Tissue engineering has emerged as a promising scientific field potentially yielding in vitro developed tissue to replace degenerative or injured tissues in vivo, thus avoiding the donor site morbidity associated with reconstructive surgery. Integral to the process is the role of scaffolds and the biomaterials used to form them. This review explores the concept of scaffold based tissue engineering and design considerations. The scaffold needs to have certain mechanical and architectural properties, it needs to be biocompatible and biodegradable, and allow combination with bioactive molecules. We also discuss scaffolding techniques, different biomaterial options and fabrication technologies, and future areas of development.