I’d say that “doing a bit more research” is easier said than done in this case. As again, my criteria was based on two things:

1) The designer is actively putting out games on a regular basis. Meaning it’s likely that they have more releases coming out in 2021 than have been announced and featured in the section of this post about specific games.

2) The designer has a proven track record of games I love. This entire post is purely based on my own tastes and preferences, and I started with my favorite games as the basis for finding active designers to follow. So “doing research” in this case would mean that I have to acquire, play, and love games that are designed by someone other than a white male.

The good news here is that I have since discovered at least one promising designer who is likely to be featured in my Most Anticipated Games of 2022 list: Dennis K. Chan, designer of Beyond the Sun. But again, he may end up putting out one game or less a year, making it more difficult to recommend him as a “designer to follow for upcoming/unannounced games in the year 202X.”

On another note, I’m planning on featuring my favorite board game artists in a blog post for July or August, and that will definitely feature a more diverse selection of talented creators.

Razzia looks interesting, I hadn’t heard of that before.

I did add Whale Riders: The Card Game and Yellow & Yangtze to my Whale Riders pledge. I’m excited to check them out!

Great post! I’m a big fan of Dr. Knizia’s card games because of their simple rules and elegant gameplay. There are two that stand out for me this 2021.

One is Razzia or Ra: The Card Game, which is a card game version of the aforementioned boardgame, was recently reprinted with beautiful artwork with an interesting theme of Egyptian Gods turned into Italian mobsters (https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2453181/any-news-about-2020-reprint). It’s only available in Spanish but it looks language independent.

Another is Whale Riders: The Card Game which is a reprint of an old Knizia card game called Trendy (https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/310031/whale-riders-card-game). Its gameplay looks so addicting plus I like this theme more rather than the fashion designer one of the older version.

The Zenobia awards have just been organized to award such designers

If it makes you feel any better, I disappointedly noticed the same thing after finishing the list.

I think it’s merely a result of there currently being far more white male designers in the industry than any other demographic. I selected individuals whose design patterns most closely align with my hobbyist preferences, and the statistics favored white males. Yet for every female designer whose game I’m ambivalent towards, there are 10 male designers whose games I avoid at all costs.

But we’ve written about the awesome work of talented female designers and artists in previous posts (Wingspan designed by Elizabeth Hargrave and illustrated by Maria Martinez Jaramillo, Natalia Rojas, and Beth Sobel; Point Salad co-designed by Molly Johnson; several of Facade Games’s offerings which are co-designed and co-published by Holly Hancock and illustrated by Sarah Keele). They didn’t get a mention in this particular post because they either don’t align with my preferences as well or they release one or less game a year on average.

But speaking of talented female creators, my wife, Camille, is co-designers with me on our upcoming game Con Artist! I’m excited for people to see the brilliant idea that was born and nourished by her creative mind. And I’m hoping that our daughters show an interest in game design as they grow up.

All in all, it appears that the board game industry is becoming increasingly diverse as the years march on, and that’s absolutely a good thing!

Coming from the designer of Hansa Teutonica and Gugong, you certainly have my attention with Stroganov! I’ve added it to my watch list!

I’ve heard buzz about Transcontinental from other sources as well (though now I cannot remember where from). What excites you about that one? I get more intrigued by it the more I look into it.

Looking at the BGG forums, it seems that there is some concern of it being too costly for retail, which makes sense! But I’m sure you’ll be able to pick it up direct from the publisher or a handful of retailers at least around the release date.