Unlock 🔓 Your Game Design Potential with
Are you passionate about board games?
Do you dream of creating your own game but don't know where to start?
Look no further. Tabletop Game Design MasterClass is your key to unlocking your potential to become a licensed board game designer in as little as 8 weeks.
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TGDM covers every aspect of game design, from Ideation to Creation, and Pitching. You'll learn how to generate new game concepts, develop engaging gameplay, create playable prototypes, and pitch your game to top companies with the confidence of a seasoned pro.
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Forget starting from scratch! You will receive time-saving bonuses, including a pitch deck template, sizzle video script, an AI game design training, and list of the top 20 pitchable game companies. Every bonus resource is designed to streamline and speed up your process of becoming a licensed game inventor.
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With over 30 years of combined experience, April Mitchell and Ed Gartin are ready to deal you in on the secrets of the trade. Their expertise and passion for game design make this duo the perfect mentors to guide you on your game design journey.
William Anderson
“As someone who has had experience in the toy industry, but little experience with games, I immediately signed up for Ed & April's 'Tabletop Game Design Masterclass'.
Together, their wealth of knowledge of games is staggering. They're both extremely generous, and disclose all of their trade secrets! You can tell that they genuinely want to see everyone in the class succeed and they provide all the necessary tools and assistance to make that a reality.
April has such a positive energy about her that is contagious, and she is quickly becoming one of the most relevant game designers in the industry! Can't wait to see what you come up with next!!!
I thoroughly enjoyed the course, and can recommend it to anyone looking to get into tabletop game design!”
The Secret Sauce Behind Tabletop Game Design MasterClass
A Condensed Wealth of Industry Experience: 2 Expert Inventors + Decades of Expertise = 1 Easy To Digest Program. TGDM breaks down 30 years of game design and pitching techniques in bite sized lessons and engaging modules.
Innovative Ideation Techniques: Get the secret sauce to game creation by learning creative ideation methods that the instructors, Ed and April use to consistently generate and refine game concepts that companies WANT to buy.
Prototype to Pitch Mastery: Once you make that game it’s time to sell it! This program guides you through crafting playable prototypes and effective pitches, ensuring your game stands out to potential licensors.
Design & Develop A Game In
3 Easy Steps!
IDEATION
A creative process or technique used to generate new ideas and/or new game concepts.
Get Ready to learn how to do it whenever you want, and/or need to.
CREATION
From sketching your initial idea to crafting a fully-functional game, you'll learn the art and science behind game and a playable prototype.
PITCH
Pitching a game is similar to a sales pitch but with a focus on the product, like what you've seen on Shark Tank or the Dragons' Den, and you're going to become great at it!
Learn How To Make It All Happen With
Tabletop Design Masterclass™️
Bill Ward
“I just finished the Table Top Games Master Course created and led by April Mitchell and Ed Gartin. What a fun and educational experience the course has been!”
Heidi Brescher
“This class not only took us through how to design games, but how to playtest your game (and the importance of this step) and also how to create sell sheets, sizzle videos and pitch your game to game companies.”
Antonio Alicibia
“This course was a "Game Changer" in my inventor path. I learned a lot about the structure of game designing. All the information was very useful to design games in a more professional way.
With the knowledge I learned I felt more confident pitching my game to companies. I am so happy because I have received several congratulations for how well my pitch, my sell sheet and my video were done.
During Mojo Pitch more than 10 companies were interested in my game thanks to April, Ed, I feel so grateful.”
MEET YOUR INSTRUCTORS 👋
A 22+ year veteran of the Toy and Game industry and the founder and Creative Catalyst behind Paper Bag Creative.
Ed Gartin
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During his 22+ years in the industry, Ed has been designing, developing, and manufacturing innovative new toys and games at places such as Hasbro, Toys R Us, Kosmos, Decipher TCG, and SwimWays, just to name a few. He’s led multiple design teams in the creation of highly successful brands and innovative new products. His career highlights include: Monopoly Gamer – the largest prime time launch based on sales in the 87-year history of Monopoly. Monopoly Millenials which Generated over 1.5 billion media impressions at launch. The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game, which won the Origin Awards for Best Trading Card Game of 2001, and Best Graphic Presentation of a game in 2001. Today Ed continues inventing and developing toys and games that bring families together through play, and inspire children to become the amazing people that they were destined to be. Having worked in every genre of gaming from Trading Card Games at Decipher, Family Board Games at Hasbro, and German Board Games at Kosmos; working everywhere from the boardroom to the factory floor to make it happen; Ed has seen it, heard it, and done it. Now, he would love to share that wealth of experience with you so You Can Master Board Game Inventing!
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🏆 Mojo Top 100 2023
🏆 Mojo Nation 100 2024
🏆 Mojo Nation 100 2025
An inventor and product licensing expert who uses her background as an educator, military spouse, and the “Mom of 4 Factor” for developing and designing products in several industries with some help from her TEAM(family of 6).
April Mitchell
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As a teacher at heart, April has a thirst to share her experiences and expertise, which has driven her to work as a product licensing coach at inventRight and teach The Tabletop Board Game Master Class with Ed Gartin to aspiring game inventors. She also speaks on podcasts, webinars, and classes about all things inventing, mindset, and emotional health. April also writes a monthly column in Inventor’s Digest Magazine called Meant to Invent. Some guest speaking engagements include Inventors Groups of America, Military Spouse, USO Camp Pendleton, Inventorcon, and various regional inventors’ groups.
April is a 2x Patented inventor who has designed, developed, and licensed concepts in several industries. Her areas of expertise include organizational and storage products, kitchen tools & gadgets, party supplies, preschool toys & games, family games, party games, adult games, strategy games, sports toys and games, and outdoor/yard games. These products inspired by life as a military family, teacher, and mom bring both function and fun to families’ homes helping make life more enjoyable and convenient for everyone. Products that April invented or co-designed that are currently available for retail are Right Height adjustable over the door hook, Hooked on Hoops, and Clueless the Party Game. Stay tuned as more products are releasing this year!
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🏆 MOJO 100 2023
🏆 Women in Toys Inventor of the Year Finalist 2023🏆 Mojo Nation 100 2024
🏆 People of Play's TAGIE Game Innovator of the Year 2024
🏆 Mojo Nation 100 2025
🏆 Mojo Nations's Play Creator Award Finalist for Game Innovator of the Year for IP/Licensing
🏆 Women in Toys Inventor of the Year Finalist 2025
A Selection of Products Ed & April Have Created:
Adam Bagatavicius
“Ed is an absolute superstar in the world of toys and gaming. I knew virtually nothing about game design before taking a "Tabletop Game Design Masterclass" led by Ed + April Mitchell, and left feeling equipped, inspired, + vitalized by all the possibilities.
*WARNING*: after taking this course, you WILL start seeing game concepts around you everywhere! Don't EVER leave home without a notepad.
If you're feeling apprehensive + questioning whether being a "newbie" in the game design world works against you, rest assured that the skills you will gain here are not only comprehensive + well-paced, but also transferrable to other industries. Notably: you will learn how to apply certain game design tenets to toy development (like I did), or even how to leverage storytelling concepts and marketing tools to bolster the success of your business + ideas at large.
As a coach, inventor, and human being, Ed will help you turn the most sparkly realms of your imagination into whimsical realities. His combination of oracle-like knowledge, wry humor, generosity, and keen off-the-cuff intuition – especially regarding ideation and product development – is staggering.”
Ellen Eastaugh
“I took April's class in game invention/pitching and can confidently recommend it (and her as a mentor) to anyone interested in the space.
April brings patience, enthusiasm, hard-won wisdom, and general silliness that makes learning about games and toys rewarding and fun (and, as she'll tell you, it's all about FUN!).
She really knows her stuff, and her dynamic with Ed (our co-instructor) brought out the best from both of them, resulting in a well-rounded lesson in how to go from aspiration to invention to licensing. 10/10!”
MODULE BREAKDOWN
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Lesson 1 - Research
Lesson 2 - Inspiration
Lesson 3 - Ideation
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Lesson 1 - Themes
Lesson 2 - Creating Experiences
Lesson 3 - Are themes necessary??
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Lesson 1 - What are Mechanics
Lesson 2 - Mechanics Part 2
Lesson 3 - How to Use Game Mechanics
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Lesson 1 - Intro to Aesthetics
Lesson 2 - Aesthetics Step by Step
Lesson 3 - Making a Game
Bonus Lesson (4) - Using AI for Aesthetics
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Lesson 1 - Playtesting
Lesson 2 - Iterating
Lesson 3 - Rules
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Lesson 1 - Making & Finalizing Rules
Lesson 2 - Names and Taglines
Lesson 3 - Applying Graphics
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Lesson 1 - How to shoot/record
Lesson 2 - Making a Storyboard and Voice-Over Script
Lesson 3 - Making the Sizzle video
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Lesson 1 - Sell Sheets
Lesson 2 - Pitch Decks
Lesson 3 - Before, During, and After the Pitch
Ready to Unlock Your Potential As A Game Inventor?
CHANGE THE GAME. ENROLL NOW.
3 MONTHLY PAYMENTS OF
$275
✔️ 8 Comprehensive Game Inventor-Focused Training Modules: Covering everything from ideation to pitching, designed to transform you into a professional board game inventor.
✔️ Essential Resources: Including an Editable Spec Sheet, Presentation Deck, Playtest Questionnaires, Game Inventor's Guide, Favorite Research Sites, and Contacts for the Top 20 Pitchable Game Companies.
✔️ BONUS #1: Bonus Lesson in Module 4 on how to expedite your game design process with AI.
Top
Pick
JUST A ONE-TIME PAYMENT OF
$800
✔️ 8 Comprehensive Game Inventor-Focused Training Modules: Covering everything from ideation to pitching, designed to transform you into a professional board game inventor.
✔️ Essential Resources: Including an Editable Spec Sheet, Presentation Deck, Playtest Questionnaires, Game Inventor's Guide, Favorite Research Sites, and Contacts for the Top 20 Pitchable Game Companies.
✔️ BONUS #1: Bonus Lesson in Module 4 on how to expedite your game design process with AI.