Design Brief: The Story Behind the Game I Couldn't Find in the Shops
I have been working on a little side quest lately.
Like many parents, I've found myself thinking about how much time kids spend on screens. But rather than focusing on banning screen time, I've become more interested in creating genuinely fun alternatives. After all, if something is engaging enough, people will naturally put their devices down for a while.
Growing up, one of my favourite games was Pictionary. Being very right-brained, I was hopeless at the intellectual trivia games and the business games where you buy properties in London, build hotels, and somehow become a property tycoon whilst travelling around Oxford Street on a silver ship.
Fast forward a few decades and, although I've grown up, I still feel there aren't enough games that celebrate creativity in a truly hands-on way. There are plenty of games that involve drawing, guessing, strategy, knowledge or luck, but surprisingly few that ask players to invent something completely new.
So I started wondering: what would happen if I combined all the elements I personally love in a game?
Out came the sketchbook.
I knew I wanted drawing. I knew I wanted invention. I knew I wanted slightly ridiculous design challenges. And I knew I wanted the game to feel tactile. Enter egg timers, red voting stickers, velvet sacks and satisfyingly weighty little gold bars that players can collect as they play.
The result is a game I'm currently calling Design Brief.
The idea began with a simple question:
"Can you design something that nobody has ever designed before?"
The answer, it turns out, is almost always yes.
At the heart of the game are three decks of cards. Players reveal one card from each deck to create a design brief.
The first card is an adjective.
Perhaps it's:
- Futuristic
- Vintage
- Royal
- Miniature
The second card is an object.
Maybe:
- Bicycle
- Treehouse
- Lunchbox
- Robot
The third card is a client request.
Something like:
- That is waterproof
- For pets
- That is very expensive
- Made from recycled materials
Suddenly you have a challenge.
Vintage + Treehouse + That is waterproof
Or perhaps:
Royal + Lunchbox + For pets
Or even:
Futuristic + Wheelbarrow + That is very expensive
Each player then has a limited amount of time to sketch their solution on a design card. The cards are intentionally small—roughly the size of a gift card—which I quite like because it forces people to focus on the idea rather than producing a masterpiece.
The timer starts.
Pens start moving.
People start laughing.
And that's when the magic happens.
One of my favourite parts of the game is a rule called "The Client Changed Their Mind."
After the three cards have been revealed, players can agree to replace one card if the challenge feels too difficult, too strange or simply uninspiring. However, whatever replacement card is drawn must be used.
No complaints.
No second chances.
Just like real life when a client suddenly decides they want something completely different after you've already started the project.
I also wanted the game to feel a little bit like being a real designer. Not necessarily a professional designer, but someone who solves problems through ideas.
When the timer runs out, players present their inventions to the group. They can explain how their design works, what makes it special and why it solves the challenge.
Then comes the voting.
Each player secretly places a red dot sticker on their favourite design. You can't vote for yourself.
The design with the most votes wins the round and earns a miniature gold bar.
The first player to collect the most gold bars wins the game.
What I love most is that there are no wrong answers.
A seven-year-old and a professional architect can sit at the same table and both have an equal chance of winning. Sometimes the cleverest design wins. Sometimes the funniest design wins. Sometimes the weirdest design wins.
In fact, some of the best inventions are often the most absurd.
The game also sneaks in a surprising amount of learning without feeling educational.
Players practise creativity, problem-solving and communication. They learn how to take several unrelated ideas and combine them into something new. They learn how to explain their thinking and present their ideas confidently to other people.
Perhaps most importantly, they learn that creativity isn't about being good at drawing.
It's about having ideas.
Some people draw beautiful sketches. Others draw wobbly stick figures with arrows pointing everywhere. Both can be brilliant.
As someone who has spent years designing products, I know that most innovation starts with rough sketches and half-formed thoughts. Rarely does a great idea arrive fully formed. More often it begins with a doodle in a notebook and a question that starts with "What if...?"
That's really what Design Brief is about.
It's a game of imagination.
A game of invention.
A game of creative confidence.
And hopefully a game that encourages people—children and adults alike—to spend a little more time making things up, drawing silly ideas and discovering that creativity is a skill anyone can enjoy.
Summary
Design Brief was born from a simple desire to create a screen-free game that celebrates creativity, invention and imagination. By combining unexpected design challenges, quick sketching, storytelling and friendly competition, the game encourages players to think differently, communicate their ideas and have fun doing it. With over 125,000 possible design brief combinations, every round presents a completely new challenge—and perhaps the seed of an invention that nobody has ever thought of before.
Thoughts?
I’d love your thoughts on this prototype concept. Should i mock it up ? would you buy it? i’d love to hear what you think, pls put your comments below.
Names
I would also love your comments about the name, do you like “Design Brief” or can you think of a better name for it ?
