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Atlas Games
Writers'/Designers' Guidelines

NOTICE: We're currently only accepting NON-collectible card game proposals. This includes both new card game ideas and previously published card games that we might license to publish a new edition; for example, we did this with Dungeoneer and Let's Kill.

We are NOT at the present time accepting or reviewing unsolicited submissions for collectible card games, board games, RPGs and supplements, novels, etc. Should this change, we'll post the change here.

Submitting Your Proposal to Atlas Games

Atlas Games is a publisher of roleplaying games, board games, and card games (both collectable and non-collectable). Most of the material we publish is produced by freelance designers. Before sending us a proposal or submission, please read and follow these guidelines.

What We Look For

Fundamental Skills: We're looking for designers with a full understanding of the game system they're working with and a strong grasp of American English. In addition, Atlas Games prides itself on the creativity displayed in its products; we want designers with original ideas who can translate them successfully into a publishable game.

Professionalism: Don't overlook this important detail! We need designers who can follow instructions, meet deadlines, and produce easily published work. While a well-assembled proposal may not guarantee these qualities, a haphazard submission tells us that you're not ready for professional work. Make sure your proposal is neat and organized. Always double-check for inaccurate information, incorrect addresses, misspellings, and other mistakes before you put it in the mail.

In particular, we're looking for game designs with the following features:

• The game should be fun.
• Immediacy of play. The game should take minimal set-up time and have relatively light rules to encourage players to get into game play quickly. Also, we prefer a low amount of "downtime" (ie. waiting) per player, and that those not taking their turns still be involved in some way (through opportunities for interruption, for example). Accounting is a prime culprit for creating downtime, so pay particular attention to streamlining the number crunching where possible.
• Player interaction. Players should be able to affect other players during the game, rather than interacting primarily with their own game pieces. In addition, the game should encourage table talk.
• Strategy. Players should make meaningful decisions that determine whether they win or lose; there should be several different strategies possible. It should not feel like two computers could be playing the game with the same result.
• An interesting backstory. We're looking for "edgy" games with some kind of schtick that grabs customers' attention and helps to sell the game. We're not interested in purely abstract games, and are often partial to understated humor, so make up a unique and interesting story to complement your otherwise-abstract game!
• An immersive experience. The players should also be able to imagine that they're a part of the backstory when they play, and feel personally invested in the game.
• Interrelated backstory and rules. The two should evoke each other in some integral way, rather than just being slapped together for convenience's sake.
• Solid rules and mechanics. All submissions should be well playtested and edited, their rules complete and easy to follow, with no obvious holes or broken mechanics. We can easily forgive a prototype's graphic design, but will reject it if the underlying rules and mechanics are not at a professional level.
• Innovative rules. We're looking for entirely new concepts rather than variants on what's already been done. For example, we're not interested in poker or chess variants, or re-themed versions of Risk. And your game should be more than just another combat game.
• Innovative components. Things like the transparent cards that Gloom uses, or the stick figures that illustrate Let's Kill, for example. Innovation breaks out of the mold that leaves so many card and board games looking alike, and adds a visual interest that helps to sell our games.
• Complements our other products. The game should fit in with our other game lines, without directly overlapping any of them.
• Correct target market. We like games that fit well into the product mix of specialty game stores, because we have well-established distribution to such outlets. We like it even better if a game fits well in that market AND has potential to appeal to other markets, since that may help recruit more customers for our core market. Once Upon a Time is an example of a game that does this well.
• Sells itself. Because we have a limited marketing and advertising budget, the games we publish need to be able to "sell themselves." They should be able to get customers' attention while being surrounded by other games on a retail shelf.
• Expansion potential. If the game sells well, it should be possible for us to produce expansions to support it.
• Multi-language capability. Board games that have no English words on the game pieces make it possible for us to include a multi-language rulebook, which increases sales.
• Easy to produce. It's easiest for us to produce a game that uses the production format of a game we've already published. Double-deck card games like Lunch Money are a good example of this. In contrast, a submission that includes components we've never used before -- like miniatures -- would require us to research new suppliers. We're willing to do this for truely innovative designs, like Gloom, but balancing innovation with ease of production is an important consideration.
• Easy to demo. Games that can be demonstrated on a 2-foot-diameter circular table are easier for us to show at conventions.
• Non-collectible. Atlas Games is not interested in collectible games at this time.

Of course, a game we choose to publish probably will not hit every single one of these criteria, but will likely fit several of them.

The Release Form

Every proposal must be accompanied by a properly completed Product Release Form; we cannot accept proposals by e-mail, as the signed and dated release form must accompany them. Please read it carefully. If you cannot agree to its terms, we regret that we are unable to review your proposal. In addition, please write on the outside envelope of the proposal "RELEASE FORM ENCLOSED." Any proposals sent without this form or without the outside envelope marked will be discarded unread.

DOWNLOAD THE RELEASE FORM HERE
Proposals

Send a proposal before investing your time in a project. This applies even if the product is already finished; we won't want to review it if it resembles something we already have in the works. The ideal proposal is approximately 1 single-spaced page. It sums up your idea, and what's special about it. It also contains vital information such as the time required to play, number of players needed, player age range, included components, estimated manuscript length (for RPGs), and how much time would be required for you to produce a completed draft or prototype. Your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address should be listed at the top of the proposal; a release form and (optional) cover letter should be separate. If you're sending multiple proposals, each one should start on a new page.

Mail your proposal and release form to:

Atlas Games
ATTN: Product Proposal
885 Pierce Butler Route
St. Paul, MN 55104 USA

Again, remember to label the outside of the envelope with the words "RELEASE FORM ENCLOSED." If you include an e-mail address or a self-addressed stamped POSTCARD, you'll be notified when we receive your proposal. We are unable to return proposals to you, so please don't send anything you need back.

Submissions

Once we've approved your proposal and have a release form from you, we'll ask for a full-length manuscript or prototype submission. Complete submissions should be presented in a clean, professional manner. We don't expect everything to be perfect (in fact, we generally prefer to commission art ourselves), but we are interested in work that requires as little editorial effort as possible (i.e., a manuscript full of spelling and grammar problems will likely be rejected, since we can't afford the time to clean it up).

Remember, you want to make our job of examining and testing your game or manuscript as painless as possible. Prototypes should be pre-assembled; don't ask us cut out cards, for example. Including an email address also makes contacting you easier for us. Your name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, and the word count (for RPGs) should be on the front page of all manuscripts and included with game submissions.

Manuscripts that we've asked for can be sent by e-mail as either MS Word (.doc) files or Rich Text Format (.rtf) files. Prototypes should be mailed to us after we request them. Do not send us unsolicited manuscripts or prototypes.

If you send a game submission and you'd like to know that your prototype arrived safely, either include an e-mail address or send a self-addressed, stamped POSTCARD with your submission, and we'll notify you when it arrives.

If you'd like us to return your submission to you once we've reviewed it, include a self-addressed stamped envelope or box with correct postage. Submissions turned in with incorrect postage on their return envelopes will not be mailed back.

Response Time

Please allow plenty of time for us to review your proposal or submission; if you send a game prototype we'll want to playtest it, which could take several months. That's a long time, but on the plus side you'll get our playtest comments to help you develop the game, even if we don't publish it.

We don't mind simultaneous submissions, but if we request a manuscript or prototype please be sure to tell us if it's being reviewed elsewhere.

If you haven't gotten an acknowledgement from us within two weeks of sending a proposal or submission, get in touch with us to be sure it arrived safely; things have been known to get lost or misplaced.

Rights & Payment

The rights we buy and the payment we offer varies a great deal from one product to the next. Usually we offer flat fees; on new games we often offer royalties. Don't get your hopes up, though; it's not likely to be a lot of money in any case.

Thanks for your interest in working with Atlas Games!