List of card game designers

A game designer is a person who invents games at the conceptual level.^[1] Outstanding game designers are recognized annually by awards such as the Spiel des Jahres and the As d'Or.^[2] The Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design, a division of the Game Manufacturers Association, inducts outstanding individuals into the Hall of Fame.^[3] Mensa Select is an annual award given by American Mensa to games that are "original, challenging and well designed".^[4]^[5]

Card games can use a pack of standard playing cards or a dedicated deck. Following are some notable card game designers.

Designer	Notable work	Honors	Ref.
Dave Allsop	Magic: The Gathering		^[6]
C. Graham Baker	Gin rummy		^[7]
Elwood Thomas Baker	Gin rummy		^[7]
Michael Bennighof	Survival of the Witless		^[8]
Tom Braunlich	Star Trek Customizable Card Game		^[9]
Timothy Brown	Spellfire		^[10]
Coleman Charlton	Middle-earth Collectible Card Game		^[11]
Rob Dougherty	Star Realms	Origins Award	^[12]^[13]
Skaff Elias	Arabian Nights, Antiquities, Legends, Fallen Empires, Ice Age, and MetaZoo		^[14]^[15]^[16]^[17]
Mike Elliott	Duel Masters Trading Card Game, Battle Spirits, and Thunderstone	Hall of Fame	^[3]
James Ernest	Brawl and Before I Kill You, Mr. Bond	Hall of Fame	^[3]^[18]^: 415
Bruno Faidutti	Citadels and Knightmare Chess	Spiel des Jahres	^[19]^[20]
Andrew Finch	Lorwyn		^[21]
Matt Forbeck	WildStorms: The Expandable Super-Hero Card Game		^[22]
Richard Garfield	Magic: The Gathering, Netrunner, KeyForge, and Android: Netrunner	Hall of Fame	^[3]^[23]^[24]^[25]
		Super As d'Or
		Mensa Select
Rob Heinsoo	Three-Dragon Ante		^[26]
Steve Jackson	Hacker, BattleCards, and Illuminati	Hall of Fame	^[3]^[27]
M. Alexander Jurkat	Battlelords		^[18]^: 340
Darwin Kastle	Star Realms	Origins Award	^[12]^[13]
Reiner Knizia	Lost Cities, Schotten Totten, and Blue Moon	Hall of Fame	^[3]^[28]^[29]
Wolfgang Kramer	6 nimmt!	Mensa Select	^[24]
Charlie Krank	Mythos	Origins Award	^[30]
Eric M. Lang	A Game of Thrones, Warhammer: Invasion, Call of Cthulhu: The Card Game, Mystick Domination, and Bloodborne: The Card Game	Hall of Fame	^[3]^[23]^[28]^[31]
Eric M. Lang		Diana Jones Award	^[3]^[23]^[28]^[31]
Tom Lehmann	Race for the Galaxy	As d'Or Grand Prix	^[32]^[33]
Rick Loomis	Nuclear Escalation		^[34]
Andy Looney	Fluxx		^[35]
Gene Mackles	Iota	Mensa Select	^[24]^[36]
Douglas Malewicki	Nuclear War		^[37]
Edmund McMillen	The Binding of Isaac: Four Souls		^[38]
Mike Mearls	Magic: The Gathering		^[39]
Heinz Meister	Galloping Pigs	Kinderspiel des Jahres	^[40]
Michael Menzel	Dominion		^[41]
George S. Parker	Rook		^[42]
Celia Pearce	Friendship Adventure Cards for Girls		^[43]
Christian T. Petersen	A Game of Thrones
Andrew Rilstone	Once Upon A Time		^[18]^: 304
Merle Robbins	Uno		^[44]
Uwe Rosenberg	Bohnanza	Hall of Fame	^[3]^[23]^[28]
Mark Rosewater	Magic: The Gathering and Lorwyn	Hall of Fame	^[3]^[21]
Mike Selinker	Harry Potter Trading Card Game		^[45]
David Sirlin	Yomi		^[46]
Gertrude Strohm	Popping the Question and Novel Fortune Telling		^[47]
CA Suleiman	Vampire: The Requiem and Mummy: The Curse		^[48]^[49]
Jeff Tidball	Cthulhu 500		^[50]
Donald X. Vaccarino	Dominion	Spiel des Jahres	^[51]^[24]^[52]
		Mensa Select
		Diana Jones Award
Susan Van Camp	Dragon Storm		^[53]
James Wallis	Once Upon A Time		^[18]^: 304
John Wick	7th Sea and Legend of the Five Rings: Battle of Beiden Pass	Origins Award	^[30]
Teeuwynn Woodruff	Netrunner, Duel Masters Trading Card Game, Pokémon Trading Card Game, Netrunner, and Magic: The Gathering (7th edition)		^[54]

References

↑ "What Do Game Designers Do? A Complete Guide". Circuit Stream. Retrieved 2026-03-30.
↑ "The 2016 "Board Game of the Year" nominees, reviewed". Ars Technica. 2016-07-16. Retrieved 2026-03-30.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Hall of Fame". The Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design. Retrieved 2026-03-31.
↑ Loew, Tracy (2006-05-21). "Mensa still plays mind games after 60 years". USA Today. Archived from the original on 2006-07-16. Retrieved 2007-01-16.
↑ Arsenault, Anne (2005-04-22). "Brainiac Central". St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the original on 2009-01-11. Retrieved 2007-01-16.
↑ "Artist: Dave Allsop, 60 cards | Magic: The Gathering". Magic: The Gathering Card Database. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
1 2 "C.G. Baker, Helped Devise Gin Rummy". The New York Times. 1950-05-17. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-05-12.
↑ "Why Do We Do This?". Avalanche Press. November 2007. Archived from the original on 2011-05-19. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
↑ Dusbabek, Deanna (Fall 1994). "Star Trek: The Next Generation Customizable Card Game". The Duelist. Vol. 1, no. 3. pp. 50–51.
↑ Brown, Timothy (2007). "Empires of the Middle Ages". In Lowder, James (ed.). Hobby Games: The 100 Best. Green Ronin Publishing. pp. 103–106. ISBN 978-1-932442-96-0.
↑ "Coleman Charlton, Game Developer & Editor". Mayfair Games. Archived from the original on 2012-10-16. Retrieved 2026-04-26.
1 2 "About Star Realms". Star Realms Deck-Building Game. Retrieved 2026-04-29.
1 2 "2015 Origins Award Winners".
↑ Elias, Skaff (9 August 2002). "Better Late Than Never". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on January 13, 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-16.
↑ Elias, Skaff (8 March 2002). "Legendary Difficulties". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on January 14, 2009. Retrieved 26 February 2011.
↑ Rosewater, Mark (9 February 2009). "Whatever Happened to Barry's Land?". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on February 13, 2009. Retrieved 26 February 2011.
↑ McGloin, Matt (October 16, 2024). "MetaZoo to Return in 2025 Under GameQbator Labs". Cosmic Book News. Retrieved March 28, 2026.
1 2 3 4 Appelcline, Shannon (2011). Designers & Dragons. Mongoose Publishing. ISBN 978-1-907702-58-7.
↑ "Bruno Faidutti". Studiogiochi. 2017-09-13. Retrieved 2026-03-30.
↑ Jolly, Tom (2007). "Citadels". In Lowder, James (ed.). Hobby Games: The 100 Best. Green Ronin Publishing. pp. 58–61. ISBN 978-1-932442-96-0.
1 2 "Lorwyn Magic The Gathering Cards | Lorwyn Cards". www.moxdiamond.com. Retrieved 2026-04-13.
↑ "The New Marvel RPG". Forbeck.com. 2021-06-08. Retrieved 2026-04-13.
1 2 3 Smith, Andrew (2017-09-29). "Top 10 Board Game Designers". Board Game Quest. Retrieved 2026-03-30.
1 2 3 4 "Mensa Select® Games". www.mensamindgames.com. Retrieved 2026-04-08.
↑ Butcher, Andy (May 1996). "Games Reviews". Arcane (6). Future Publishing: 56–59.
↑ "Review of Three-Dragon Ante | RPG Game Index". RPGnet. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
↑ "Jackson, Steve [2]". The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. 6 October 2025. Retrieved 2026-03-30.
1 2 3 "61 Best Game Designers (Famous and Successful)". Game Design Skills. 2026-01-15. Retrieved 2026-03-30.
↑ Levy, Larry (September 2001). "Special K - Reiner Knizia". The Games Journal. Archived from the original on 2004-08-12. Retrieved 2026-03-30.
1 2 "Origins Award Winners (1996)". Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design. Archived from the original on 2007-01-25.
↑ "The 2016 Award". The Diana Jones Award. 2016-08-04. Retrieved 2026-05-04.
↑ Lehmann, Tom (2007). "Tigris & Euphrates". In Lowder, James (ed.). Hobby Games: The 100 Best. Green Ronin Publishing. pp. 319–321. ISBN 978-1-932442-96-0.
↑ Eggett, Christopher John (2022-12-01). "Talking Tabletop: Dice Realms with Thomas Lehmann". Tabletop Gaming. Warners Group Publications. Archived from the original on 2023-11-22. Retrieved 2023-11-22. The interview is also available here from PressReader and verifies the interviewer is Christopher John Eggett.
↑ "MPs seek ban on nuclear board game described as 'disgusting and offensive'". Ottawa Citizen. March 3, 1984. Retrieved October 14, 2013.
↑ Levin, Sala (September 16, 2024). "Wild Cards". Maryland Today. Retrieved 2026-03-31.
↑ Viccaro, Tom (2013-04-10). "Newton's Gene Mackles creates Iota, a little game that wins big". Wicked Local. Archived from the original on 2024-03-03. Retrieved 2024-03-03.
↑ Loomis, Rick (February 1995). "The Seeds of War: The Story Behind Flying Buffalo's Nuclear War Booster Packs". Shadis. No. 5. The Alderac Group. p. 76.
↑ Forbes-Calvin, Alex (2018-07-04). "How The Binding of Isaac became a card game". PC Games Insider. Retrieved 2026-04-04.
↑ Randall, Harvey (2023-12-13). "Hasbro's 1,100 layoffs have hit D&D and Magic: The Gathering hard, as a growing list of staff announce their departures". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
↑ "Info about 'Heinz Meister'". www.luding.org. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
↑ "Info about 'Michael Menzel'". www.luding.org. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
↑ Orabanes, Philip E. (2004). The Game Makers: The Story of Parker Brothers from Tiddledy Winks to Trivial Pursuit. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. p. 39. ISBN 1-59139-269-1.
↑ "Celia Pearce". Creative Territories. Digital Cultures Research Center. Retrieved 2026-04-04.
↑ "MERLE ROBBINS". The New York Times. 1984-01-16. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-05-12.
↑ "Info about 'Mike Selinker'". www.luding.org. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
↑ "Info about 'David Sirlin'". www.luding.org. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
↑ Willard, Frances Elizabeth; Livermore, Mary Ashton Rice (1893). "STROHM, Miss Gertrude". A Woman of the Century: Fourteen Hundred-seventy Biographical Sketches Accompanied by Portraits of Leading American Women in All Walks of Life. Charles Wells Moulton. pp. 699–700.
↑ Riggs, Bem (2016-05-12). "Are Role-Playing Games Art?". Geek and Sundry. Archived from the original on 2017-11-09. Retrieved 2026-03-31.
↑ Wagner, Wendy (2016-08-24). "Interview: C.A. Suleiman". Nightmare Magazine. Retrieved 2026-03-31.
↑ "Jeff Tidball". Pen & Paper RPG Database. Archived from the original on 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2026-05-11.
↑ "Dominion". Spiel des Jahres (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-07.
↑ "The Diana Jones Award 2009". The Diana Jones Award for Excellence in Gaming. Retrieved 2026-05-04.
↑ Greene, Ryan (April 15, 2005). "The play's the thing at local Game Con event", South_Bend_Tribune.
↑ Dodge, John (2023-09-04). "Teeuwynn Woodruff, MtG, Vampire: the Masquerade, and D&D Writer, Passes Away". CBR. Retrieved 2026-04-09.

[1] "What Do Game Designers Do? A Complete Guide". Circuit Stream. Retrieved 2026-03-30.

[:1-2] "The 2016 "Board Game of the Year" nominees, reviewed". Ars Technica. 2016-07-16. Retrieved 2026-03-30.

[:4-3] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Hall of Fame". The Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design. Retrieved 2026-03-31.

[4] Loew, Tracy (2006-05-21). "Mensa still plays mind games after 60 years". USA Today. Archived from the original on 2006-07-16. Retrieved 2007-01-16.

[5] Arsenault, Anne (2005-04-22). "Brainiac Central". St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the original on 2009-01-11. Retrieved 2007-01-16.

[6] "Artist: Dave Allsop, 60 cards | Magic: The Gathering". Magic: The Gathering Card Database. Retrieved 2026-04-19.

[:5-7] 1 2 "C.G. Baker, Helped Devise Gin Rummy". The New York Times. 1950-05-17. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-05-12.

[8] "Why Do We Do This?". Avalanche Press. November 2007. Archived from the original on 2011-05-19. Retrieved 2026-04-06.

[9] Dusbabek, Deanna (Fall 1994). "Star Trek: The Next Generation Customizable Card Game". The Duelist. Vol. 1, no. 3. pp. 50–51.

[HG16-10] Brown, Timothy (2007). "Empires of the Middle Ages". In Lowder, James (ed.). Hobby Games: The 100 Best. Green Ronin Publishing. pp. 103–106. ISBN 978-1-932442-96-0.

[11] "Coleman Charlton, Game Developer & Editor". Mayfair Games. Archived from the original on 2012-10-16. Retrieved 2026-04-26.

[:10-12] 1 2 "About Star Realms". Star Realms Deck-Building Game. Retrieved 2026-04-29.

[:11-13] 1 2 "2015 Origins Award Winners".

[14] Elias, Skaff (9 August 2002). "Better Late Than Never". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on January 13, 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-16.

[Elias-15] Elias, Skaff (8 March 2002). "Legendary Difficulties". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on January 14, 2009. Retrieved 26 February 2011.

[Rosewater-16] Rosewater, Mark (9 February 2009). "Whatever Happened to Barry's Land?". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on February 13, 2009. Retrieved 26 February 2011.

[Cosmic2024-17] McGloin, Matt (October 16, 2024). "MetaZoo to Return in 2025 Under GameQbator Labs". Cosmic Book News. Retrieved March 28, 2026.

[designers3-18] 1 2 3 4 Appelcline, Shannon (2011). Designers & Dragons. Mongoose Publishing. ISBN 978-1-907702-58-7.

[:26-19] "Bruno Faidutti". Studiogiochi. 2017-09-13. Retrieved 2026-03-30.

[HG11-20] Jolly, Tom (2007). "Citadels". In Lowder, James (ed.). Hobby Games: The 100 Best. Green Ronin Publishing. pp. 58–61. ISBN 978-1-932442-96-0.

[:38-21] 1 2 "Lorwyn Magic The Gathering Cards | Lorwyn Cards". www.moxdiamond.com. Retrieved 2026-04-13.

[:40-22] "The New Marvel RPG". Forbeck.com. 2021-06-08. Retrieved 2026-04-13.

[:05-23] 1 2 3 Smith, Andrew (2017-09-29). "Top 10 Board Game Designers". Board Game Quest. Retrieved 2026-03-30.

[:3-24] 1 2 3 4 "Mensa Select® Games". www.mensamindgames.com. Retrieved 2026-04-08.

[Arcane6-25] Butcher, Andy (May 1996). "Games Reviews". Arcane (6). Future Publishing: 56–59.

[26] "Review of Three-Dragon Ante | RPG Game Index". RPGnet. Retrieved 2026-04-15.

[:27-27] "Jackson, Steve [2]". The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. 6 October 2025. Retrieved 2026-03-30.

[:210-28] 1 2 3 "61 Best Game Designers (Famous and Successful)". Game Design Skills. 2026-01-15. Retrieved 2026-03-30.

[:28-29] Levy, Larry (September 2001). "Special K - Reiner Knizia". The Games Journal. Archived from the original on 2004-08-12. Retrieved 2026-03-30.

[:0-30] 1 2 "Origins Award Winners (1996)". Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design. Archived from the original on 2007-01-25.

[31] "The 2016 Award". The Diana Jones Award. 2016-08-04. Retrieved 2026-05-04.

[HG8-32] Lehmann, Tom (2007). "Tigris & Euphrates". In Lowder, James (ed.). Hobby Games: The 100 Best. Green Ronin Publishing. pp. 319–321. ISBN 978-1-932442-96-0.

[TTinterview-33] Eggett, Christopher John (2022-12-01). "Talking Tabletop: Dice Realms with Thomas Lehmann". Tabletop Gaming. Warners Group Publications. Archived from the original on 2023-11-22. Retrieved 2023-11-22. The interview is also available here from PressReader and verifies the interviewer is Christopher John Eggett.

[34] "MPs seek ban on nuclear board game described as 'disgusting and offensive'". Ottawa Citizen. March 3, 1984. Retrieved October 14, 2013.

[35] Levin, Sala (September 16, 2024). "Wild Cards". Maryland Today. Retrieved 2026-03-31.

[36] Viccaro, Tom (2013-04-10). "Newton's Gene Mackles creates Iota, a little game that wins big". Wicked Local. Archived from the original on 2024-03-03. Retrieved 2024-03-03.

[37] Loomis, Rick (February 1995). "The Seeds of War: The Story Behind Flying Buffalo's Nuclear War Booster Packs". Shadis. No. 5. The Alderac Group. p. 76.

[38] Forbes-Calvin, Alex (2018-07-04). "How The Binding of Isaac became a card game". PC Games Insider. Retrieved 2026-04-04.

[:36-39] Randall, Harvey (2023-12-13). "Hasbro's 1,100 layoffs have hit D&D and Magic: The Gathering hard, as a growing list of staff announce their departures". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2026-04-11.

[:2-40] "Info about 'Heinz Meister'". www.luding.org. Retrieved 2026-04-03.

[:30-41] "Info about 'Michael Menzel'". www.luding.org. Retrieved 2026-04-03.

[42] Orabanes, Philip E. (2004). The Game Makers: The Story of Parker Brothers from Tiddledy Winks to Trivial Pursuit. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. p. 39. ISBN 1-59139-269-1.

[:31-43] "Celia Pearce". Creative Territories. Digital Cultures Research Center. Retrieved 2026-04-04.

[44] "MERLE ROBBINS". The New York Times. 1984-01-16. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-05-12.

[:33-45] "Info about 'Mike Selinker'". www.luding.org. Retrieved 2026-04-03.

[:34-46] "Info about 'David Sirlin'". www.luding.org. Retrieved 2026-04-03.

[willardlivermore1893-47] Willard, Frances Elizabeth; Livermore, Mary Ashton Rice (1893). "STROHM, Miss Gertrude". A Woman of the Century: Fourteen Hundred-seventy Biographical Sketches Accompanied by Portraits of Leading American Women in All Walks of Life. Charles Wells Moulton. pp. 699–700.

[48] Riggs, Bem (2016-05-12). "Are Role-Playing Games Art?". Geek and Sundry. Archived from the original on 2017-11-09. Retrieved 2026-03-31.

[49] Wagner, Wendy (2016-08-24). "Interview: C.A. Suleiman". Nightmare Magazine. Retrieved 2026-03-31.

[50] "Jeff Tidball". Pen & Paper RPG Database. Archived from the original on 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2026-05-11.

[51] "Dominion". Spiel des Jahres (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-07.

[52] "The Diana Jones Award 2009". The Diana Jones Award for Excellence in Gaming. Retrieved 2026-05-04.

[53] Greene, Ryan (April 15, 2005). "The play's the thing at local Game Con event", South_Bend_Tribune.

[:6-54] Dodge, John (2023-09-04). "Teeuwynn Woodruff, MtG, Vampire: the Masquerade, and D&D Writer, Passes Away". CBR. Retrieved 2026-04-09.

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See also

References