POSTMORTEM GAME 3
Guest Contribution
POSTMORTEM GAME 3
For game 3, Sarah and I picked to redesign Star’s up, a game in which players bid against each other to acquire the various furniture cards that are worth different amounts of stars (positive-stars and multiplier cards) while avoiding pest cards (negative cards).
PLAY-TEST 1
To begin the process of doing so, we play-tested the game in its original form. We then discussed the game with the team that created it and analyzed their design document and game website. Sarah and I came to the conclusion that as it was, the game had some good aspects, but could be modified in order to intensify the player experience and metagame. We came to the conclusion that we could make some aesthetic changes and add more mechanics such as: pattern building, simultaneous action and take that to build upon the choice and strategy of the game. To see wether or not these additions and alternations were viable, Bed and Breakfast (new name of the game) went through stages of play-testing and iteration.
PLAY-TEST 2
The first changes we made were: to reassess the need of a game board, add the building aspect and a second round after bidding. The second play-test sought to validate the effectiveness of each and its effect on the game play.
We had previously realized that the game board was not crucial to the game, so we decided to get rid of it and let the players in a way “build” their own game board. This was achieved by adding in the pattern building aspect, “a system where players place game components in specific patterns in order to gain specific or variable game results”. The player who bids the highest gets the property card and places it upside down with the corresponding piece furniture on top of it. In this case, the property cards had different colors. If players placed 3 of the same colors together they gained extra stars. We also added in a new design component, the star charts. They are meant to help players keep track of how many stars they win or loose throughout the whole game.
We observed the players and realized that the building aspect was a great addition to the game, as it was a factor that would increase choice and strategy. It created a heightened sense of desirability for the property cards, apart from the star rating, and made this phase more intense. It added more decision- making and therefore more stress. But, having to put the property piece on top of the cards resulted to be a bit messy and confusing.
After the bidding round we decided to add the renting stage. This stage was also meant to increase the strategy and choice of the game and to add a purpose for building your bed and breakfast. We first thought of making a deck of cards that had bad situations that occur in a bed and breakfast and how those can affect your property pieces, star rating and money, but then we were recommended to make this deck into guest profiles. The guest profile card allows players to see who the guest is but not the risk that comes with letting them stay in your bed and breakfast. Not letting the guest stay, meant losing a certain number stars and letting them in meant taking the risk. This without a doubt increased the level of decision-making. The only pitfall we realized with this round, was that the many of the guests were affecting the same properties.
PLAY-TEST 3
The play-test went well but some minor changes were made and re-observed during a third play-test. We designed the cards so that the property pieces were already included in the card, taking away the need for players to place the property pieces on top of the cards. This way proved to more effective, less time consuming, more organized and rid players of confusion. In addition, we remade the guest profile deck so that the risks affect a wider range of the property cards. Although this changes improved gameplay, this play-test served to demonstrate other areas of the game that needed improvement.
The bidding stage was taking much longer than we expected. In this play-test players were taking too much time deciding wether they wanted to bid or not and how much money to bid. As a result, we added in a new rule to the game. This rule includes the addition of a timer component and only giving each bid round one 1 minute to occur.
Overall, Sarah and I transformed Star’s up into a more challenging and exciting game. Observing a couple of play tests enabled us to see what changes worked and which didn’t. We added in new mechanics to increase decision-making, choice, strategy and stress, while still keeping it simple and easy to understand. Moreover, we also changed the design and made the game more aesthetically pleasing.
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