EJP GAMES
1st BoDVD Board Game Contest
EJP Games offers the BoDVD series, which packages game components in DVD cases (Amaray size).
We are holding a board game contest using the BoDVD format.
The main purposes of this contest are to discover new possibilities for the BoDVD format and EJP Test Play Meetup to invigorate its community.
Contest Overview
A board game using components that fit inside a DVD case (Amaray size: 190 mm high × 135 mm wide × 14 mm thick).
Eligibility
Anyone who has attended an EJP Test Play Meetup at least once.
What to Submit
- Rulebook (no required format)
※ Each person may submit one work.
※ Submissions must be your own work.
Submission Period
January–the end of February 2026
Announcement of Results
Around the end of March 2026
Prizes
Grand Prize (1 work): ¥50,000
Award of Excellence (up to 5 works): ¥10,000
How Submissions Are Handled
Copyright remains with the creator, regardless of whether the work wins an award.
However, for award-winning works, EJP Games may publish details of the work on a website it operates.
Judging Criteria
Entries will be judged according to the following criteria.
- The components fit inside a DVD case
- The rules are coherent
- The core idea of the work is clear
- The user experience offers a distinctive strength
FAQ
Q. I have never attended an EJP Test Play Meetup. Can I become eligible by attending one from now on?
A. Yes.
Q. If it fits in a DVD case, can I submit something like a quiz book or gamebook?
A. Yes. However, “effective use of the DVD case” may be considered when judgingwhetherthe user experience offers a distinctive strength.
Q. Can I submit a work I made in the past?
A. Yes. However, “effective use of the DVD case” may be considered when judgingwhetherthe user experience offers a distinctive strength.
Q. May I use generative AI?
A. Yes. However, please check for yourself that your work does not imitate another person's work or contain anything socially problematic.
Q. Where can I get a DVD case?
A. They are sold at EJP Test Play Meetups for ¥100 per two cases. Please ask a staff member.
Winning Entries
The winning entries in this contest were selected at the end of March 2026.
Grand Prize (1 work)
A Mimic Has Appeared! (Shinya Hoshino)
Three-line description
- Heart-pounding action and a tricky battle of wits, played with a DVD case!
- Gather treasure while watching out for the lid that suddenly snaps shut!
- Read your opponents' thoughts as the situation changes in real time!
Instructions
Awards of Excellence (2 works)
Weaver of the Starry Ages (Ah-Kitto Games)
Three-line description
- A story of opening and connecting the “Vessel of the Ages” (the case) to repair a collapsed star system.
- A simple task of restoring the night sky: place stars in the vessel and align them from your own point of view.
- Because the case itself becomes the board, its scenery flips depending on how it is opened. Even when players touch the same place, they see different stars—a form of “asymmetric information.”
Instructions
Slender Jr. (Sara Mononobe)
Three-line description
- Stand the DVD case up like a mountain to make a slide,
- then slide meeples from their starting positions.
- An action-and-poker game where you make hands using the numbers where the meeples land.