ePortfolio Post 5
Konner Rooney
11/2023
CAGD-170-01-Video Game Design
ePortfolio Post 5
What Games did we Playtest this Unit?
We had two sets of playtests for this unit so far.
For the first one, my partner and I played our own game. I was a bit unprepared, since I didn't know the playtest was that day and still had assets that needed to be printed out. However, we were able to quickly recreate our board (which was just a 10x10 grid) on some scratch paper, randomly chose our cards digitally, and used an eraser and a rolled-up piece of paper as our player pieces.
The biggest takeaway from our playtest was establishing the player's movement. While we already established that a Survivor player's movement would be based on a normal six-sided dice roll and that a Killer's movement would have only half of the potential (1 or 2 = 1 space, 3 or 4 = 2 spaces, 5 or 6 = 3 spaces for Killers, who also have methods of teleporting to the same spaces of a Survivor and/or deal damage towards them quicker). However, the playtest revealed how movement isn't simply defined by the number you roll. We discovered how exploitative it could be if there weren't a clear part of the rules prohibiting walking backward. We also had to think about players moving diagonally. After witnessing firsthand the frustration and lack of fun at hand, we made changes to explicitly rule out the utilization of this playstyle in our rule sheet.
The next time our game was playtested, it was by another pair of students in our class. Their takeaway from the game was that he had trouble understanding each side's objectives. The Survivor player didn't know how to initiate a method of escape and felt like they were just aimlessly running away from the Killer. The Killer player also shared this sentiment, as the Survivor player's lack of objective ruined the tension and fun that came from the lack of an objective made the Killer's job less entertaining as well. Because of this, we wanted to incorporate a section that highlights what the Survivor sand Killers' jobs are, and how they can initiate them.
Finally, we played the other pair of students' games as well. It was amusing to find out that their game actually takes place in Hell when our game currently had (and still has) the working title of "Escape from Hell"! Players navigated the River Styx, as they try to reach the end of the river by earning enough coins to move onto the next level. Certain cards also allow you to further or hinder your game by the use of "Summons" which are demons that force players to either give up their coins to their master (the player) OR lose a turn, as well as "Deals" where new conditions within the game are formed based on a deal made by the two or more players involved.
I immediately had a hard time understanding what Summon and Deal cards meant. However, the other pair of students explained it well to me. I think the Rule Sheet could benefit from having a section dedicated to explaining the use of these cards though.
The game itself reminded me of Mario Party, where victory is gained by both luck and resource management. My partner pulled a card that caused us to switch coins with one another. After this, my previously solid gameplay was ruined! I tried to use my Summons to get the back, but she kept choosing to skip a turn. This didn't help me too much, as she already moved on to the other board at that point. I believe if there was some rule in place to prevent Summon victims from always choosing the same choice when it comes to losing coins or a turn, there should be a rule that prevents the same choice from being chosen every time. Overall, the game was fun.
Formal Element Analysis
Rules:
Players take turns moving on a board, determined by a roll of a two-sided die.
Event cards are gained on each move.
Players gain a coin on every move.
Players pay the ferryman at the end of the board to move to the next “layer” of hell. That being another board.
Deal cards can be used at any time if both players agree.
Monster cards can be used at any time to attack the opposing player.
One coin per monster is required to bribe them away.
Players can hold a maximum of 10 summons.
Monster summoning has a 1-turn cooldown.
The Ferryman's price increases at the end of each board.
If players lack coins at the ferryman, they return to the beginning of any path on the current layer.
If a deal is made to lower The Ferryman’s price, it resets to its regular amount after someone pays and moves to the next floor.
Procedures:
Shuffle event cards at the beginning.
Players pick their path on the board, rolling a two-sided die to determine the number of moves in a single turn.
Players gain an event card on each move.
Once a player reaches the end of the board, and pays The Ferryman, they move on to the next board. There are three boards in total.
Repeat steps until someone reaches the end of hell.
Players:
Minimum of 2 players, maximum of 4.
Resources:
Coins: Used to purchase monster cards, pay the ferryman, and bribe away summoned monsters.
Event Cards: Categorized into Normal, Deal, and Chaos types.
Summon Cards: Used to summon monsters. Can be used against other players to either take away their money or make them lose a turn.
Boards: Layout of the paths and layers of hell.
Objectives:
The goal is to be the first player to escape hell.
Use coins strategically to purchase monster cards and sabotage opponents.
Save enough coins to pay the ferryman at the end of each layer and progress to the next.
Boundaries:
The Ferryman's price resets to its regular amount after someone pays.
Conflict:
Players can use monster cards to attack opponents, potentially causing the other player to lose a turn.
The players are racing against each other to reach the end of hell.
Outcome:
The first player to reach the end of hell (the final space of the third board) and pay The Ferryman’s toll there, wins the game!
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