Dastbaf Board Game by Mahdokht Rezakhani is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2023 Bronze A' Design Award in Toys, Games and Hobby Products Design Competition Category.
BronzeToy· 2023
Dastbaf Board Game
Client: Houpaa Publication
Bronze A' Design Award Winner in Toy Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #141214The Design
About Dastbaf Board Game
The Persian carpet is the most significant aspect of Persian culture. The initial design idea for a board game on a carpet weaving theme originated from the visual principles of Persian miniatures. Illustrations follow the symbolism and abstraction in Persian carpet design as they allow players to interact with each other and brake into the game story. Player boards are specific cities in Iran that are the most recognized for their handmade carpets. Color diversity and dancing motifs surrounding a part of a carpet are considered in the package illustration to empower the visual identity.
The Recognition
About the Bronze A' Design Award
Dastbaf Board Game is a Bronze A' Design Award winner, a highly prestigious recognition granted to outstanding designs distinguished by creativity, ingenuity, and astuteness. Bronze winners are amply skillful and strikingly creative artifacts that authenticate the vast experience, imagination, and resourcefulness of their designers. Dastbaf Board Game is expected to be a highly regarded, admired, and cherished object that is notably professional and innovative. This Bronze A' Design Award-winning design incorporates best practices in art, science, design, and technology, and is excellent for its attention to detail. Dastbaf Board Game splendidly satisfies needs, touches desires, charms feelings, and appeals to curiosity.
Interviews
Grand Interview
Your innovative integration of Persian miniature principles into Dastbaf Board Game has earned recognition with a Bronze A' Design Award - could you elaborate on how these traditional artistic elements influenced your game design decisions?
The design decisions were fundamentally guided by research and reflection on Persian art, specifically how the principles of Persian Miniature painting could be integrated into a functional game design. The influence of these traditional artistic elements can be distinctly categorized into two primary areas: Form and Color. The resulting visual identity for Dastbaf is the culmination of extensive observation, detailed research, and contemplative thought on Iranian art, ensuring the design choices are both aesthetically rich and strategically sound.
The octagonal playboard in Dastbaf Board Game features fascinating day and night elements reminiscent of ancient Persian bazaars - what inspired this specific architectural choice and how does it enhance the gameplay experience?
The architectural inspiration for the octagonal playboard came directly from studying the functionality and structure of traditional Persian bazaars, to adapt those real-world logistics into tangible gameplay opportunities. The most significant creative addition was the day and night elements, which were introduced specifically to clearly delineate two distinct, sequential phases of gameplay within the central Bazaar section, significantly enhancing the strategic depth and flow of the game.
How did your research into Persian geometry and regional carpet motifs shape the development of the distinct visual identity we see in Dastbaf Board Game, particularly in representing different Iranian cities on the player boards?
The research process into regional carpet motifs was the foundational element for Dastbaf's visual identity. Carpets from different regions across Iran possess unique and distinctive visual patterns, creating a rich artistic framework. This diversity provided the perfect visual context for the player boards, which represent different carpet-weaving workshops in various Iranian cities. This approach not only delivered aesthetic beauty and showcased the regional differences but also had a functional impact on the game. Giving each player a distinct board with a unique visual identity ensured a highly differentiated gameplay experience that is directly tied to the cultural heritage it celebrates.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- The product is a board game on carpet weaving theme. The visual identity follows the common symbolism and abstraction in Persian carpet design to allow players to interact with each other and brake into the game story. The product name, Dastbaf, comes after the common Persian title that specifies handmade rugs.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Package dimension: 30 cm * 30 cm * 6.5 cm
- Tags
- Persian design, board game illustration, carpet design, Persian illustration,
- Production Technology
- Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, and Adobe Fresco software
- Design Challenge
- The most challenging part of the design was defining a central playboard in which players could separate their actions into the two main processes of the game. I described an octagonal-shaped board including five arched structures (for five players) and considered day and night features in the illustration to direct players' actions in different playing processes and evoke the visual atmosphere of an old Persian Bazaar.
- Research
- I studied books on Persian geometry and motif styles. I also considered articles on the impact of geographical location on carpet design changes. Searching through websites introducing Persian carpets also helped to enrich my knowledge in this field.
- Inspiration
- The Persian carpet is one of the most significant aspects of Persian culture. As the game theme was carpet weaving, I started studying different design styles, modifying them to reconcile the game's rules, and taking advantage of the abstract visual alphabet. Player boards are specific cities in Iran that are the most recognized for their handmade carpets. I integrated both common motifs in the area and the most remarkable architectural symbol of the region to characterize a city as a player.
- Project Duration
- The project started in November 2020 in Tehran and finished in May 2021.
- Operation Flow
- The first etudes were designed based on the initial prototype by the game development team. Followed by several playtests, concepts illustrated and developed after numerous playtest sessions to ensure functional and atheistic aspects of the game's components.
- Patents
- Copyright: Houpaa Publication
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