An interview with Jon Baron

Introduction

Baron Jon’s Back — and this time He’s Bringing the Saturday Morning Mayhem

If you’ve been keeping an eye on the indie trick-taking scene, you already know the name Jon Baron is synonymous with inventive twists, colorful aesthetics, and gameplay that always manages to surprise. From the tactical chaos of Tricky Time Crisis 1 & 2, to the he-man charm of Power Tricks, Tip of the Diceberg, Trick or Bid, and the sugar-sweet scheming of Best Candy on the Block — Jon has carved out his own space in the world of small-box card games.

Now, he’s back with not one, not two, but FOUR brand new card games — all launching as part of his latest Kickstarter:
Baron Jon's 2025 Card Game Collection

We caught up with Jon to talk design inspirations, cartoon rivalries, and what makes this new collection his most exciting yet.

But first — here’s a quick look at the games!

Hen House is a climbing/shedding card game in which players attempt to get rid of all the cards in their hands.

Cards come in four suits: white eggs, white chickens, brown eggs, and brown chickens. Chickens can be combined with chickens, eggs can be combined with Eggs, white cards can be combined with white cards, and brown cards can be combined with brown cards. To shed cards, you can use animals that can help, like snakes that can eat eggs and foxes that can eat chickens.

The player who plays all of their cards first wins.

3 Tricky Pigs is a thematic trick-taking game for 3-5 players. Players take on the role of the 3 little pigs, where the laziest pig will win each trick if there is no wolf around. However, if a wolf is in the trick, the highest card will win.

Players earn points by making correct bids on how many tricks they will win each round. The player with the most points at the end of 4 rounds is the winner.

Solar Eclipse is a trick-taking game of cunning combinations as players play two cards to every trick. There are two suits in this game, sun and moon cards. Sun cards are always played face up, but moon cards can be used to deceive and be played face down. The ultimate combination is a pair of sun and moon cards which share a value.

In order to achieve victory, players must skillfully deceive their opponents and predict how many tricks they'll win each round.

Mystery Tricks is a cooperative trick-taking game for 3-5 players. Players play with their hands face down having only knowledge of the suit of the cards in their hand.

Through trick play, players must find out a suspect, a crime, a monster, and the gang member who is solving the mystery. If one of each of these cards is left in each player's hands at the end of the round, players get the chance to guess the card in their hand. If everyone guesses correctly, the players win!

The Designer and the Persona

Are you a real baron? If not, how close are you to acquiring a title—legally or otherwise? If you are not a Baron, Is your name really Jon, or is “Baron Jon” a full-on character?

I am not a real Baron, but I am a real Jon. Baron is a self appointed title related to my last name Barron. It's confusing since they're spelled differently, but I've always thought of myself as an honorary Baron.

What’s your process for picking up and releasing other people’s designs? Do you prefer to make significant development changes to submitted games, or are you more hands-off once you decide to publish?

My method of finding games to publish is pretty simple. If I play an unpublished game I like, I try to publish it. I don't always get to, but the ones I have published I'm very proud to be associated with. They are all great designs.

I tend not to make a lot of developmental changes to the games I sign. A lot of the time they are almost or all the way complete when I sign them. I sometimes will help with scoring or deck construction or any small details I think I can improve on. I want the designers original ideas to shine through though for sure.

How do you balance the dual roles of designer and publisher—do you find one more creatively rewarding?

I find that neither is overwhelming, so I can do both! Designing is more creatively rewarding since I'm being much more creative with my designs. Publishing I'm not being quite as creative but I still find it rewarding to bring games to life.

When starting a new game project, what tends to come first for you: the mechanics, the theme, or the hook?

I am always thinking theme first and how can I make mechanics that match the theme. I love when a game just makes sense after you explain the theme. The hook sometimes comes last. It depends on how the mechanics work. Sometimes the mechanics are the hook.

What has been some of the highlight so far at Baron Jon Games?

The highlights for me have been all about interacting with fans and players who enjoy the games. Nothing like a positive experience gaming with someone.

Baron Jon Games have to be some of the densest boardgame boxes that I sell, how are they so dense? You could build sea defences with tricky time crisis that would last as long as the pyramids. What have you been feeding them?

Ha! What can I say. The printer asked me how big to make the boxes and I told them to make them as small as possible. My habit of making thick decks led to the little brick sized boxes.

Playing Games

What are your top five trick-taking games, and what makes them stand out to you?

Favourite trick takers? I think that changes day to day at times. I'm currently loving the lord of the rings trick taking game. I'm also a fan of Twinkle Starship, Rebel Princess, Cauldron 15, and Trick-takers: Kings.

Are there any types of card games you don’t enjoy?

Maybe munchkin, which I think I've just played too many times to ever go back to. Games of that genre that are just play good cards for yourself and bad cards on opponents with little strategy don't interest me.

What kinds of games do you play outside the card game space—any recent favourites or unexpected picks?

Outside of trick-taking I enjoy polyominos games and deck builders the most. Baren Park and Ascension are some of my most played games.

Quickfire Round

Two of your latest releases have Saturday morning cartoon vibes, who is Favourite Saturday morning cartoon villain?

Skeletor is my favourite and it's not even close. He doesn't want to feel good, he just wants to feel evil.

One game you love that deserves more attention?

Cosmic Run: Regeneration is one of my favorite games and I never hear people talk about it. I show it off whenever I can.

The one game you wish you had published yourself?

Cauldron 15 is one I wish I had published. I love the theme and gameplay.