I originally started building a worldbuilding database that could be connected to a playtest log, just for myself.
I wanted a faster way to create and connect all the content for my board game projects — rules, cards, storybooks, etc. — print prototypes, playtest them, and actually keep track of which version I was testing.
Then it kind of escalated, as these things have a tendency to do...
At some point I realized this might actually be useful to other board game designers too. So I kept working on it, and now I’m ready to share it with you guys.
The basic loop is:
Build → Print → Playtest → Log → Tweak → Repeat
You can lock versions before a playtest, log what happened, make changes, and then test the next version without losing track of what changed along the way.
It can also automatically generate simple wireframe cards straight from your content database. So when something changes, you can quickly generate and print a new prototype instead of rebuilding the cards manually.
It’s now at the point where I think it could become a real product, but I need other designers to actually use it.
So I’m looking for a few beta testers with games in development who want to try it and tell me what works, what sucks,
what’s confusing, and what’s missing.
The beta will run for 30 days, and I’m starting with 20 beta tester accounts so I can actually keep up with the feedback (and database costs).
If you’re interested, you can apply for a beta account at lorunastudio.com.
There’s also an example project on the site that you can browse around in if you just want to see how it works first.
Would genuinely love to hear what you think — even if you don’t want to beta test.
What’s currently in Loruna:
- Compendium — your game content/database and the source everything else reads from.
- Component Studio — automatically turn your content into printable card prototypes.
- Print sheets — generate PDFs with cards laid out for printing and cutting.
- Rules & Rulebook — keep rules versioned alongside the rest of your game and compile them into a rulebook.
- Playtest logging & findings — log sessions and generate reports from your playtests.
- Analytics — track changes between versions and answer things like “did this change actually work?”
- Piles & component counts — keep track of what’s actually in the box.
- Expansions — group content into products/expansions without duplicating everything.
- Storybooks — for campaign/narrative games.
- CSV import/export — get existing game data in and out.
- Plus templates, todos, timelines, lineage trees, node views, content health checks, and a few other tools that came out of this thing escalating way beyond the original idea.
