2. Almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades A clever
person Horseshoes is a game where one must use good aim to score.
Mitigating chances of failure are based on physics. Gravity,
inertia, and resistance affect the horseshoe, so with each toss the
player gets a better idea of how to make their next move. They only
have two moves per round, so each shot must be learned from to make
the next one. In order to make this game, I adopted this
approach.
3. Prototyped a dynamic game board Tarot cards to set up a 3x3
grid (shuffled) Each card had score value 0-3 Random objects for
tokens (quarters, bottlecaps, picks)
4. The Action: Toss a horseshoe at the pole The Translation:
Place a token on the grid Team Quarter Vs. Team Random Stuff
Through this simple translation, all of the dynamics of the game
could be translated. This formed the core of the game. Later design
and aesthetic choices complete the correlation.
5. Played 1-2 rounds with basic rules When a token is placed,
the card is revealed Place on opponents token to cancel theirs.
When all tokens are placed, score for value. Add 2-3 features next
round When token is placed, adjacent are revealed Add new card type
that is negative Add extra row of 3 cards Repeat until
satisfied
6. 3x3 Grid 4 Card types (1, 2, 3, 0) Reveal card where placed
Tokens dont move Adjacent cards dont matter Mostly luck based No
risk/reward system 4x3 grid 5 Card types (1,2,3,?,X) Reveal nearby
to placed Tokens can be moved Adjacent cards can score Skill is
decreasing luck Risky and safe play is balanced AfterBefore
7. Its almost horseshoes, with hand grenades Playtester quote
After nailing down the concept with placeholder cards, it was time
to create actual cards that had the aesthetics and visual cues to
help the player understand the rules. Using the joke about
horseshoes and hand grenades became the shell by which the player
could compare to the physical game, with a humorous twist. Each
card is an analogy to something in the game of horseshoes.
8. Worth 3 points Analogy: ringer/pole Only 1 in the deck Rare
objecitve The maximum score in a round of horseshoes is 6, and
requires 2 ringers. Thus there is only one Horse card. This makes
it enticing to go after when revealed.
9. Worth 2 points Analogy: leaner/pole Two of them in the deck
Uncommon objective Leaner shots are usually lucky. They are worth
less because they are almost a ringer. Having 2 of these cards
represents that luck when one is revealed and the other is not
during play.
10. Worth 1 point Analogy: Near pole Three in the deck Common
objective Getting near the pole is the most common way that a
player scores in horseshoes. Having three assures that the player
has that fallback.
11. Worth highest adjacent card Analogy: Measuring near pole
Adjacent Grenade zeroes it Four in the deck Strategic objective
Measuring the distance to the pole is captured here by checking
adjacent cards to determine score. There is a risk of unrevealed
adjacent cards being Grenades, however.
12. Worth 0 points Analogy: Foul Two in the deck Cancel Blank
scores Sabotage objective This card gives the player something to
avoid or worry about on face down cards. They also add to the
strategy of the blank cards, allowing for sabotaging ones
opponent.
13. I like how I can play offensively or defensively as needed.
- Playtester quote In this game the player has to measure the risks
of each move. Aiming skill has been translated to risk assessment
over the course of the entire game. Each round, the player learns
more about the strategy their opponent employs. This gives insight
into when to go for a score for short term gain, or cancel theirs
for the long term.
14. Place token on any card on the grid. Reveal the four
adjacent cards Pass your turn The opening move is blind, but the
strategy is in positioning. Placing on a corner only reveals 2, but
that token can never move. Placing in the middle will reveal 4, but
leave you open to being sabotaged.
15. Place token on a card next to another to move it The moved
token will not reveal other cards. Moving a token can be offensive
or defensive depending on whos is moved. In this case, Team
Bottlecap placed theirs on the Almond to move Team Quarters token
to the Grenade. This move was offensive.
16. Tokens can be stacked on one card Opposing tokens cancel
each other Canceling a token is ideal when the opponent claims a
card and moving it will not work, or when the player can win the
round. Here Team Quarter tries to take the Horse, but Team
Bottlecap cancels it by stacking it on top.
17. 1. Reveal all cards 2. Removed opposing stacked tokens 3.
Remove tokens on Blanks next to Grenades 4. Score tokens on
Horse/Shoe/Almond 5. Score Blank by checking highest adjacent card
Following this order will determine the score for the round. Team
Quarter scores 1 for an Almond, 2 for a Blank adjacent to a Shoe.
Team Bottlecap scores 1 for an Almond, and 0 for a Grenade. The
round score is 3-1 These are foam cards, created after a playtester
looked through the paper during a game.
18. Play until reaching the target score Suggested 21, but can
be changed by players Winner must win by +2 points This prevents
ties / makes close games intense Shuffle and reset the grid after a
round
19. Throw the grenade, or you wont be around to observe the
damage, - Mad Mike A game will always be Almost done. After several
compromises in design choice the goal is to get it to a playable
state and let it go. Otherwise it blows up in your face. After
completing the design, I had reflections on features that never got
implemented and bugs that never got fixed.
20. Some mechanics detracted from game Revealing cards when
tokens moved; too fast No talking rule for team games; too strict
Exact translation overcomplicated game Horse was originally Pole;
scored for being near Shoe was originally Leaner; only movable
token One mechanic was too powerful Ability to move token freely
when placing another on top of it was abusable
21. Quick rounds for fast demonstration Basic gameplay is easy
to learn Players learn more the more advanced tactics over the
course of a game Randomized grid makes no one strategy better, but
each choice is still meaningful Opponents must evolve strategies
based on observing each others play style The game can be easily
created!
22. Edge cases Two opposing players can claim a Horse with
Blanks, which should not happen. Team Play Team play is not as
interesting as in Horseshoes New Modes 4 Player free-for-all with
larger grid Extra token modes