A quarter of a century of exposure to my partner’s gaming activities has had its effect. Over that time we have both come to understand that there is a need in the industry for high-quality editing and proofreading services. There is a wide range of areas where such work is important — books, game rules, publicity material, websites. The success or failure of a game can depend upon delivery of a high-quality product — not only in terms of appearance but also content. In our experience, few things annoy gamers more than material which is confusing or unclear.
So, whether it is writing the rules for your new card game, putting together a gamemaster manual, creating a bestiary — you should always consider having your material looked over by the expert eye of a copyeditor and proofreader. They will be able to check not only the simple things — spelling mistakes, faulty punctuation — but also give guidance on good phrasing, idiom and general intelligibility.
Just as important is to ensure that your material is framed suitably for your target market including the use of appropriate words and terminology. Whilst this might begin with deciding if the material should be edited in British or US English according to your target audience, there are other subtler aspects which your copyeditor can advise on. To be clear, this is definitely NOT a substitute for playtesting — there is always a need to expose your game (including its rules) to the rigours of actual gamers — but it is a key element of the design process. Your project will be all the better for this kind of input!
If you would like advice on how we can help with your project, please get in touch using our contact page.