Board game collaborative design tool...

[techbear]

I've been helping my nephew with his game idea (about the Undead), and I thought it might make a good board game. He and I don't live in the same city, so I thought of a virtual chalkboard tool, that would allow us to collaborate on the boardgame virtually.

These virtual chalkboards exist, but I've looked high and low, and I can't find anything that is aimed at the game designer. So I'm posting here, which isn't really a board game forum, but IS a community of smart folks I've gotten good advice from before.

I can easily imagine a networked tool which would allow multiple people to share a big 2d area to draw on and place bitmaps. Then add a die-roller widget, and the ability to put counters on the playfield, and drag them around. For bonus points, add the ability to define card sets, and add decks and discard piles to the playfield.

Is there anything out there like this?

If not, how could I best sell such a tool (assuming I made it)?

Thanks!

[electronicStar]

Sorry I can't give you a link but I know this type of software exists (for playing online pen and paper RPGs).try google:o

[soniCron]

You will almost certainly receive an answer for what you're looking for if you try asking on the BoardGameGeek forums (http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geekforum.php3). Please let us know what you find out! :)

[soniCron]

I was curious, so with only a minor amount of investigation, I discovered this: CyberBoard (http://cyberboard.brainiac.com/). Doesn't seem it's suitable for Internet collaboration, however. However, Vassal (http://www.vassalengine.org/community/index.php), also mentioned, has on-line support. (But no collaboration.) Also, this seems to be a design document for the program you're looking for (http://www.bgdf.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=29684#29684), but I don't think it's much more than that. And then there seems to be this thing called, Thoth Engine (http://digilander.libero.it/zak965/thoth/), though it appears (?) to be for card games. However, it's on-line capable. (Perhaps used in conjunction with NetMeeting?) Hope this helps! :)

EDIT: Thoth seems to work fine for board games, too (http://geoman36.tripod.com/thothgames/id2.html).

[Edtharan]

There is a fourum dedicted to the development of boardgames (www.bgdf.com). I also design board and card games (as a hobby not nessesarily for publication).

They have a discussion about a program that lest you play boardgames over the intinet (mainly as a prototyping tool, but also for actual playing of compleated games).

[techbear]

Thanks, guys! None of these tools is EXACTLY what I was thinking of, but I'll need to study them more.

Thanks!