Change My Mind: How One Indie Game is Shaking Up the Party Game Scene

For lovers of loud debates, outrageous opinions, and hilariously absurd rankings, Change My Mind is the next big hit. Created by indie game developer Josh Saleh, this party game offers a refreshing take on the adult game genre. While many games rely on random, often crude humor to entertain, Change My Mind builds its fun on fiery debates and strategic thinking, encouraging players to shout, laugh, and argue their way to victory. Of course, that is not to say it is shy's away from that same raunchy or crude humor. It just asks you to explain WHY you made your choices.

We sat down with Josh and played a few rounds while we talked about the game and his journey getting it out to market.

How the Game is Played

At its core, Change My Mind is a ranking game designed for 3-8 players, ages 17 and up. Players are presented with absurd, often hilarious categories that need to be ranked, such as "The epitome of whiteness," with options like "raisins in potato salad," "neighborhood watch," "under seasoning," While other card go much further and dirtier with questions like "what would you rather have shoved up "where the sun don't shine"". I will let your imagination take it from there.

Each round, one player becomes the "ranker" and orders these items from most to least fitting based on their personal opinion. Here's where the fun comes in. The other players try to guess how the ranker will order the list, but the real joy starts when the ranker reveals their choices. At that point, players begin debating—sometimes yelling—to convince the ranker to adjust their list. “It’s a game that turns into a shouting match, but in the best possible way,” said Josh Saleh, the game's creator. “It’s all about persuading others to see things your way, no matter how ridiculous the topic may be.”

Saleh emphasizes that the gameplay is designed to engage everyone at the table. “I wanted to give people a voice and make them part of the action. It’s not just about the ranker choosing; everyone gets a say, and that’s where the fun lies. You’re not just playing—you’re debating, learning about your friends, and laughing at the absurdity.”

In our example, the discussion went something like this:

RANKER: All rights so here is my ranking for "Epitome of whiteness".  neighborhood watch,  Tanning, Raisins on potato salad, Under seasoning , and hunting.

Josh: Now we can all yell and try to debate, making our case. 

Player 1: How could you be so wrong on every thing?. 

Player 2: No No Its perfect. Do change a thing it is absolutely perfect. 

Player 1: Heck no it is the worst

Player 3: I  agree with you. B should definitely stay out there, 

Player 1: Absolutely not.

Player 3 : Listen, I just think that tanning is something that the humanity has done for millions of years. So, I think tanning leather is just like a historical thing. I don't I think that's more global. I don't think that's something “white” 

Ranker:  I think this does not pertain tanning leather in this list. 

Josh: No, not leather it is tanning your skin, 

Player 3: Ooooh, I was thinking I thought it was tanning of leather, I see now.

Player 1: If you don’t need to tan you are not going to tan, I think that is more in the middle, but let’s talk about this under seasoning and the raisin thing, those are some of the whitest things out there.

Player 2: No, it is perfect, It is the best ranking ever you should not change anything, follow your heart. 

Player 1: But if you put raisins in your potato salad you will be kicked out of the cookout, you know this is true.

Ranker : If you keep fight me on the raisins and under seasoning are going to go lower. They're going to go lower.

Player 3: No, no, I, I think that raisins are exactly where they belong. Yeah. Yeah. Like it's perfect. Because it is weird and white, but it is not the most. It is a Midwestern white. I'm on the West coast. I would never put raisins on potato salad. 

Ranker : I am locked in I am not going no where

Josh Saleh: Ok, she is locked in so now we reveal our selection,and I am 100% locked in, I can’t believe it. 

The person with the most correct in the list is the winner and gets the card, if there is a tie the ranker chooses the winner. After the round the next person becomes the ranker, first to win 3 cards wins the game. Or you can play as long as you like.

From Idea to Reality

Josh Saleh is no stranger to games. “I’ve been playing board games since I was five,” he said. “I own over a hundred of them.” Like many game enthusiasts, he grew frustrated with the repetitive nature of some popular party games. “With a lot of party games, it’s always the same formula—the dirtiest , crudest, most insane card wins, and it’s often just luck. There’s no real debate, no room for conversation.”

Driven by his love of board games and his desire to create something unique, Saleh set out to develop a game where players could not only laugh but also engage in meaningful discussions—however absurd the topics might be. Change My Mind was born out of this desire to foster more interaction at the table. “I basically put my brain in a box and made people rank stuff they don’t want to rank,” he laughed.

Josh continues to explain: " am a friend that is asking the weirdest, most disgusting questions. And you would be "why the hell would you ask that?"  But now I want to know. Now you're talking about it. So, I love those questions Like, what do you want to put in your nose, what nasty thing do you want to eat, etc. and it's great to see people not only having those reactions of “oh my God, I can't believe I'm doing this”. But now people actually want to debate it because they're like, you're wrong. Here's why. When it's something that doesn't even matter."

Despite the rating of this game and the examples we saw during our time with Josh (and believe me we censored a bunch of what we saw and heard for this article), It is not always about the crude, and weird. The game comes with plenty of topics and all the ones that are riskier are marked by an exclamation mark and easily removed from the game if you want to keep things a bit cleaner for your game night. Josh noted that this is a stacked game with over 160 cards in the box, that leaves enough choice to still have a good time and not run out very quickly. "A lot of games now make you buy a second copy, if you want a family friendly option. You have to buy a $10, $20 expansion. Why should we go buy $20 more of the same game right from the get-go? "

When asking how heated the debates have been during any of Josh's sessions and if any friendships were broken up yet, Josh was quick to point out that one of the main goals in designing this game was to remove the personal or perceived personal attacks from the cards.  " In the game, no one is really arguing for themselves. It stopped the punching down a lot of some games that are, comedy based. Games like cards against Humanity that have some cards in it that can really hurt people’s feeling making them not fun to play with. So, I made sure that players shouldn't have to argue for their own existence. It's s an inclusive, game rather than an exclusive game. "

Of course, like any new game developer, Saleh faced his share of challenges. From playtesting to production, the journey wasn’t always smooth. “We started playtesting in February, and people really enjoyed it. We decided to do a Kickstarter in August, and it made $16,000—just enough to get us going.”

However, after selling out of the first 2,000 copies, Saleh faced an even bigger hurdle: self-financing the production of an additional 6,000 units. “That’s the scary part,” he admitted. “There’s no Kickstarter now; it’s just my money on the line. Printing 6,000 copies cost close to $30,000, and as an indie developer, that’s a huge risk.”

But Josh shows he truly believes in his product and as we are talking to him at the PAX West show floor, he is showing his skills not only as a game designer but also as a charismatic salesman pitching his idea to everyone that passed his booth. Putting in the work and with a few seconds he is able to draw people in for a closer look. Within 30 seconds, he has them understanding the game and interested.

The Challenges of Pricing and the Board Game Industry

One of the most significant challenges Saleh has faced in bringing Change My Mind to market is pricing the game competitively without sacrificing quality. “Most big party games come out at $19.99, but those companies are printing hundreds of thousands of units,” he explained. “For me, producing a smaller run means higher costs. I compared it to Cards Against Humanity, which sells for $30, and I thought, why can’t mine be priced the same?”

To keep costs down, many developers are forced to cut corners and reduce the quality of the end product by choosing cheaper resources, but Saleh was adamant about maintaining the game’s quality. “We could have made the tiles punchboard instead of wooden, but I didn’t want to do that. The tactile feel of wooden tiles adds so much to the experience. Sure, it’s a dollar cheaper, but I believe in quality.”

Looking Ahead: The Future of Change My Mind

One thing that sets Change My Mind apart is its adaptability. Without the need for any expansion pack, players can choose different criteria for ranking, such as best to worst or most versatile, which gives the game endless replayability. Saleh even encourages players to create their own cards or modify the existing ones to keep the fun going. “You can take a card like ‘who’s the hottest Chris?’ and frame it however you like. ‘The Chris I want to suck on my toes,’ or ‘The Chris I want to go on a roller coaster with.’ The possibilities are endless,” Saleh explained, laughing.

Despite the success, Saleh isn’t stopping here. He’s already working on expansions for the game for those that are looking for more, with a variety of themes in mind, including LGBTQ+ and Jewish editions. “The first expansion is going to be another dirty expansion, half family-friendly, half more risqué,” he said.

But expanding into mass retail is where the real challenge lies. “We’re already in talks with Barnes & Noble, Spencer’s, Books-A-Million, and even Target,” Saleh shared. “It’s been wild, especially considering the game has only been out for five or six months.” However, entering the big retail space comes with its own set of hurdles. Saleh explained that major retailers often take a significant cut of the profits, leaving little room for smaller developers. “If you sell through a big retailer like Target, they take 67%. That leaves us with just a few dollars per game. It’s tough, but it’s also the reality of the industry. - I don't want to rub anyone the wrong way as I am new to the industry. I want to make sure everyone is happy, but also, like, I want to pay my rent" 

For now, Saleh remains optimistic and focused on his long-term goals. “It’s scary because I’m a solo publisher. It’s my own game, and I’m competing against companies with way more money and power. But at the end of the day, I believe in this game, and I know it works.”

Fun in a box that can bring laughs and spark conversation

Change My Mind is not just another party game; it’s a fresh take on a genre that desperately needed innovation. By giving players, the power to debate and discuss absurd topics in a fun, inclusive way, Josh Saleh has created a game that can be as thought-provoking as it is hilarious.

Let's be clear this is an adult party game however, despite the obvious appeal to adults with the dirty topics and the clear 17+ rating, we felt there is plenty in the box to work with in a more family friendly setting and I believe it is actually a very useful tool to introduce to teenagers. The game will allow them to learn defend their positions on a topic, it teaches them to think critically, debate to convey their point of view and even teach them to be open to other ideas which could end up changing their own point of view on a topic. All very healthy skills to have in life. Besides that, it is just plain fun to argue over what is better or worse.  Whether you’re arguing about film scores or debating the appropriateness of raisins in potato salad, one thing’s for sure: Change My Mind is here to stay, and it’s only getting started.
At the moment the game is for sale so get your copy via one of the links below:

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3PD8yN3

Website: www.Changemymindthegame.com 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/changemymindthegame/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChangeMyMindTheGame
Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@changemymindthegame