PO Card Game - Here be our workshop

[Sperrit]

Just so you all know:
As added incentive towards getting this game off the ground, I will let you know that I live about 20 minutes away from a store where the guy who created Magi-Nation works. SO. Once we get a working version done I can hop on over and bug him about getting him and some of his buddies to test play for us. So we better make this good!

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[DocX]

so, i just got wrangled onto the board by my wife and was told i should read through this thread and help out. you guys have some interesting ideas and i really like the enthusiasm here.

oh, before i get into the meat of the reply, a little about myself. . . i worked with precedence playtesting their babylon 5 and rifts ccgs since 1998 and was one of the online player representatives. if you've played b5ccg for any length of time, you've probably seen my card search engine. i also am working with a fan-based group to try to take over the stewardship of the b5ccg after the collapse of the company that was producing it. i've also got friends who work with decipher and upper deck so i know a little about the industry as a whole as well as having some intimate knowledge about what goes into a game and how to make a game not suck :-)

so, now that the intro's out of the way, here's a few suggestions. . . first of all, making a game that's non-collectible (like munchkin, inwo, mille bournes, etc) will be easier to sell than a collectible card game. it's easier to sell to someone because you can say 'this is all you need. no further expense is needed.' also, it's easier to deal with a single form of packaging than to have 'starter decks' and boosters. never mind if you're having multiple different themed starter decks.

next suggestion i have is to figure out what the base mechanics of the game you want to have and work on that. don't have any special effects or super combos, you can add those later. when developing the rifts ccg (one of the most fun ccgs i've played and it died too early) they started out with a deck of 20 cards and five card types: nation card, resource generator, small monster, medium monster and big monster. then, using those cards they worked on the basic game engine to figure out whether the basic mechanics worked. once the fundamentals were attended to they went on to making special effects and adding on interesting texts to cards. i'll try to re-read through all of the thread (i only got half-way through it before work intruded) and try to distill out the important bits into a base game mechanic. it could be otaku on otaku fighting, or completing goals, or controlling locations or whatever. . . but it should be semi-original so whoever bankrolls the game won't have to shell out for a game engine license (which happens. . . check out the back page of yu-gi-oh rulebooks. . . they licensed the basic game engine from wizards of the coast for magic and used it in their game). once we have the basic engine, we can add in combo-moves, otaku enhancements, otaku upgrades, etc. solid foundations prevent the walls from cracking when you add on another floor to your house :-)

so, that's my input right now. . . hopefully after i've read through the entire thread paying more attention to details, i'll be able to provide better input on particulars and give more pointed advice than the general 'get your ducks in a row and build the wall one brick at a time' advice i gave here :-)

[Reverend]

First, just let me say thank you for joining the PO family and taking part in this porject. We all have high hopes for what we can do with this, and having a professional in the business is a great asset.

That said, the points you bring up are definitely valid ones, and adtmittedly after last night/this morning's conversation with Ted and Sean, we realized we needed to go back to the first step and work from there.

So that's where we stand right now. We need to get everyone on the same page about the core of this game, and work from there.

[Sperrit]

Yup. I agree with Rev in all points. Thanks for joining, and thanks for your input. We are working on the points that you have brought up right now.

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[Therin]

...we are? I haven't noticed it...am I just being left out for some reason?

[Sperrit]

Remember all the stuff that me, Cal and Ted talked about and emailed people about? That stuff. Remember?
Also, to all PO:TCG R&D Team Members out there: Keep sending your ideas around and IM-ing people and talking about this! Let's not let this thing die! It could be great! I know it will be! We just gotta keep at it!

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[Reverend]

Well, I'm finally back online, and after spending some time with Ted playing various CCG's, Magi-Nation and DBZ, we've gotten some good ideas. Will write a more detailed email, but know that the FJ crew is up and running on this project!

[Akira]

po cards dbz/gundam remix or somtin like that...

oh well i just started looking at this post...but i will keep in touch in the future

[Sperrit]

Good stuff Rev. Can't wait to see what the FJ have come up with! I'm still keeping track of all the ideas and such, and if anyone needs an idea sounding board I'm always open. Just drop me a line!

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[Saleb Duvat]

Have I mentioned recently that I am no computer genious? These blasted things confuse the heck out of me but oh well...


My suggestion for the holiday is that everyone who is interested in planning this game take the time to play one CCG/TCG such as Yu Gi Oh or LOTR as well as one finite game such as Chez Dork or Miles Bournes. This way it will be easier to make an informed decision as to which direction we would like to take this project.

Running low on funds? No prob! Head on down to the local gaming store and peruse the local players. See a game you like? Ask them for a demo. We do this thing often so there aught not be a problem. Just don't be rude about it.

Once a decision is made about that, we can go ahead with card design and later play testing. Please keep in mind that my husband already has a template for CCG's that slides right into a deck sleeve with a regular card. Perhaps we could use that file.

It could be nice to have a demo-able version of the game to playtest at ACEN or any other large gaming or anime venue (I know that we are going to origins this year and that my honey will probably be working the demo booth for upper deck again).

Hope to hear fresh input soon!