Whether you’re designing a new tabletop game or just want to spice up your next poker night, printing custom game cards can be a fun project. But if you want truly professional-looking cards that will impress your friends (and stand up to hours of playtesting), getting nice results takes a bit of know-how.
In this guide, as a professional custom game cards printing manufacturer, I’ll walk you through my process for creating gorgeous custom playing cards at home with just a printer and some special supplies. These techniques allow you to print cards that look great, handle well, and capture that perfect casino or collector’s item feel.
How to Print Nice Game Cards
Choose the Right Paper for Printing Game Cards
The foundation of nice-looking printable cards is choosing paper that not only stands up to handling but also yields vibrant, professional-looking print results.
Skip Regular Printer Paper
While regular old printer or copy paper may seem like an obvious choice, it’s actually one of the worst options for DIY playing cards. The lightweight paper bends easily, meaning your cards will get beat up and dog-eared after just a bit of use. Ink also tends to bleed through thin paper, resulting in less-than-crisp card faces.
Opt for Cardstock Instead
Cardstock is printer paper on steroids — it’s thicker, more durable paper designed for applications like business cards, invitations, and more. This heft allows cardstock to stand up well to shuffling and gameplay. And since less light shines through the extra-dense paper, images and colors pop more.
For game cards, I recommend choosing at least 100lb (or 270gsm) cardstock. While you can sometimes find this weight of paper marked specifically as “cardstock” at craft and big box stores, I’ve had great results printing cards on heavyweight resume paper, which is easy to find.
No matter what brand or type you choose, heavier cardstock prevents ink show-through better while giving cards that satisfying rigidity for easy handling.
Consider Clear Label Sheets
An interesting alternative for creating printable game cards is clear label sheets. With these, you print card faces onto label sheets designed for use in laser and inkjet printers.
Then simply affix the printed sticker labels onto old gift cards, expired credit cards, or rigid cardstock backings. The see-through sticker paper yields translucent effects similar to the Pokémon cards my nephew collects while protecting the print underneath.
Prep Image Files for Crisp, Vibrant Printing
Printed game cards will only look as good as the images you print on them. So putting in a bit of work to prep and optimize your card face graphics pays off in stunning results.
Work in a Large Format
Today’s printers and image editing programs make working with big image sizes easier than ever. To yield super-sharp details on cards, I create images for printing game cards at 600 dpi (dots per inch) in dimensions at least twice as large as my planned card size.
So for a standard 2.5″ x 3.5″ poker-sized card, I build source images at 5″ x 7″ at 600 dpi in Photoshop. This oversized high-resolution file looks pin-sharp when reduced to print small.
Save or Export Your Files Correctly
Big high-resolution images are great – but that large size can cause headaches at print time. To keep file sizes reasonable for printing without losing detail and image quality, I export final game card images from Photoshop as high-quality JPEGs.
Alternatively, PNG files provide compression similar to JPEGs without loss of quality. Just be sure to keep an original PSD or other source file just in case you need to go back and make edits later.
Check Color Format
Today’s printers and graphics programs make working with color images easier than ever. But printing vibrant color still requires starting with files set up correctly.
For the best translation of color from digital images to printed cards, make sure to work in the CMYK color mode rather than RGB. CMYK’s four ink colors match what printers output more closely than RGB’s backlit screen colors.
Most image editors allow converting images from RGB to CMYK with a click or two. Making this switch before printing avoids washed-out or inaccurate colors on your cards.
Add Polish With Lamination and Edge Finishing
Now that your cardstock is prepped and images are print-ready, it’s time to put ink to paper! But finishing touches after printing makes a big difference in creating professional playable cards.
Laminate for Protection and Polish
Even heavy durable cardstock will show signs of wear quickly with shuffling and gameplay. Heat laminating adds a protective seal that keeps your cards pristine through repeated use.
Gloss laminate makes colors pop and gives cards an eye-catching shine like collectible cards. Opt for matte laminate for texture more like traditional playing cards. Lamination pouches are inexpensive and easy enough to apply with a standard countertop laminating machine.
Round Corners for Handling and Safety
Squared cardstock corners catch on each other during shuffling and wear down more quickly. For easier handling, I round the corners of printed game cards using an inexpensive corner rounder punch.
These manual punch tools cut a small radius into paper corners, reducing catching and wear. Rounding corners also eliminates sharp points, an essential touch for kid-friendly games!
Most corner punches offer multiple size options, allowing you to choose subdued or more pronounced rounded corners. An advanced option is using a drill or rotary tool like a Dremel for total control over corner shape.
Print in Small Batches for Prototyping
When still in the prototyping stage, printing full decks of cards for each new game revision gobbles up expensive cardstock and ink quickly. For cost efficiency in early testing phases, I recommend printing cards in small quantities as you iterate.
Mix and Match from Previous Prints
As you make changes during prototyping, it’s not often necessary to reprint a full deck. Only replace individual cards as their designs substantially change instead of letting old versions mix into your test deck.
This helps avoid wasted cards when further tweaks require more updates! Just be sure to mark new cards clearly, so testers understand updates reflected in the latest prints.
Print On-Demand for New Players
Printing a whole deck each time can also make it tricky for lots of friends and test groups to try your evolving game. Instead of handing out full decks to every new tester, keep a core printed deck on hand.
Then supplement this consistent base deck by printing required cards as needed for each testing session or new player group. This focused approach uses your cardstock and ink most efficiently in early development stages.
Experiment with Advanced Printing Techniques
The basics outlined above check all the boxes for creating serviceable cards for playtesting and prototype decks to show off your idea. But once your game design starts to firm up, consider these advanced tricks of the trade for next-level polish and true custom game card vibes.
Simulate Foil Effects with Metallic Sheets
Ultra-shiny foil effects lend an enticing element of style and luxury to modern collectible and specialty playing cards. Mimic this flashy metallic style at home with printable metallic photo paper or foil transfer sheets.
Metallic print paper yields shine right in your printer – no other special prep needed. For bonus bling, adhesive foil sheets require an additional transfer step. Print designs onto the sheets, then use a laminating machine’s heat to bond foils onto cardstock.
Emboss for Added Dimension
Embossing adds beautiful raised texture perfect for spicing up card backs, logos, or other accents. Traditional letterpress methods are beyond most DIY card makers, but some craft printers include faux embossing modes using special patterned paper and paired printer trays.
These devices sync to precisely layer printed designs over embossed patterns on textured paper. It’s not true dimensional embossing, but the raised outlines lend extra visual intrigue.
Consider Die Cutting for Shapes
Going beyond rectangular cards requires specialty die cutting tools to punch intricate card shapes. Whether you desire rounded corners or unique card profiles, manual and digital die cutters slice precise forms.
Cricut and Silhouette digital cutters connect to your computer for custom programmed cuts limited only by print bed size. Manual options like stamp presses or steel-rule dies offer standard shapes like ovals, circles, even puzzle contours!
Now Get Started Creating Your Own Amazing Game Cards!
There’s so much creative potential waiting to be unlocked with printable game cards. Whether you’re eager to share a groundbreaking new game idea or just level up your family game night, these tips help you create cards guaranteed to impress any player.
From picking the best printing papers to adding advanced flourishes like lamination and foil, I hope you feel empowered take your ideas from screen to tabletop. Don’t be afraid to experiment across batches and iterations – every great game in history began as humble prototypes. And the learning only stops when your inner creativity does too!
Now get out there, be bold with your designs, and most importantly, have fun making and playing whatever spectacular card-based game your imagination builds next!