, I mean, the initial core idea, I think that I've expressed it perfectly. Like I had an idea about the book that would have figurines that you could move across the pages, and I've done it the best I could, like the fine tuning would be just in terms of, you know, a few months from now or a year from now, seeing that maybe a puzzle could be moved left or right. No, not big, not big stuff. But I usually want to be very thorough. So maybe this is just my vision of it. I think it's a good game, for sure.
[00:27:26:14 - 00:27:56:17]
Crystal: No, I mean, I think that's, that's just a sign that you have that you have game designer brain, right? You basically because if you if you didn't, if you were just throwing things together without rhyme or reason, then you would just do that. But because you're thoughtful in how you design games, you're always going to continue to be thoughtful about it. Even after you've made it really amazing, you're still going to think, well, could it be better? And the answer is maybe, but it's already great.
[00:27:56:17 - 00:28:25:17]
Blaž: So I've had a similar thing with LOK. I'm really proud of LOK as a book. But now that three years, I think, have passed since I released it, I really would make it differently. And at the same time, I was making a LOK of digital, the digital adaptation, and I revisited all of these puzzles. And I basically had a second chance. And I think it gave me some satisfaction in this aspect.
[00:28:25:17 - 00:28:33:27]
Crystal: Oh, that's really neat. So there are puzzles that exist in the physical and the digital versions that are the same but different or no?
[00:28:33:27 - 00:28:42:03]
Blaž: Yes. And also I've added more puzzles to the digital game and cut some from the book that were in the book.
[00:28:42:03 - 00:28:49:19]
Crystal: Okay. So basically, what you're saying is if people out there only own one, they definitely have to get the other because they are different experiences.
[00:28:49:19 - 00:28:50:25]
Blaž: Absolutely. Absolutely.
[00:28:50:25 - 00:28:51:16]
Ambie: Yeah, I've played both.
[00:28:53:26 - 00:29:01:07]
Blaž: I mean, there are mechanics that can only work on paper. And there are mechanics that can only work in the digital space.
[00:29:01:07 - 00:29:10:15]
Crystal: So Blaž, first off, we want to thank you very much for joining us today. It has been an absolute pleasure speaking with you.
[00:29:10:15 - 00:29:13:15]
Blaž: Thank you for having me. I really appreciate it.
[00:29:13:15 - 00:29:24:21]
Crystal: If our listeners are out there going, Okay, these sound awesome. Where do I get them? Where can people find more about you and your products? And where can they purchase them?
[00:29:24:21 - 00:29:44:03]
Blaž: Well, currently, I don't have much of an distribution network. So you get everything just from my side more or less. And this side is, well, my name, blazgracar.com, which is B-L-A-Z-G-R-A-C-A-R.com.
[00:29:44:03 - 00:29:47:25]
Crystal: We'll put it in the show notes, too. There will be a link in the show notes for people to click on.
[00:29:47:25 - 00:29:58:13]
Blaž: Okay, great. But if you just want my games, you have to add a slash afterwards and Letibus. So L-E-T-I-B-U-S.
[00:29:58:13 - 00:30:00:26]
Crystal: Got to follow the flying bus to get your games.
[00:30:00:26 - 00:30:07:19]
Ambie: Yeah. And there's a link to, there's a newsletter and your Discord server links on that website as well.
[00:30:07:19 - 00:30:09:26]
Blaž: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Everything is there. Everything is there.
[00:30:09:26 - 00:30:18:06]
Ambie: Like if you're interested in hearing like play testing progress and seeing his design progress, then join the Discord because there's a lot of that there.
[00:30:18:06 - 00:30:18:12]
Blaž: Yeah.
[00:30:18:12 - 00:30:21:26]
Crystal: Because it makes Ambie make her excited smiley face. And so.
[00:30:21:26 - 00:30:29:17]
Ambie: But I also don't look at a lot of it because sometimes I want to like not know everything when I go into the books.
[00:30:29:17 - 00:30:30:25]
Crystal: You're just happy that it exists. You know it's there.
[00:30:30:25 - 00:30:41:26]
Ambie: Yes. And there are other people who are more interested in like designing stuff than me. So yeah, if you're interested in like knowing all of that design work, it's a great place.
[00:30:43:03 - 00:30:50:06]
Blaž: It has become a good community, I think. A lot of talented people who make their own puzzle games and share them.
[00:30:50:06 - 00:30:52:01]
Ambie: Yeah, there's people doing an advent calendar.
[00:30:52:01 - 00:31:01:29]
Blaž: Yeah, yeah. This is crazy. A bunch of users came together and a puzzle using a system of my previous puzzle books per day in December.
[00:31:01:29 - 00:31:08:00]
Crystal: How fun!
Ambie: So yeah, join the Letibus Discord if you're interested in that advent calendar.
[00:31:08:00 - 00:31:57:27]
Ambie: And that’s it for this week’s Board Game Blitz. Visit our website, boardgameblitz.com for more content and links.
This episode was sponsored by Grey Fox Games. Late pledges are still available for Vampire Survivors the Board Game, so head to Kickstarter now to secure your copy! And when you’re doing your holiday shopping, don’t forget that you get 10% off all purchases, including exclusives at greyfoxgames.com when you use the code BLITZ10 at checkout!
Join the blitzketeer community on discord for game nights, discussions and more by following the link in the show notes.
Support the show by leaving us a rating and review on your podcast provider
And if you like us a lot and want to support us monetarily (and get some cool perks), check out our Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com/boardgameblitz today!
Our theme song was composed by Andrew Morrow.
Until next time,
Here I am
LOK is a cool puzzle game
Bye everyone!
Crystal: Bye!
Blaž: Bye! Bye!
[00:32:03:17 - 00:32:13:06]
Crystal: And now, here are your hosts.
Ambie: A - whoops sorry. I messed up on my name.
Crystal: Your own name!
Ambie: Okay, can you say and now again?
Crystal: Yep
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