Writing Rules in Games.

Rules are the most important aspect of games design; in a non-digital game if the players are not able to understand the rules then they are also unable to play the game.
The rules need to clarify everything that is found in a game, making sure the players are able to completely understand the game and will not question everything. However, it is also necessary that the rules are as brief as possible, this means that the player will not need to read a tome of writing and get bored before even starting the game.

There are some important things to remember when designing rules :

1. Flavour first. Utilise a narrative if it exists. It will help tie the game rules together.

2.Get the boring stuff out of the way. Always list what the game needs and how it is set up after establishing the narrative, if it is too wordy then utilise an illustration.

3.Begin with the end. Always offer the objective first, as this is the win condition. This will be easy to find so that the players can understand how to win if they forget.

4.Go from general to specific. Similar to an inverted pyramid. Explain the general rules first before narrowing down and going into specifics. A way to think about this is to explain the rules of what is most likely going to happen before explaining what is less likely to happen.

5.Tell the players what they can do before saying what they cannot. The first rules are established as the primary rules this way, allowing the following rules to either change the former or not be in a state where the primary rules are applied.

Finally make the rules less serious and informal, unless the nature of the rules is to be strict and formal.

Utilise short sentences, simply vocabulary and include white space to make the rules easier to read.


Jacob Davenport further develops on the above rules that were written by Scott Jon Siegel.

If we explore Jacob'x writings he agrees with the above to an extent. In his opinion, anything extraneous should not be added to the rules unless necessary. This would contradict with Siegel's writing about being less serious and more fun when writing rules.

Other than the above, Davenport expands upon the rules by writing that your rules should be able to be read out loud to another and then they are able to start playing your game with little confusion. He also brings up that bullet points and white space are important, similar to Siegel.

Get the rules reviewed by people who know nothing about your game, and if they are unable to explain them to another without translating certain points then be prepared to re-write the rules to make them easier to understand and interpret.

Include interpretations of rules to prevent the above issue, such as issuing examples in italics to be read and reinforce the rule.If more clarification is needed then include it later on, perhaps as an appendix.

Finally, be prepared to consider how the rules would be used and write them as necessary. Always review and include the feedback and comments when designing or re-designing the rules in order to make them as accessible and understandable as possible.