Bruno Faidutti has been designing games since 1984, when he helped develop Baston - a game which he now says he doesn't like. Fortunately, he designed plenty of games in subsequent years which he does like, including Citadels (aka Ohne Furcht und Adel), which was one of the three finalists for the 2000 Spiel des Jahres, Germany's Game of the Year award.

Recently, Bruno (a native of France) was kind enough to spend some time talking about his games, the design process, and several other topics -including why he doesn't like games that involve a lot of strategy. What follows is the text of our email interview.

When did you first become interested in board and card games?

I didn't play a lot when young. At 16, I became very interested in chess and achieved a good level after one or two years. But I became bored with it and looked for something different. I discovered "modern" games when studying at university, in the early 80s. We played both board games (mostly Cosmic Encounter, but also Amoeba Wars, Hoax, Dune, Battlecars) and roleplaying games -- there was only Dungeons & Dragons at this time. Later, in the early 90s, I went into LARP -- I still do it occasionally.

What are some of your current favorites, other than your own designs?

Poker is my favorite game since almost ten years. In "modern" games, my favorites are probably Elfenroads / Elfenland, Cosmic Encounter, Ave Caesar.

What is it that you like about these games?

I like games that create an ambiance. This can be made in many ways, through a strong theme, a good mechanism, lots of interaction... I don't like "cold" games.

When and why did you start designing games?

My first creation, with Pierre Cequin, was Baston, a bar brawl simulation somewhat similar to Yaquinto's Swashbuckler. It was the first and only time I made a simulation game, and I now wonder how I could do such a game: I don't like it! With the same Pierre Cequin. after designing Baston, we started Tempetesur l'echiquier (Knightmare Chess), and I'm still rather proud of this one.

How do you come up with the basic idea for your games?

It really depends. Sometimes it starts with a theme, sometimes with a mechanic idea, sometimes with an other game that I Find interesting but made me think, "I would have done this otherwise..."

Typically, how long does it take you to develop the first version of a game? And how long until you have a finished version ready?

The first version usually needs less than one week. One time in two, it simply doesn't work and I throw it away. The other time, it looks promising and I start improving and tuning it. It can take two weeks: the first versions of Knightmare Chess, or of one of my last creations, Macao, almost worked. Sometimes it can drag for years: 10 years after the first version, I'm still working on my big trade game, Caravanserail.

What's the most difficult part about the design process?

Two things are difficult. First, when something doesn't work, to abandon some mechanics, to admit that the game must be different. Sometimes, some help is necessary. Serge Laget helped me when I didn't know how to finalize my "red creature with one eye and eight tentacles," and it eventually became Murder at the Abbey. I did the same with his Castle game.

What are your thoughts about the level of strategy involved in Citadels, and the use of strategy (defined for our purposes as longterm planning) in games in general?

I don't like strategic games. For me, a pure strategic game is of little interest, since it is completely predictable: best player wins. I think there is little strategy in Citadels, except the fact -- which I like -- that it's usually bad to hold on the same tactic for the whole game, I rather like games which involves tactical decisions. To remove the strategic element from a game and make it more tactical, you have to make it more or less unpredictable, so that players cannot reckon far in advance what they have to do. This can be achieved through chaotic events, through luck and lots of dice rolls, through bluff and double guessing, and through strong interaction. I used the two latter in Citadels.

Though it did not win, Citadels made the list of the three finalists for the 2000 Spiel des Jahres, Germany's Game of the Year Award. Were you surprised?

I first learned it from an email from Jay Tummelson (of Rio Grande Games). A few hours later, my email box was crowded with emails from USA and Germany informing me. Though I had not been very surprised to be in the top 12, I didn't think that Citadels will make it to the top 3, so I was really surprised this time. May be I was helped by the fact that my 3 favorites for the SdJ (Andromeda, Morgenland and Silberzwerg) didn't even make it to the top 12...

Erik Arneson maintains About's Board Games site at http://boardgames.about.com/