by Greyfax

To update my previous announcement, this is actually the last column I’ll be doing. I didn’t get additional questions, and as I said previously I’m out of ideas. Thanks for reading!

I’ve edited the following question for gender:

To use two colloquialisms in one sentence: At the end of the day, this designer is not ready for prime time.

You can handle this in several ways. The first is a passive “I’m busy today” whenever they want to get together for a playtest session. I assume you’ve already considered not playtesting with this person but instead want to find a way to continue doing so.

The next is to talk with this person and say, “Hey, this is not fun. We want to help, not argue, and if you continue to take our criticisms personally, we have no interest in helping.” This gives them a chance to consider how they are responding and how losing playtesters isn’t something they want to have happen.

Another way is to play the game with them, then submit your thoughts via email so that they can get your thoughts, while avoiding discussion at the table. They might still argue over email, of course, but text would lower the temperature, so to speak, and they would have a chance to consider their comments before responding.

I don’t know whether you’re going to discuss my answers with them. If you do, you can mention that successful designers accept, welcome, and consider criticism of their work. I’ve worked with several, and they’ve all been quite professional in their attitude toward playtesters.

Everyone have a great new year and again thanks for reading!

Best,

Ms. Meeple (Jennifer Schlickbernd)