Phil Walker-Harding
@philwh.bsky.social
Board and card game designer (Sushi Go!, Tetris, Gizmos, Imhotep, Bärenpark, Silver & Gold, Planted) on Gadigal land (Sydney).
www.philwalkerharding.com
Co-founder of Joey Games.
www.joeygames.com.au
www.philwalkerharding.com
Co-founder of Joey Games.
www.joeygames.com.au
Working on another shared board tile-laying game! No keepers yet, but fun to try using a pretty old game design muscle again.
October 26, 2025 at 8:57 AM
Working on another shared board tile-laying game! No keepers yet, but fun to try using a pretty old game design muscle again.
This is Matt’s most important video so far. Thanks for being vulnerable and getting the conversation going about the hard stuff in our job.
Today's video was a hard one for me to make - I wanted to talk about my experiences going through burnout in the last year or so as a game designer, and aspects of the wider tabletop industry that contribute to that.
youtu.be/D2rC_8F10R8
🎲✂️
youtu.be/D2rC_8F10R8
🎲✂️
The reality of being a full time game designer
YouTube video by Matthew Dunstan
youtu.be
October 8, 2025 at 9:08 AM
This is Matt’s most important video so far. Thanks for being vulnerable and getting the conversation going about the hard stuff in our job.
The players of the Super Mega Lucky Box app are amazing!.. I didn’t think 85 points was even possible and someone just got 88! It has been really interesting to watch players optimise this game so long after its release.
September 26, 2025 at 11:55 AM
The players of the Super Mega Lucky Box app are amazing!.. I didn’t think 85 points was even possible and someone just got 88! It has been really interesting to watch players optimise this game so long after its release.
My Essen release Tropicalia had its first version all the way back in 2014, but the central mechanism has remained the same from the start: two-phase worker placement. First, place workers around the edge of a grid, then move workers along their row or column to claim an action space. 1/3
September 19, 2025 at 10:43 AM
My Essen release Tropicalia had its first version all the way back in 2014, but the central mechanism has remained the same from the start: two-phase worker placement. First, place workers around the edge of a grid, then move workers along their row or column to claim an action space. 1/3
I have 2 new games currently crowdfunding!
👻 Sinister Institute is a magical co-op adventure set in a haunted swamp!
🌴 Tropicalia is a puzzly worker placement game about harvesting fruit and building a village!
Honoured to be sharing the campaign with Kramer and Kiesling's new game too!
👻 Sinister Institute is a magical co-op adventure set in a haunted swamp!
🌴 Tropicalia is a puzzly worker placement game about harvesting fruit and building a village!
Honoured to be sharing the campaign with Kramer and Kiesling's new game too!
Mojito Trio | Sinister Institute + Lords of Worlds + Tropicalia by Mojito Studios
Mojito Trio brings together three exciting family games designed by renowned creators: Sinister Institute, Lords of Worlds, and Tropicalia.
gamefound.com
September 11, 2025 at 7:35 AM
I have 2 new games currently crowdfunding!
👻 Sinister Institute is a magical co-op adventure set in a haunted swamp!
🌴 Tropicalia is a puzzly worker placement game about harvesting fruit and building a village!
Honoured to be sharing the campaign with Kramer and Kiesling's new game too!
👻 Sinister Institute is a magical co-op adventure set in a haunted swamp!
🌴 Tropicalia is a puzzly worker placement game about harvesting fruit and building a village!
Honoured to be sharing the campaign with Kramer and Kiesling's new game too!
A sneak peek at the next release from Joey Games! Dropping in Q4.
August 21, 2025 at 9:31 AM
A sneak peek at the next release from Joey Games! Dropping in Q4.
Working on a shared board tile laying game like it’s 1998!
August 20, 2025 at 11:03 AM
Working on a shared board tile laying game like it’s 1998!
Triple J is running a poll for the greatest Australian songs of the past 50 years. A great chance to come up with my top ten but almost impossible to choose just one Go-Betweens track! 🐨
July 7, 2025 at 6:29 AM
Triple J is running a poll for the greatest Australian songs of the past 50 years. A great chance to come up with my top ten but almost impossible to choose just one Go-Betweens track! 🐨
I have been enjoying this book by @3mbg.bsky.social ! It thoughtfully onboards newer gamers with the way it categorises games and uses some nifty tag icons. Plus nice write-ups of games of all complexities. Recommended!
June 24, 2025 at 7:31 AM
I have been enjoying this book by @3mbg.bsky.social ! It thoughtfully onboards newer gamers with the way it categorises games and uses some nifty tag icons. Plus nice write-ups of games of all complexities. Recommended!
😍
June 13, 2025 at 9:11 AM
😍
I was on a podcast recently and was asked what piece of art I’d recommend to everyone, and my response was Pet Sounds. Unexpected, honest, personal, and at times super weird, but also somehow a hit. It shows that art can be challenging yet still completely a gift to the audience. RIP Brian.
June 12, 2025 at 12:51 AM
I was on a podcast recently and was asked what piece of art I’d recommend to everyone, and my response was Pet Sounds. Unexpected, honest, personal, and at times super weird, but also somehow a hit. It shows that art can be challenging yet still completely a gift to the audience. RIP Brian.
Just posted my designer diary for 2001: A Space Odyssey.
It was a real journey figuring out what this game would be, and then actually getting it to work!
A real privilege to work with the Kubrick Estate, and a huge thanks to @themaestroteam.bsky.social for their work and for this opportunity.🚀
It was a real journey figuring out what this game would be, and then actually getting it to work!
A real privilege to work with the Kubrick Estate, and a huge thanks to @themaestroteam.bsky.social for their work and for this opportunity.🚀
2001: A Space Odyssey - The Board Game - Designer Diary by Phil Walker-Harding | 2001: A Space Odyssey | The Board Game
My father first showed me 2001: A Space Odyssey on VHS when I was about ten. But at that age, I think I was just too young to connect with it. It was so slow, the story kept jumping around in time, an...
boardgamegeek.com
June 6, 2025 at 6:31 AM
Just posted my designer diary for 2001: A Space Odyssey.
It was a real journey figuring out what this game would be, and then actually getting it to work!
A real privilege to work with the Kubrick Estate, and a huge thanks to @themaestroteam.bsky.social for their work and for this opportunity.🚀
It was a real journey figuring out what this game would be, and then actually getting it to work!
A real privilege to work with the Kubrick Estate, and a huge thanks to @themaestroteam.bsky.social for their work and for this opportunity.🚀
Really enjoyed Friedemann Friese's Fishing. A wild frankenstein curveball thrown into the trick taking scene.
May 8, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Really enjoyed Friedemann Friese's Fishing. A wild frankenstein curveball thrown into the trick taking scene.
Reposted by Phil Walker-Harding
We're delighted to share that both 52 Realms: Adventures & Koala Rescue Club have been shortlisted for Best Print & Play game at the Golden Geek awards 2024. There’s some great titles nominated this year so we’d love your help in voting for one or both games. boardgamegeek.com/geekawards/b...
April 15, 2025 at 2:43 PM
We're delighted to share that both 52 Realms: Adventures & Koala Rescue Club have been shortlisted for Best Print & Play game at the Golden Geek awards 2024. There’s some great titles nominated this year so we’d love your help in voting for one or both games. boardgamegeek.com/geekawards/b...
New maps available for the two Joey/Postmark print-at-home collabs: Koala Rescue Club and Scribbly Gum! 🐨🐛
It's new map day for Koala Rescue Club and Scribbly Gum! Head to the water in Koala Rescue Club map 3, and explore a brand new tree in Scribbly Gum map 4. Available to download from Dropbox now.
April 14, 2025 at 3:48 AM
New maps available for the two Joey/Postmark print-at-home collabs: Koala Rescue Club and Scribbly Gum! 🐨🐛
My designer diary for Misfit Heroes is up on BGG. Looking back on such a long process, I realised I learnt a lot about game design from designing this game. I also learnt I never want to prototype transparencies ever again!
Misfit Heroes Designer Diary by Phil Walker-Harding | Misfit Heroes
Making Misfit Heroes started differently to all my other games because I began with a specific and unusual design challenge for myself. Could I make a game that somehow generates its own unique deck o...
boardgamegeek.com
March 24, 2025 at 9:27 AM
My designer diary for Misfit Heroes is up on BGG. Looking back on such a long process, I realised I learnt a lot about game design from designing this game. I also learnt I never want to prototype transparencies ever again!
Reposted by Phil Walker-Harding
Really excited that Misfit Heroes is now funding on Kickstarter! It’s my crazy deck-mutating combo-creating tableau builder. And it has a frogman in it… a frogman!
Misfit Heroes designed by Phil Walker-Harding from AEG
Card craft amazing heroes and take control of the lands of Absurdia. A new game from the designer of Sushi Go!, Gizmos and Imhotep.
www.kickstarter.com
March 19, 2025 at 1:27 PM
Really excited that Misfit Heroes is now funding on Kickstarter! It’s my crazy deck-mutating combo-creating tableau builder. And it has a frogman in it… a frogman!
Reposted by Phil Walker-Harding
It's Misfit Heroes launch day! It was such a pleasure to work on this game with @philwh.bsky.social . Check it out!! kck.st/43R3LPS
Misfit Heroes designed by Phil Walker-Harding from AEG
Card craft amazing heroes and take control of the lands of Absurdia. A new game from the designer of Sushi Go!, Gizmos and Imhotep.
kck.st
March 18, 2025 at 5:29 PM
It's Misfit Heroes launch day! It was such a pleasure to work on this game with @philwh.bsky.social . Check it out!! kck.st/43R3LPS
Reposted by Phil Walker-Harding
Earlier this year I started a Board Game Club in Burwood, Sydney. The next event we're celebrating the 10th Anniversary of Sushi Go with the creator, @philwh.bsky.social. Come play some games and hear the story of Sushi Go!
🎟️ RSVP www.burwood.nsw.gov.au/For-Resident...
🎟️ RSVP www.burwood.nsw.gov.au/For-Resident...
March 14, 2025 at 11:41 AM
Earlier this year I started a Board Game Club in Burwood, Sydney. The next event we're celebrating the 10th Anniversary of Sushi Go with the creator, @philwh.bsky.social. Come play some games and hear the story of Sushi Go!
🎟️ RSVP www.burwood.nsw.gov.au/For-Resident...
🎟️ RSVP www.burwood.nsw.gov.au/For-Resident...
Just updated my web site to include my latest releases. If you're interested, I have mini-designer diaries for each game!
www.philwalkerharding.com
www.philwalkerharding.com
March 12, 2025 at 10:57 AM
Just updated my web site to include my latest releases. If you're interested, I have mini-designer diaries for each game!
www.philwalkerharding.com
www.philwalkerharding.com
This was a really fun chat! Some really interesting questions and some great games discussed.
We got @philwh.bsky.social on the show this week! He talks about his film background influencing his game designs, whimsical/playfulness in the games he's playing, and MORE.
Watch 👀 / listen 👂! www.goinganalogshow.com/article/292/...
Watch 👀 / listen 👂! www.goinganalogshow.com/article/292/...
February 23, 2025 at 11:16 AM
This was a really fun chat! Some really interesting questions and some great games discussed.
It was a real honour to design a game about one of the great films! At times the pressure to do it justice ran high for me, but I think we produced something that feels like the Jupiter Mission feels. I hope fans of the film feel this way when they play it too.
Gone Cardboard: Phil Walker-Harding and Maestro Media have adapted Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey for play on your tabletop, with 2001: A Space Odyssey | The Board Game due out in June 2025.
Details: boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogp... —WEM
Details: boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogp... —WEM
February 20, 2025 at 3:22 AM
It was a real honour to design a game about one of the great films! At times the pressure to do it justice ran high for me, but I think we produced something that feels like the Jupiter Mission feels. I hope fans of the film feel this way when they play it too.
Misfit Heroes is launching soon!
It’s a tableau builder where each character is created by combining a card and a transparency which alters it, meaning there are 1000s of possible characters and the deck can mutate every time you play.
Years in the making so I’m really happy it’s almost here!
It’s a tableau builder where each character is created by combining a card and a transparency which alters it, meaning there are 1000s of possible characters and the deck can mutate every time you play.
Years in the making so I’m really happy it’s almost here!
Coming soon: Misfit Heroes designed by Phil Walker-Harding from AEG
Card craft amazing heroes and take control of the lands of Absurdia. A new game from the designer of Sushi Go!, Gizmos and Imhotep.
www.kickstarter.com
February 5, 2025 at 12:59 AM
Misfit Heroes is launching soon!
It’s a tableau builder where each character is created by combining a card and a transparency which alters it, meaning there are 1000s of possible characters and the deck can mutate every time you play.
Years in the making so I’m really happy it’s almost here!
It’s a tableau builder where each character is created by combining a card and a transparency which alters it, meaning there are 1000s of possible characters and the deck can mutate every time you play.
Years in the making so I’m really happy it’s almost here!