Everything on the Decklab blog tagged “design-tips”: practical advice on making your own card game.
Blurry cards, enormous files and art that doesn't fit all come from getting pixels and millimetres mixed up. Here's how DPI works, what size your card images should be, and when 150, 300 or 600 DPI makes sense.
· 4 min read
Icons make cards faster to read than any illustration. Here's where to find thousands of free game icons, how to use them consistently on cards, and what their licence asks of you, even if you sell your game.
· 4 min read
Tokens carry more of a game's information than most designers notice. Here's how to choose shapes and sizes, design tokens players read at a glance, and print and cut a full sheet at home.
· 4 min read
White slivers on the edge of a card, or text that's been half cut off, both come from the same three lines. Here's what bleed, trim and the safe zone mean, how big each should be, and how to set up your cards so every cut looks clean.
· 4 min read
Card size changes how your game reads, shuffles, packs and prints. Here's what each common size is good for, the exact dimensions, and how to decide before you design a single card.
· 4 min read
Not every card game tool solves the same problem. Here's a practical breakdown of how Decklab AI, Component Studio and The Game Crafter differ, three realistic scenarios, and how to pick the right one for the stage your game is at.
· 7 min read
Most indie designers ask the wrong question when choosing card game software. The right measure isn't the feature count. It's how fast you can get from a concept to a playable test, and back again after every change.
· 5 min read
There's no shortage of AI tools for card game design. Here's what actually reduces friction at each stage, from idea to export, why stitching five tools together often slows you down, and where Decklab AI fits.
· 5 min read
Most indie studios overspend on polish before they've proved the mechanics work. Here's how to prototype on a small budget without the cards looking so rough that the feedback stops being useful.
· 4 min read
Designers build factions, lore and magic systems, then wonder why none of it produces compelling card effects. Theme is a design input, not a mechanic. Here's how to translate a world into rules players can feel.
· 5 min read
General-purpose AI is great at brainstorming. But card game design is a structured production job, and the most useful AI is the kind that works inside your cards, your data and your rules, and asks before it changes anything.
· 4 min read
Which AI tools actually cut iteration time, keep a game consistent and get it from idea to playable form? A practical look at chat assistants, image generators and game-specific tools, and where each one fits.
· 6 min read
The real comparison isn't feature counts. It's which workflow gets you from idea to a testable game with the least friction, and that depends on where your game is today. A fair look at three different tools.
· 5 min read
Mismatched frames, drifting fonts and icons pasted by hand make strong designs feel unfinished, and they skew playtest feedback. Here's how to keep hundreds of prototype cards consistent without a graphic designer.
· 5 min read
Players never meet your design intent, only your written rules. Here's how to draft a first rulebook that agrees with your cards, reads in the order people play, and survives a table of strangers.
· 5 min read
