Black Voices in Board Games
This list started as a Twitter thread, but I'm putting it here so it doesn't get lost.
It's not at all clear that this is the right place to be hosting this list, but here it is. Let me know if you have ideas about better places to host.
Designers
Eric Lang | Ontario
@eric_langEric is an award-winning board game designer with 4 games in the top 200 on Board Game Geek: Blood Rage, Rising Sun, Chaos in the Old World, and Arcadia Quest. He currently works at CMON as Director of Game Design.
Ken Johnson | Michigan
Ken is the designer of the mass-market card game Phase 10, which has sold over 3 million copies. He is also an app developer, writer, speaker, and coach for inventors.
Eric Slauson | Virginia
@slausondesignsEric is "Interested in creating memorable social experiences that challenge what games can be." His games include Tattoo Stories and MonsDRAWsity.
Omari Akil | North Carolina
@OmariAkilOmari founded the company Board Game Brothas with the goal of increasing diversity and representation in the board game industry. Their first game is Rap Godz.
Marcus Ross | Nebraska
@MarcusRossMarcus is the co-founder and lead designer of Water Bear Games. His published catalog includes the games Discount Salmon, BEEEEES! (via Action Phase Games) and Letter GO! (via Wizkids).
Latesha Williams | New York
@cards4allpeopleLatesha co-designed the mass-market trivia game Black Card Revoked, which was turned into a black culture trivia game show on BET. She is the co-founder of the publishing company Cards For All People.
Damon Saddler | California
Damon is a Key Lead Designer at Mattel. He has worked on games including UNO Attack, UNO Power Grab, Pictionary Showdown, and Scrabble Speed.
Fertessa Scott | Georgia
@Fertessa , @BookofVillainyFertessa's game Book of Villainy was a finalist in the Board Game Workshop contest in 2018. She's also a contributor at Girl's Game Shelf.
Gary co-designed the game Rival Restaurants. He's a project manager at Gap Closer Games.
MaryMartha Ford-Dieng | New York
@ClapBackGameMaryMartha created the party game The Ultimate Clap Back.
Cory Goff | Florida
@XInfinityGamesCory started Times Infinity Games and published his game 7 & 7., a card game about sins and virtues.
Gerald King III | Ohio
@UltimateTeamupGerald designed Flip and Find's Diner. He's also in the consultant section below for his work with Ultimate Team-Up.
Tanisha Hall | South Carolina
@inallseriesnessTanisha made Hillman the Game after playing The Game of Life and wishing there were Black characters. She created a game that riffs on favorite characters from 80s and 90s tv shows, and started the company In All Seriesness to publish it.
Sanderson Virgolino | Brazil
@SanVirgilinoSanderson has several published games in Brazil, including Bushido and La Muerte.
interview on Turno Extra (Portuguese)
Adrienne Smith | Massachusetts
@BlitzChampz , @adriennethe10Adrienne is a tackle football player who created Blitz Champz, a card game about football that sneaks in some math skills for kids.
Jennifer Schlickbernd | California
@JenSchlickbernd Jen co-designed Advanced Civilization (1991). She was one of the early US proponents of German games in the 1980s, and one of the first people to get a DCI number for Magic: The Gathering. She remains an active gamer, BGG user, and podcaster.
member of Game Brain podcast
Mike is best known for his work in RPGs, but has also designed board games, including Go Dice and a series of games that were published in Buck Rogers magazine.
Grailing Jones | California
Graining is a long-time wargamer. He has designed A Distant Thunder, based on Battles and Campaigns of the Anglo Dutch Wars at Sea, published by Heritage Games.
Christienne Hinz | Illinois
@xpeliciousDr. Hinz is studying the gamification of world history pedagogy with computer games, role-playing games, and board games that model the economic systems and socio-political structures of the past.
Chantel Calloway | Massachusetts
@rhymeanticsChantel designed Rhyme Antics, a game she describes as “Catch Phrase meets karaoke.” Players engage in a battle of words to test their vocabulary and speed.
Alfonzo Smith Jr. | California
Alfonzo designed the games Vie and In or Out. He is also the celebrated auctioneer for Strategicon in Los Angeles.
Perry Clemons | New York
@InequalityOpolyPerry is an educator and game designer who made the game Inequality-opoly to help people understand how structural racism and sexism in America serve as impediments to accumulating wealth.
Kimelia Weathers | California
@BrilliantOrBSKim is the designer of the bluffing trivia game Brilliant or BS. When she's not designing games, she is a producer for reality competition shows on TV.
Jerry Spatch | Massachusetts
Jerry made Vers: the Rap Gameas an entrepreneurship student at Northeastern University.
Chidi Paige | New Jersey
@ChidiPaige, @birdwiserChidi is a biologist and STEAM educator who designed the game BirdWiser.
PJ Vilsaint | Arizona
@bossbattlegamePJ is a former digital game developer who co-designed the card game Boss Battle.
Jessica Pierce | Arizona
@jessnestuffJessica is an illustrator, animator, and graphic designer who co-designed the card game Boss Battle.
Yeside Osuolale | Nigeria
Yeside is the Creative Lead at Forerunner Games, a tabletop games company in Nigeria.
Kenechukwu Ogbuagu | Nigeria
@nibcardgamesKC designs and publishes board games in Nigeria, where he has also opened the first board game cafe and spearheaded the first board game convention.
Mandë Holford
@scimavenMandë is a biochemist who studies peptides from venomous marine snails as tools for manipulating cellular physiology in pain and cancer. She helped to design the game Killer Snails, and co-founded a company that publishes science-based games.
Shallimar Jones
@DrShallimarShallimar is a psychologist and expert in gender dysphoria, as well as a consultant on diversity and emotional intelligence for business. Her game E-IQ was designed as a tool to teach emotional intelligence for both children and adults.
Artists
Hamu Dennis | Louisiana
@hamu_dennisHamu is an artist, photographer, and videographer who cofounded Board Game Brothas and illustrated Rap Godz.
Cara Ryan Heacock | Nebraska
@caramiki , @waterbeargamesCara is a web developer, graphic designer, and illustrator Cara's first co-design, Discount Salmon, won the Tabletop Deathmatch in 2014. Other titles from her company Water Bear Games include Beeeees! and Nom Nom Pretzel.
Nivea Toliver| Pennsylvania
@dari_paintsNivea is a freelance artist who works in concept art, character design, children's book illustration, card game illustration, and visual novel illustration. She was the artist for the Yes! Broccoli! card game.
Keturah Ariel | Ohio
@keturahArielKeturah illustrated the game Angry Moms. The first children's book she illustrated, I Am Enough, became a 2018 New York Times Bestseller.
Lamaro Smith | Grand Bahama
Lamaro was an artist for the games Jinja and Murder on the Cosmic Express.
Daimon Hampton | Illinois
@daimondrewthisDaimon is a UX designer, illustrator, comic book artist, and comedian from Chicago. He illustrated the game Brave New Worlds.
Rob Guillory | Louisiana
Rob is a comic book artist whose works include CHEW and FARMHAND. He illustrated the game Maniacal.
Jessica Pierce | Arizona
@somejessnstuffJessica is an illustrator, animator, and graphic designer who co-designed the card game Boss Battle.
There's a good chance I've missed artists who have illustrated board games here -- let me know!
If you're looking for someone to illustrate your next game, check out #DrawingWhileBlack on Twitter and this database of Black artists.
Consultants and Scholars
Tanya DePass | Illinois
@cypheroftyrTanya is the founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a non-profit organization advocating for inclusion and representation primarily in video games. She is also a writer, sentitivity reader, and diversity consultant. On the side, she's part of Rivals of Waterdeep, a Dungeons and Dragons show on twitch.tv/dnd that features all POC cast members.
Gerald King III | Ohio
@UltimateTeamupGerald founded Ultimate Team-Up to help creators and publishers with online coaching and in-person events focused on playtesting, development, and marketing.
Aaron Trammell | California
@aarontramAaron is an assistant professor of Informatics at UC Irvine, where he is affliated with the Transformative Play Lab. He is Editor-in-Chief of the journal Analog Game Studies and the Multimedia editor of Sounding Out!. Aaron’s research is focused on how games inform the lived experiences of their player and further values of white privilege and hegemonic masculinity in geek culture.
Content Creators
Monique
@GamefreakgeekMonique was Social Media Manager for Girls' Game Shelf and now livestreams as Gamefreakgeekgirl.
Jeremy Howard
@jambapgJeremy does previews and run-throughs, including Solo Sundays for Man vs Meeple.
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Jonah & Shantelle Dew
Jonah and Shantelle do reviews and previews at Tantrum House.
DeQuan Watson
@powrdragnDeQuan has been a MTG pro, game store owner, and WotC employee. He has channels on Twitch and YouTube and also runs the Color of Magic podcast.
Jennifer Schlickbernd | California
@JenSchlickbernd Jen co-designed Advanced Civilization (1991). She was one of the early US proponents of German games in the 1980s, and one of the first people to get a DCI number for Magic: The Gathering. She remains an active gamer, BGG user, and podcaster.
member of Game Brain podcast
Aaron Bradley | Maryland
@Ind1fferenceAaron's website and podcast GameEnthus covers both analog and digital games with reviews, previews, playthroughs, and interviews.
Business Owners
Lee Gaddis | Michigan
@GaddisGamingLee founded Gaddis Gaming to make Table Toppers and other gaming-related items.
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Timm Metivier | Nevada
@MeeplevillecafeTimm was a comedian and magician before he opened FLGS Meepleville Board Game Cafe in Las Vegas. He also runs Dice Tower West.
Derrick Taylor | Nevada
Derrick co-owns FLGS Shall We Play? in Las Vegas.
Darnel and Delaina Sonnier | Louisiana
@AnubisGameHobbyThe Sonniers own FLGS Anubis Game and Hobby outside Lafayette.