Category: Game Ideas

alright so most of my ideas are kind of rough, but here we go

1. a wizard game where each player focuses on getting cards with spells and building their own custom combination of spells on their wand. Certain spells will counter others, with the goal being to attack other players and be the last wizard standing. There would also be specific defensive spells that can fend off certain spell attacks.
2. a hoarding type card game, where the goal is to have the own the most junk over other players. Each round players will steal different types of junk from a vault in the center, and having different combinations of junk from the vault will affect other players (such as stealing other players items or destroying them etc). Maybe also have a shop called gorbos junkyard, where players can turn in certain types of junk for better junk
3. a kingdom resource game, where depending on the kingdom you choose, the rules of the game differ. This could be that each kingdom can only play certain cards, or maybe each kingdom plays fundamentally different
4. a game that revolves around a magical totem that passes around to each player during their turn. This totem will give you gold the longer it is in your possession, so the goal of the game is to acquire the most gold. In addition there will be cards that enable you to hold onto the totem longer, or prevent others from acquiring the totem
5. a card game that similar to the price is right, except the item that you win will affect how you play in the upcoming rounds.

1- This one is a loose idea because I don’t know as much as I would like to about astrology, but I think it would be a cool topic to have a card game about. So every player is playing as their zodiac sign, and there are certain cards to pick from for all zodiac signs. When you pick a card each turn, it has a challenge on it based on your zodiac sign and their traits.
2-use a standard deck of cards and give one to each player. you have to pass your card to the person to your right. if you get a lower card than your original, you have to pick another card up (then youd have 2) keep doing this until the deck is gone. whoever has the most cards loses.
3-The cards are standard, except all white (no text) and laminated so you can write on them with expo markers. The players will write a dare, task, or challenge on the card. every turn the players pick a card and have to do what the card says. each player gets 3 chips and a chip is taken away when a dare is refused.
4-This is a variation of idea 3, with the same expo cards, except the players are divided into 2 groups. one group draws an image on a card and the other writes a saying on theirs. the cards are shuffled and, as a group, everyone judges which picture and saying are funniest when combined. Both of these players get a point. establish a winning number of points and when someone reaches it, they win.
5. everyone gets 7 cards. The goal of the game is to get every other card within the same suit. Each turn you pick up a card and the discard one. Your score once someone wins is based on your remaining hand. 10 points for all number card, 20 for face and aces.

Dungeon Crawl

Players would explore a randomly generated dungeon collecting items and fighting enemies to beat the boss and get the treasure. They would be able to find items to help throughout the dungeon. The dungeon would be made of tiles akin to Zombies!!! or Betrayal at House on the Hill. Items would be represented by cards similar to Munchkin or Betrayal.

Competitive City Builder

Players would build medieval cities on a randomized map. They would compete for land and resources and have to defend from threats. City building would be similar to Kingdoms and Castles and resources would be represented by cards.

Zombie Resource Management

Players must defend a base from zombies while also gathering resources to keep themselves alive and better defend their base. Game would end after a goal is met or the players could play until they lose or get bored.

Tarot Game

Players would have five tarot cards in a plus sign in the center of the table that they can manipulate and replace with the cards in their individual hands. Each player would have a unique goal card that would tell them which cards they need in certain positions to win.

Bartender Game

Players draw and collect cards of alcohols and drinks and have to try to combine them to create different mixed drinks in order to score points. The first player to x points wins.

Madisyn Kovach

Assignment: 5 game ideas that can utilize social distancing as a mechanic or make it part of the game.

Idea 1: Pop-up Checkers (Over quarantine, my brother and I seemed to always be playing checkers)

Meaning: A 3D virtual board will pop up on your phone and you will still feel like you are with someone playing.

Need: 2 players

Audience: Could go for the younger or older generation

Idea 2: Hey Alexa, Move the Dots (Inspired by Sorry)

Meaning: You will have a normal board with a plug. When you plug in the board, colored digital chips will pop up on the screen. You will need to say things like “Alexa shuffle the cards”, “Alexa pick a card”, or even “Alexa move the blue dot three spaces” (depending on what card you get). The board will be in the shape of an Alexa. Directions will be on the QR code on the back.

Need: 4 players, an Alexa, a phone to download the app

Audience: Younger People/Teens (10-20)

Idea 3: Quarantine (drawing game)

Meaning: While in quarantine, you must draw how you think your friend would redo each room in their house. After a player is done drawing, your drawing will be revealed to you friend. Whatever items are in the same place in both of your drawings will earn you a point.

Need: 2 players, white board/markers, or even could be done on your phone

Audience: 20 and up

Idea 4: Wash Your Hands!

Meaning: Wash your hands is to keep the game fun but not touching anything at the same time. When placing your hand under an electric soap dispenser, it will tell you how many spaces to move. (Maybe the board could plug in so it can show the sink dripping and thats how your spaces will move from point A to point B)

Need: 4-8 players

Audience: 5 and up

Idea 5: One Way

Meaning: Kind of working off of Candyland, you will only be able to move on way on the board. Its a start to finish game.

Need: 4 players and the game

Audience: 5-12 years old

5 card games

War Game

            Every Player gets a deck of cards. The deck is a specific army in history and there are cards that have attack abilities, blocking abilities, and victory abilities. The higher the card the more attack power they have. There are also blocking cards that will help block against the attacks. If you get attacked and you lose, you lose those cards. If you block, you lose the cards you block with. There is a victory card that will grant you automatic victory if you are being attacked. However, there are only 3 victory cards in your entire deck. You can play with multiple people and chose who to attack. If you do not come across a victory card, but want to win, you will have to attack and the opponent and the opponent will have to use all their cards against you and lose.

Color Card Game

            Something with only color-coded cards. Everyone gets 5 cards. You go around and pick up one card and put a black one down. If you only have colored cards, you can put a color down but then you have to discard one too. If you run out of cards, you lose. Majority of the cards are colored black. If a red card comes up and everyone has to put a colored card down. If someone does not have a color card they lose. The rounds continue until one person is left standing.

Zodiac

            You have to match the correct personality traits to their proper zodiac signs. There are 12 zodiac signs and there are a bunch of cards that match up to their zodiac signs. There are two decks, one for the zodiac signs, and one for the traits. The person who has the closest birthday picks the zodiac sign. The object of the game is to have most of the zodiac traits for that particular sign. Everyone gets 7 cards, and you are able to see which sign they belong to. You need to have 12 different traits for the zodiac sign to win. On your turn you can put down as many traits as you want, but you can only pick up one card at a time. You can also trade your cards on your turn. You can select a player and ask to trade as many cards as you want. Since you are trading the other person needs to accept cards from you, and they can decline. If they decline you need to pick up only one card.

Transylvania

            There’s a deck of cards filled with different monsters. Everyone picks up 5 cards, and there’s one person that sits out every round. Everyone puts a card and then the person that sits out shuffles the cards thrown in the pile and then deals them out. If someone gets a Dracula card, they are instantly dead. Then everyone has to figure out who killed the person who died, and if you are accused you must argue your case. The person who sits out put everything to a vote and then that person who is voted out can reveal if they killed the person or not. The game continues until one person is left standing. If you win the round you get a point. The person with the most points wins the game.

Speed Russian Roulette

            Card game where there are images of a gun and there are 10 bullet cards. You sit in a circle and everyone picks up cards as fast as they can when it’s their turn. If you get a bullet card you die. Whoever has the most cards at the end wins. You keep score by counting how many cards you earned, and once you reach 500 you win.

Eat the Rich

This game is similar to love letter, being 10 cards for each person, everyone keeps a card to keep and one to discard each turn, keep discarded cards in front of you. Once all cards are gone, all players reveal their hand and the round is over. The lowest rank wins. Highest does not receive a token and is out for the rest of the game. However, if you have the highest card in the first round and you have the lowest card in your discard pile, you are back in. Rest (not highest or lowest) of the players continue on but get a black token. Continue playing until everyone is out. 3 black tokens means you are out. There are no ties with ranks, only higher or lower. This game focuses on the class dynamics during the French Revolution so the lower ranks are fighting back and dislike the higher ranks. Therefore, lower ranks are better in this game. Cards: 1. Peasant 2. Farmer 3. Servant 4. Merchant 5. Knight 6. Count 7. Duke 8. King 9. Priest 10. Pope. Keep playing until everyone is out and someone wins. 

Match

Each player starts with 3 cards, you want these cards to match the win cards. The win cards 3 cards chosen from the stack on win cards, that the players want to match in order to win. Once a round is over all win cards go into a discard pile. The round goes on by players picking up a card and discarding one. The first player to match the 3 win cards, win. Shuffle the discard pile when there are no more cards. Shuffle the win card pile each round. 4 piles: New win cards, discarded win cards, new match cards, discarded match cards. 

Not it

There is a deck of 10 cards, 2 of which are all black, 4 players max. You want the black cards, but you don’t want anyone to know that you have it. Other cards may allow players to see your hand. All players will start with two cards, then choose one to keep and one to discard. The round begins and ends rather quickly, either in or out. When the round ends, and if you have a black card in your hand, you get a point for the round. All other cards besides the black cards have different actions applied to them. If you discard cards 1-8, follow these actions: 1. Out of the round 2. Swap card with the player to your left 3. Look at the hand of the player to your right 4. Nothing 5. Lose one card, pick up a new one 6. Swap hands with another player 7. Show one person your hand 8. Out of round. Since there are 4 players max, 2 cards will be set aside and not picked up when the round begins. 

Green Thumb

Goal of the game is to grow your plant the fastest. Players will get level cards and element cards. Level cards show what cards you need to level up and eventually win. Element cards are used to level up. This game works like go fish, where you ask players if they have different element cards. Yes = get the card, No = nothing happens. Each player starts with 2 cards. If a player has 0 element cards, they can pick up 1 at their next turn. Element cards include: water, fertilizer, sun, soil. Level cards include: seed, bud, sprout, flower. Each level consists of different element cards:

Level 1 to 2: 1 water, 2 sun, 1 soil.

Level 2 to 3: 2 water, 2 sun, 1 soil.

Level 3 to 4: 2 water, 2 sun, 1 soil, 1 fertilizer. 

Level 4: win

There are a decent amount of sun and water cards, a few soil cards, and only a few fertilizer cards.

Smoothie Smash

Players get fruit cards and a recipe card. Fruit/ingredients combine to make “smoothies”. Each smoothie has a different point value associated with it, more points = winner. Round/game is over when all fruit cards are gone. To play the game: players pick fruit cards, make a smoothie with those cards, receive points for the smoothie, and then pick more cards at next turn. Sort of like scrabble in how the game operates. Example: you get a orange, blueberry, strawberry, and banana card: you can make a orange sunrise (10pt) by combining orange and strawberry or you can make a berry blast (15pt) by combining blueberry and strawberry, you pick. 

1. Each person has a score card that is ranked 2-12. When you roll a number mark it off on the sheet. If you roll a number that you already marked off subtract that number from the overall score at the end. Whoever has the highest score wins.
2. Each person has 5 cards and rolls the dice. Whoever rolls the highest number takes a card out of the shuffled deck. Whoever gets the most matches and is out of cards first wins. Each person also has their own dice and deck of cards.
3. Everyone bets poker chips and rolls two dice. Whoever rolls the highest number wins the poker chips, unless someone rolls a double and then they win.
4. Roll one dice and the number you roll is the number of cards that you draw from the deck – each person gets 8 rolls. Whoever can make the most matches wins. If the cards that you matched are the same color, number, or all of the same number – you get bonus points.
5. Golf – Everyone gets a golf score sheet for nine ‘holes.’ Each person takes a turn to roll one dice to determine the ‘par’ of the hole. The par is applied to every player for that hole until the next hole, when someone else rolls the dice and then that number is the new par. Whoever is ‘teeing off’ has to roll two dice until they roll a double. Each roll is considered a ‘stroke.’ If you roll a double on the first try it is a ‘hole in one,’ second try is an ‘eagle,’ and so on. Every one has their own score card and dice.

1: A super-condensed RPG type game where two or more people compete to build a kingdom first. Progress is achieved by completing “quests” that are on a deck of quest cards. These can be real world tasks, like doing jumping jacks with one leg, or little dice-oriented combat encounters in the game world where you face off against the enemies of the king. Each quest will grant some kind of progress, whether it be new structures for the kingdom or just upgrades for your character.

2: A game about making players do questionable things in the name of victory. Players will draw a task card that determines the objective of their game. The goal is to get another player to do that task, which will usually be some obscure or random innocuous task like scratch their face or do a push up, but the stipulation is that they are not allowed to directly reference the task in any way, trying instead to manipulate each other into doing so. Every turn, players will pick a card that allows them to make other players do specific things, and these cards can be held or played immediately. Additionally, more than one of these cards can be played at a time, but the player’s goal is to use cards and persuasive competence to get at least one other player to do one thing.

3: A sci fi game intended for 2 players where each player has a capital ship, and the game is set in a space battle. Each player will draw cards from a pile that they may play one of per turn, unless otherwise specified. These cards will let them do things like sabotage their opponent, but the goal is to destroy their reactor, which can only be done by exposing it through at least 5 different successful sabotages.

4:A card game where the goal is to reach a total of 21 points exactly. The catch is that your opponents can subtract or otherwise manipulate your score.

5:A game where players battle to be the last one standing. Each player has seven cards that include attacks, defenses, and redirects. Each attack and defense will do different things as described on that card, and redirects will allow a player to redirect some damage to another player of their choosing.

1: A game that’s a hybrid of risk and chess. Different units can move through the map differently, but they have power levels that allow them to capture or deal damage to other units. The objective is to either take over the map or capture the enemies’ leaders.

2:A game played with dominoes that is more of a head to head experience. Each player will gain points for matching numbers, but will also be able to subtract points from their opponent based on the difference between non-matching dominoes that are connected.

3:A head to head card game with one deck of cards between two players. Each player’s goal is to reduce the health of the other to 0. Each player starts with 5 cards, and takes turns drawing one and playing one from the deck. Cards may include weapons, attacks, armor, or other means of interrupting or otherwise defeating your foe.

4: Similar to battleship, but designed around the idea of ground units. Pieces can only attack in a range in front of them, or they may move a certain number of spaces in a turn, but not both. The game ends when one side has no units left.

5:Doodle war: A fight game using drawings. Players will draw(ha ha) cards that tell them what kind of weapon to doodle for their characters, and then they have to prove that their weapon is better than their opponent’s to deal damage. The winner is the one who hits the enemy a certain number of times first.

Kahoot and drinking combined

This game is played on a mobile device or a computer. This is where the player will fill out a questionnaire and those answers will become the questions. Once the questions are made then people will start answering the questions. If you get a question wrong you have to take one drink. If you get 3 wrong in a row you finish your drink. The person who gets the most questions correct wins.

Meme Generator

This game is also played on a mobile device. You will have a meme saying come up and you will have to go through your camera roll or your photo library to match the meme. Every person takes a turn to not play and to vote on the funniest meme created and continues. The person who reaches 21 points wins.

Mad Lib Creator

This game is played on a cell phone. This is where you have a paragraph or a story with a bunch of blank spaces in it, and you can only click on you suggested text messages. You are not allowed to type anything, but you must select the middle suggested text every time. Everyone takes a turn doing this until you finish the story.

Race Game

Mobile game or a video game. Single player or multi-player. A horse racing game where you can bet money that you earn by answering trivia questions. Once you get enough money you can bet on a horse to win the race and if you win you double your earnings. If you lose, you lose 10 points.

Shot Roulette

This will be a virtual board that you can spin and share your screen with others to show. Theres a wheel where there are different types of alcohol shots on the board. Everyone selects their guess. You bet on which one you think the arrow will land on and then if you lose you drink the shot that was picked.

Hidden Objects

What is in the box? In a group of 4 or more people, you are given four plastic boxes and a bag of items. Each box is labeled: Person, Place, Thing, Idea. You are placed in teams. The goal of the game is to help your team guess what is in the box. One person is the clue giver and the rest of the people on the team are the guessers. The guessers have to guess what is in the box all at the same time. They cannot guess each box individually. Each team is trying to guess what is in the boxes before the other team does.

Similar to: Code Names, Clue, Taboo

Stolen Identity

Someone stole your identity in the group of people you are playing with and the goal of the game is to be the first one who finds out who. You stole someones identity in the group as well. You want to make sure you do not get caught by the others in the group.

To start, each person writes their name on a piece of paper and puts it in a bowl. Each person picks their new identity from the bowl. There is a deck of cards that have questions in the middle. Each time it is your turn, you pick up a card, read off the question and then answer the question how you think the your new identity would. You might have to be creative with your answers because you do not want people to find out who you are. After three rounds of answering questions, each person takes a guess who they think stole their identity.

Similar to: Bang, Clue, Guess Who

Build Your Way Out

This one needs some development but the theme is you and the people you are playing with are given a scenario where you are physically stuck somewhere (in a jungle, out in the ocean, underground, etc.) The goal is to be the first one to break free. I have not fully figured out what steps would be taken in order to get out and the different obstacles that would be included. The picture I have in my head is to have different questions you have to answer. If you answer incorrectly, it will be a struggle to try and get out.

Color Changes Everything

Color is important. It can be informational, emotional, exciting, scary, etc. It is time to see how other people see and feel color. You are given a color wheel. When it is your turn, you spin the wheel and land on a color. The other players do not know the color that you landed on. Your goal is to try and explain the color without saying what color it is. This game needs some obstacles because for most people, explaining colors can be easy. You win by guessing all of the colors on the color wheel.

Sell Yourself

How good are you at interviews and making yourself fit a role? For this game you are given a dice and a role (stay at home mom, grounds keeper, college student, etc.). In the game, you are applying for a new role. Every time it is your turn, you role the dice and depending on what number it lands on, you pick the card associated with that number. The cards are characteristics about your person. Once you pick up three characteristic cards, you then have to sell yourself with your characteristics to your new role. The people playing with you are the judges and have to determine if you got the job or not.

Similar to: Fun Employed

• Alike an upscaled version of the game cyclone in arcades. (Circle of lights that go around and you must time the button click with the light) With more players and instead of pressing the button when light comes, you must jump off a button that is underneath you. Much like a game of jump rope.
• Each player has a different color button. You get a pattern alike simon says/ bop it and must repeat it as a team. Time slowly goes down while patterns become increasingly more challenging.
• Shuffleboard like game with golf/hockey sticks. There are tiers of the goal. Closer to the middle is better.
• Reaction time game where each player has a button. The game says go and you must be the fastest. But it can also fake go and if a player presses then. They get a penalty.
• Game where each player has a hoop near them. Each person rolls dice to see how many shots they get to take at each other’s hoop. Start at a certain score and the last one knocked out wins.

Thro Fish – Played like “Go Fish” but the players are ~6 feet apart and cards are thrown. Only caught cards are added to the hand, the rest remain in the center pile.

Simple Ball Bounce – Players stand in a circle, six feet apart. Players bounce a bouncy ball to other players who try to catch it. If a player misses a ball, they are out. More balls can be added for extra difficulty.

6ft Laser Tag (AR) – A laser tag system that can be played anywhere, but players cannot shoot other players that are less than six feet away. Could include various game modes.

Infection (AR) – Similar to tag in that one player starts off “Infected” and must try to “Infect” other players. Other players are infected when an infected player is less than six feet away. Infection isn’t instantaneous, rather a progress bar slowly fills and fills faster the closer the two players are to each other. The progress bar would slowly deplete once the two players are far enough apart. Last one standing wins.

Snowless Snowball Fight (AR) – Players have targets attached to them and a set of balls. Players throw the balls at the target’s on the other players to score points.

Target Ball

Players wear vest with led targets, team members must hit opposing team members targets with soft tennis balls/foam balls. When all targets are hit you are out. The team with the last player standing wins. Can be a group game or individual.

Parachute Toss

People pair off into teams and take turns using a parachute to launch a ball into various baskets. Each basket is worth a different amount. First team to reach a certain score wins.

My Spot

Flat target with various divots is placed in the center of all players. As the start signal all players must roll balls simultaneously and try to get their balls to stay within the holes. The holes are shallow enough where players have the ability to knock other people out. Round of play lasts a certain amount of time and the person with the most points wins.

Zombie

Players must stay away from the infected. Players are given some time to hide and the zombie must find them. All players wear a band on their wrist. The band notifies hiders when a zombie is nearby(6ft). If a player and zombie make eye contact while the band is going off then the hider is now infected and becomes a zombie as well. Game ends when time is up or all hiders are found.

Shhh

Players take turns. On the table there are various items. In the center of the table is a machine/sleeping character. Players draw cards that say various different tasks they must complete. Players are given a certain amount of time and must complete as many tasks as possible without going over the sound limit of the machine. The person who completes the most tasks wins.

Mobile Murder Mystery:

A game like Clue or murder mystery parties where there’s a mystery the players race each other to solve.  They each start off with some amount of clues, and at some point during their turn they can ask another player for another clue.  There would be 2 or more players that were imposters of some kind.  When a player asks another player for a clue, only those two players can see the conversation, and all the rest of the game can see is that those two players are discussing (to add to potential paranoia.)

Escape from Haunted House:

A phone based group game that uses exercise and movement as a game mechanic.  All the players are trapped in a haunted house, and must explore it to ultimately find a way to escape.  The way players are able to move spaces is by moving spaces in real life.  The total distance covered between all the players determines how much they can explore the haunted house, and there’s some kind of time limit, so it benefits players to split up over a large area.

Crowd Sourced Story:

A choice-based adventure game, similar to choose your own adventure games.  The players will play through a story making choices to decide what happens in the story.  Each choice will be decided by a player vote, and they will be able to try to persuade others to vote for a certain choice.  Could have two modes: relaxed and competitive, where relaxed simply has a group of players telling a story together, but competitive starts with each player getting a secret goal of bringing the story to another outcome.  Relaxed mode would have no victor but competitive mode would have the winner as the player that successfully makes their outcome happen in the story.

Connect the Path:

An exercise based game utilizing phone GPS (and would only be playable in certain locations.) The game would assign the players a long path in the nearby area to fill out. The path would consist of multiple smaller “tracks”.  A player would complete a track by walking through it, and only one player would be able to complete a track.  The game ends when the full path is complete, and the winner is the player who has completed the most tracks.  A path might be to walk from Yorktown to the Neville Island RMU Sports Center.  Tracks along that path might include from Yorktown to Walmart, from Walmart to RMU entrance, from RMU entrance to Coraopolis, and from Coraopolis to RMU Sports Center. Players cannot feasibly make it from each location to the next in a shortened time frame, so they need to spread out to cover all the paths before the timer runs out.

Garden Growth:

A resource management and building board game.  Each player has their own board representing a garden, with different slots in which to plant things.  (The plants are represented with different colored chips.)  Different plants have different advantages.  One plant might yield a harvest every turn that allows the player to purchase more plants or supplies to tend to plants. Another plant might not offer any harvest, but have a fertilizing effect that causes nearby plants to be healthier or produce faster.  Each turn, the player would have to use a limited amount of actions to tend to their plants.  (At the beginning of the game, it would be easy for a player to tend to all plants in their garden, but by the end, the player would have to prioritize some plants over the others, and if a plant goes without, say water, for a certain amount of turns, that plant would die.) The game would have a finite amount of turns.  At the end, the victory would be calculated by points, awarding different points for features such as amount of healthy plants, money earned, etc.