Just wondering what everyone thinks about the size of a game book. I know that the industry standard has been 8.5x11 since the beginning, and everything created since then has followed suit for the most part, but some publishers put out their stuff in other sizes from time to time. Personally I lean towards a smaller book like 6x9 trade size for portability and space reasons. What is your opinion?

Either the typical A4, which is the 8.5 X 11 size, or A5, which is one size smaller at 5.25 X 8.5.

Hardcover is the way to go in both cases, though.

Full Size 8.5" x 11"; as long as it's over 130 pages of content.  If it's less full size content than that, then shrink down the book's dimensions.

I like 8.5 x 11 hardcovers. That is, the cover is 8.5 x 11 and the pages smaller, not 8.5 x 11 pages and the covers larger. That is a major pet peeve for me with most POD at current - POD hardcovers are typically the latter.

Dunno but I wish they would settle on ONE size.

As large as possible.  It cuts down on time when looking for information.  Frex, if text on the left side of the page references info at the end of the section, it's quicker to just look at the right page then it is to flip a couple of pages and check each one for what I'm looking for.

Quote from: GeekyBugle on April 23, 2021, 05:01:52 PM
Dunno but I wish they would settle on ONE size.

For me, this only matters within a given line. I hate when books of the same line don't sit evenly next to one another on the shelf. Shadowrun 4e had different heights (off by 1/4"-1/2") for some of the key supplements. I didn't like that.

Quote from: HappyDaze on April 23, 2021, 05:59:41 PM

Quote from: GeekyBugle on April 23, 2021, 05:01:52 PM
Dunno but I wish they would settle on ONE size.

For me, this only matters within a given line. I hate when books of the same line don't sit evenly next to one another on the shelf. Shadowrun 4e had different heights (off by 1/4"-1/2") for some of the key supplements. I didn't like that.

I hate it way more when it's within a line, doesn't mean I don't wish they settled on a single standard size for RPGs, one for novels, etc. I gives me something watching my books on different sizes. And don't get me started with the text on the spince.

Quote from: Jamfke on April 23, 2021, 01:33:34 PM
Just wondering what everyone thinks about the size of a game book. I know that the industry standard has been 8.5x11 since the beginning, and everything created since then has followed suit for the most part, but some publishers put out their stuff in other sizes from time to time. Personally I lean towards a smaller book like 6x9 trade size for portability and space reasons. What is your opinion?

These days I prefer the 6x9 for reference books like monster books. Larger format works well for adventures. A big stack of hardbacks at the table is awkward and takes up too much space. I generally prefer softcover for reduced weight/better portability. A book I can hold in one hand definitely beats a massive zweihander.

Depends on the word count.  I don't like really thick or really thin books.  I especially don't like thin hardbacks.

For the player material for my own system, I'm currently printing it in booklet form--8 1/2 x 11 paper with one 2 pages per side, 4 per sheet.  Since each "page" is 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 with narrow margins, I guess that is the content size for a 6 x 9 format.  However, I'm mainly doing it to save paper while the thing is under playtest revision and have the booklets broken out into different smaller ones for ease of replacement.  The thing I dislike about the typical game in 6 x 9 format is that you don't have a lot of easy to find pages.  It's also easier for the players to juggle at the table.

There's a lot to be said for the 16 and 32 page booklets of the old boxed sets, even if they weren't the cheapest way to sell it.  Really handy for use in play, even in the 8 1/2 x 11 size. 

Quote from: Jamfke on April 23, 2021, 01:33:34 PMPersonally I lean towards a smaller book like 6x9 trade size for portability and space reasons.

Yes, digest - preferably saddle-stitched. This limits the total wordcount, and forces a tighter game design. It's good to work with strict constraints, it makes you more creative.

The rules for chess can be written on a pair of digest-sized pages and it's still complex in play, takes decades to master, and has been played for hundreds of years.

Most game writing is simply blather. That's alright if it's entertaining blather like Gygax's, but it usually isn't.

My system will be in 6x9 as that also makes it eminently readable on a tablet or PC screen without the need to zoom in on something and without reformatting to fit that medium.

A 6x9 searchable PDF with good pdf bookmarks and, if you're feeling really bold, internal linking is easier to use than damned near any other game rule resource you'll ever find.

4.25" x 5.5", digest sized. Just small enough to fit into a thigh pocket with a small tube of dice, notebook and pens go in the other thigh pocket.

6x9

I'm probably a little weird, but I like wider than tall; they tend to stay open better; I also like portable, because I still like to have paper books at the table. When I print my own home rules out, I use 9x7 at Lulu.com: 9 inches wide by 7 inches tall. It's a great layout for combining imagery and text.

Yeah, they look a little weird on the shelf, but I don't print them to use on the shelf.