Dized is an app meant for everyone from total newbies to the most hardcore players. Dized content makes games more accessible with Tutorials, more usable with Rules, and simply more entertaining with Downloadable Content (DLC). Let’s learn more about each of these:
TUTORIALS make games more accessible.
Tutorials allow players to get into the game immediately by giving easy to follow step-by-step instructions. They present the information you need to know right when you need to know it, which allows you to start playing a lot sooner. Presenting the gameplay this way also enhances retention because you’re only learning the immediate rules and not getting distracted by everything else in the rulebook. And as we know, one of the most efficient ways to learn is by doing, or in this case by playing. Interactive tutorials can adjust themselves to the number of players, the desired skill level, and other applicable preferences so that you’re learning the way that your group wants to play.
This is what sets Dized apart from rulebooks or online videos, making Dized more like the friend at the table who already knows the game inside and out, who knows how to teach the game and make it fun at the same time.
RULES on Dized make games more useable.
Rules on Dized are living rulebooks that contain all the game rules including built-in FAQs. All the content is cross-referenced and searchable, allowing players to solve any rule related issues in seconds. The best part is that because content is made (or at least approved by) the publishers, the information is accurate. Publishers are always able to modify the content in order to make sure it’s up-to-date. This guarantees that all rule-related problems are quickly resolved. Playing with correct rules results in fewer arguments and more time spent playing the game.
It’s worth noting, that apart from other content on Dized, Rules are always free of charge for both publishers to create and offer, and for players to use.
DOWNLOADABLE CONTENT makes games more entertaining.
The ways in which digital content can improve gaming experiences are endless. This can start from simple tools to help with bookkeeping in games to adding full blown expansions for a game, and the market already has some great examples of games that have done this. Some of this kind of content can be in the form of score trackers and calculators, soundtracks and soundscapes, dice rollers and spinners, stats upkeep sheets, digital mechanics, extra content (characters, missions, virtual cards, etc.), game masters and even AI players for some games. It has always been an expensive and difficult challenge for publishers to create and maintain this kind of digital content, but Dized is aiming to change all that.
Dized Content Creation
All the content available on Dized will be created using the Dized Content Creation Tools (CCT). This is an easy to use online browser-based toolset that require no programming skills to create content. This content is created by publishers or other content creators hired by them, such as freelancers.
You might notice that, right now, there is a limited amount of content available on Dized. That’s because everything has been created by a small team working without the benefit of our fully developed Dized tools. The speed of content creation and publishing will improve dramatically once the full toolset is live. You can already see that we’ve increased the number of available Rules in Dized now that the Rules tools are available. Tools allow for much faster creation of content in the own right, and that’s before taking into account how content creation will scale once thousands of content creators can use them simultaneously.
Dized Founders Jouni and Tomi did a thorough live stream showing the Dized Rules tool. Watch the video here.
The publisher is always in control of their Intellectual Properties (IP) and, subsequently, the digital content being offered for their games. The digital content contains IP owned by the publishers, which is why their approval for the content is vital in the first place. This control also helps in keeping the information accurate, which is especially important when talking about Rules and Tutorials.
As mentioned earlier, publishers may also hire third-party content creators to do the work for them. This is essential as publishers are already very busy with a hectic market of new releases with a growing backlog of games that is over 100,000 titles deep on BoardGameGeek.com’s database. Anyone can access and create content on the Dized CCT, but making it available on Dized needs to happen through a publisher’s account.
The top concern when content can be created by thousands is that of quality. How do we maintain a high standard with so many contributors? We do so by following a review process at Dized. Content submitted for publication via Dized needs to fulfill certain quality conditions and will be reviewed both by publishers and by Dized. But even if lesser quality content makes it through, you, as a Dized user, always have the ability to submit feedback on content to alert us to any issues. If the content requires slight changes or is simply wrong, it can be easily corrected and updated.
Final thoughts
One of the big challenges of Dized has been trying to figure out the rather large mechanisms and processes that this article is only starting to describe. We believe the current model serves the industry and the players well, but Dized is always undergoing development and improvement, so our methods and models can change as we find ways to make the system better for everybody.
It’s a pretty massive project but the end result is worth it: more great game nights!
