Games Studies - Project 1: Tabletop Game Proposal
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5.9.2023 - 26.9.2023 (Week 2 - Week 5)
Tan Yi-Tyng (0353327)
Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media
Games
Studies
Project 1: Tabletop game proposal
INSTRUCTIONS
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PROJECT 1
Propose a tabletop game design (create a gameplay framework)
Instruction
This project is a group assignment focusing on rediscovering an old or
traditional game and reimagining it for a new audience and era. The goal
is to create something relevant for adults seeking a fun and fast-paced
party game: designed for 2 or more players, taking only 2 minutes to
learn, and providing 30 minutes of enjoyable gameplay. Ensure that the
chosen game hasn't already been reinvented, or if it has, make sure the
new version offers an unexpected twist, a different direction, and a
completely distinct end product. Keep the rules simple; no one enjoys
complicated instructions.
How to concepting a tabletop game?
Game equation: Pick three references from variety of categories
(childhood and traditional games, fictional settings, other video games,
social media behaviours, hobbies) and build an equation. Try to derive a
plausible game concept from that.
Playful experiences: What is the emotions that you want the
players to experience? Express one strong emotion and create the
possible connections to the game.
Week 1
At the very beginning of the semester, during week 1, our group
consisting of 5 members was formed. Our group leader created a WhatsApp
group to facilitate communication. We then assigned tasks with each
member suggesting interesting games as references for our game ideas.
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| Fig.1.1 - Group members list |
1. Ideation
During week 2, our group had an online meeting to gather and discuss
ideas. Qian suggested the first idea, I proposed the second ideation,
and Dean contributed the third and fourth ideas. Our leader created a
Google Doc for us to access, allowing everyone to input their ideas for
easy reading and understanding. Following this, we presented our ideas
to Ms. Anis to seek her approval and feedback. After receiving feedback
from Ms. Anis, our group decided to stick with the fourth idea as it
appeared more interesting, and the gameplay flow made more sense
compared to the others.
#Ideation 1
Game Equation:
Monopoly + Bingo + Mahjong
Experiences:
Thrill, challenge, completion.
Overview:
In this game, players are assigned mission cards with specific
objectives akin to Bingo. They must connect five lines on their
mission card by collecting and trading cards as they move around the
game board.
#Ideation 2
Game Equation:
Clue + Mafia + Spyfall
Experiences:
Deduction, collaboration, suspense.
Overview:
In this game, players take on the roles of Police, Thieves, and
Citizens, working together or against each other in a city filled with
crime and mystery. The objective varies for each character, creating a
dynamic and engaging experience. The Police aim to capture all the
Thieves, the Thieves strive to commit crimes without detection, and
Citizens seek to survive until the game's conclusion.
#Ideation 3
Game Equation:
Clash Royale
Experiences:
Thrill, challenge, competition.
Overview:
Players defend their kingdom while simultaneously attacking the other
kingdoms by using a 5 element card system.
#Ideation 4
Equation:
Shadow Hunters + Clash Royale + Cluedo
Experiences:
Thrill, fellowship, competition.
Overview:
The game allows players to team up and try to defeat the opposing team
by a mixture of luck and strategy. The objective is to destroy all
kingdoms of the opposing team while defending your own.
Click HERE to view the doc in Google Doc
Fig. 1.2. - 4 ideations for the tabletop game
Building on this idea, our group delved deeper by conducting research and
finding similar games as references for further study. Additionally, our
leader created a Pinterest board for us to add our inspirations and visual
references for the game ideas.
Pinterest Board Link: https://pin.it/6mHuLJI
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| Fig. 1.3 - Our group's Pinterest Board |
2. Boardgame Cafe Visit
During week 3, our group met up at the board game cafe named Boards &
Brews located in Subang Jaya. It was a great opportunity for us to get to know
each other better, as we had only just met a few weeks ago and were both
introverts. Playing games together provided a fun and interactive way for us
to bond. Due to time constraints, we only had the chance to play three
different board games, choosing ones somehow similar to our game concept. I
thoroughly enjoyed this gaming experience, especially since I, as a person who
had not played board games more than five times before, found it new and
exciting. I also made an effort to observe the playful experiences the games
offered, which gave me a better understanding of board games.
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| Fig. 2.1 - Playing Board Game |
Click
HERE
to view the recording of our group playing the game.
Google Doc Link:
Fig. 2.2 - Game Experience in Boardgame cafe (PDF)
4. Preparation Proposal
After gaining game experience and knowledge from visiting the cafe, we are
now finalizing our game concept and ideas to move on to the next stage,
which is creating the proposal. Dean has come up with new ideas (game
ideation 4 as stated previously) inspired by the Shadow Hunter game, and we
discussed the ideas in our group.
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| Fig. 3.1 - Discussion about the ideation |
Fig. 3.1.1 - Finalize Game Idea & Concept
We also conducted a poll for our game title, and the 5th option (Crown
Alliances: Realms Divided) received the highest number of votes.
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| Fig. 3.2 - Poll for game title |
During week 4, our group had an online meeting on Teams to discuss the
proposal. Our leader listed all the to-do tasks and allocated each member
for creating the slides.
Proposal Slides
1.Brief description of the game (YanLing)
2. What playful experiences are you aiming for? (Amrita)
3. Gameplay rules (Yityng)
4. Basic instructions (Yityng)
5. References of existing game (Qian)
Game Component Design
1. Board setup with 3 towers kingdoms for each player (Amrita, YanLing)
2. Dice (YanLing)
3. Number Cards (Yityng)
4. Function Cards (Qian, Amrita, YanLing)
Following the task division, I proceeded to create the slides first. I
was responsible for the slides covering gameplay rules and basic
instructions.
Below is a part of the slides that I created:
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| Fig. 3.3 - How to set up the game |
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| Fig. 3.4 - How to set up the game |
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| Fig. 3.5 - Gameplay rules |
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| Fig. 3.6 - Gameplay rules |
After creating the slides, I moved on to the next part, which is designing
the number cards. I decided to work straight away on Illustrator to design
the front and back of the cards.
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| Fig. 3.7 - Reference of the Number Card design based on our Game Theme |
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| Fig. 3.8 - Process of designing the cards in Illustrator |
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| Fig. 3.9 - First attempt of the card design |
Once I finished designing the number cards, I asked my teammates for
feedback on any improvements for the design. One of the members suggested
that I could adjust the color to be darker to match our theme. Another
member suggested a font for me to use for the numbers, so they would look
more classic and appealing. Then, we also set a color palette to be used
for our overall game components' design, so all of our designs would look
more consistent.
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| Fig. 3.10 - Feedback from groupmates |
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| Fig. 3.11 - Colour Palette |
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| Fig. 3.12 - Second attempt of the card design |
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| Fig. 3.13 - Slides for the number cards |
FINAL TABLETOP PROPOSAL
Here is the link to the presentation slides:
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1bfo2Po9Sc2pqPpHpnw_QXIvDXue_WABvQOiKY--TX4Y/edit?usp=sharing
Fig. 4.1 - Group 1 Presentation Proposal Video
Here is the link to the presentation proposal video:
https://youtu.be/p4YUvDqKLlA?si=wyGqP_Dbe4yKykS4
https://youtu.be/p4YUvDqKLlA?si=wyGqP_Dbe4yKykS4
Fig. 4.2 - Group 1 Presentation Slides
FEEDBACK
WEEK 2 - Propose Game Ideation
- The idea 2 look interesting, but you guys need to playtest it to ensure the game flow works. Try to observe the framework of the Among Us game, as it has a quite similar concept.
- The idea 4 also look interesting and the game flow seems to work well. You guys can consider selecting this idea. To improve the players' playful experiences, consider adding resource cards for the players. This will make it more balanced and fair for other players, giving them the chance to fight back and achieve a reverse victory.
- During the week 3 visit to the boardgame cafe, try to look for a similar game concept and study the game framework and flow.
REFLECTION
When starting this project, I felt a bit lost in the beginning stage as I'm not a person who plays a lot of games, especially board games. So, I spent some time researching and studying how others create their own tabletop games. I'm grateful that we had the opportunity to meet together at the board game cafe to play several tabletop games, gaining experience and learning a lot. Since the beginning of this project, we have only recently gotten to know each other, and as introverts, we initially faced a bit of difficulty communicating and sharing our ideas. However, after playing several tabletop games, we soon became more acquainted with each other and opened up to share our thoughts. Additionally, after playing some tabletop games, it truly gave me a lot of inspiration and helped me better understand how a good framework for a game should look. As for the preparation of the proposal, I'm very excited about how the final outcome of our prototype will look. I can't wait for it! >_<
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