i had a lot of fun the mechanics and king of the hill aspect was very fun.
What were the players’ interactions?
very aggressive. getting to attack people was very fun and became the aim of how we played.
Would you play it again?
yes i would, we didn’t focus on buying cards so i would love to play a round an focused more on dealing less damage and getting more victory points.
How long did it take to learn?
it probably took about 30 minutes because i for some reason was totally missing a few things and also every on was talking while i read the rules so people didn’t remember all of the rules.
What is the collaborative and or competitive aspects of the game?
the competitive aspect is to try and kill the other players when you in Tokyo cuse you get more points to be in so you want to stay in. the collaborative thing i all the monsters outside of Tokyo can work together to kill the monster that sin Tokyo.
What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout?
i love the rolling dice to do actions. it made it very straight forward. but it also makes it hard to get energy to buy cards.
bonanza
Was it fun?
yes the game was very fun.
What were the players’ interactions?
trading and auctioning off beans was really fun.
Would you play it again?
i don’t think i would play it again, the game seems like it would take forever with having to get through the pile 4 times. we didn’t even get through one pile and w played for so long.
How long did it take to learn?
it started off confusing, because the trading aspect was very hard for when you can give away cards for free. it started to go a lot smother after like 30 minutes but every one took so long on their turns.
What is the collaborative and or competitive aspects of the game?
it was competitive to get coins, but very collaborative with the trading to give people what they need while getting what you need.
Touchdown Takeover. Players must collect yardage cards to get a first downs, touchdowns, and field goals. If they are not able to “make a play” within a given amount of turns, they lose yardage cards. There are also negative yardage cards.
Trash Collecting. Players clean up the environment by collecting trash. Spend actions and energy to collect the trash.
Wall Street Monopoly. Invest money tokens in gold, start ups, and hedge funds. Collect returns on your investments when you pass go if you invested smartly. Be careful! The stock market may crash!
Counterfeit Collectibles. Players collect fashion items by buying them. These items can go up for auction on the market or from other players. The catch? Nobody knows until they own it whether the piece is real or fake. There will be a separate “value” card clipped to each item that may only be viewed when it’s in your hand. Player at the end with the most valuable pieces wins. This could be played with other themes. (sports memorabilia (autographs, jerseys, etc) makeup)
Realm Roamers. Be the most experienced traveler and collect the most locations! However, you may only travel places accessible to you from your location. Gain experience points at each location. Player at the end with the most culture points wins!
a game revolving around collecting artifacts found around in caves and maps. you travel around the map and when you land on certain spaces you spin the wheel and see what artifact you collect, you want to get the artifacts that have the best value to sell to the museums and you want the most money at the end of the games.
2. critter garden
each player has a garden that they can inhabit with multiple different creatures. each critter needs 2 of a kind to be placed to live in the garden. the first to fill their garden wins.
3. galaxy collector
it starts with getting all of the different components from the draw pile to make different parts of a galaxy form planets to stars to meteors to moons. their are different kinds of planets that you can get and each set of planets and moons make different types of galaxy’s
.4. time traveler gallerys
its is like your playing as doctor who, you travel through time with the board and their are different things to collect to get out of each time and specific things you can take with you to put into your gallery. each time has its own cards and the first o get an item from each time wins.
5. fruit salad
people draw cards and try and collect the same types of ingredients for salad, whether it be fruit, veggie, pasta salad they all have certain cards that go to build them, you must take and hold on to cards without others knowing what you have. you try and get the most ingredients to get points and certain ingredient can have multiple to get more points.
What were the player interactions? Every man for himself. You could unintentionally ruin someone elses plan by buying the gem they were saving up for.
How long did it take to learn? Initially not long but it took longer to fully understand the strategy behind it.
Would you play it again? Yes! We tried to but he wouldn’t let us
Analyze the game using the 3 act structure. The beginning of the game involved us learning the rules and strategies. The middle part of the game, we were building up our stock of gems to buy more. The end of the game was reached when one person got 15 points.
What are the collaborative and or competitive aspects of the game? There was little collaborative interactions in this game (no trading). It was possible to sabotage but not usually very intentionally. The game was competitive as it was every man for himself.
What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout? The game was about earning and buying gems with resources. A gam-changing mechanic was the rule that you could only have 10 gem tokens in your hand at one time. It kept gameplay going and leveled the playing field.
Anansi’s Web of Tricks is a trickster strategy game in which players collaborate and compete to discard their hands by using character abilities and trick cards to outwit and manipulate each other. Players collect trick cards, action cards, and number cards, which they use strategically to discard their hand and manipulate the game.
Temple Path is a tile-laying adventure game in which players collaborate to build paths toward the center of the temple while using action cards to assist each other or overcome obstacles. Players collect path tiles and action cards that help them build routes toward the center of the temple.
Corporate Espionage is a strategy board game in which players act as rival executives in a high-stakes corporate world, collaborating with or sabotaging others to secure the most resources by using underhanded tactics, corporate spies, and bribes. Players collect resources, such as money, insider information, and influence, by using spies, bribes, and underhanded tactics
Sabotage Heist is a real-time card game in which players compete as thieves on a heist, secretly sabotaging each other’s plans while trying to pull off the perfect crime by using bluffing, deception, and carefully timed traps. Players collect valuable loot during the heist while using bluffing cards and sabotage tools to prevent others from succeeding
The Saboteur’s Ball is a social deduction party game in which players are attendees at an elite gala, trying to identify who the secret saboteurs are while undermining each other’s efforts to influence key figures by spreading rumors, planting evidence, and setting traps. Players collect rumors, evidence, and influence as they try to identify the secret saboteurs and undermine other attendees at the gala
Personally, I thought this game was a lot of fun. It had a lot of strategy involved, which to me is fun.
What were the player interactions?
The player interactions includes us bartering to place pieces in certain spots if we needed them, and placing pieces in spots to make the opponent have a disadvantage.
How long did it take to learn?
This one was pretty easy to learn, but it took a while to understand how the point system worked. The farmers, roads, etc all have different values so I did not understand how bad I was doing at first.
Would you play it again?
No, simply due to the games length.
Analyze the game using the 3 act structure.
In the beginning, you start by placing your first cards and slowly start to build small structures. In the middle, you start to place bigger structures all while screwing other people over. In the end, you finish your structures and the game ends. Once you count your points, the one with the most wins.
What are the collaborative and or competitive aspects of the game?
There aren’t really any ways to collaborate other than working together with another player to finish a structure. For the competitive aspects, it is basically the same in reverse by working with players in order for someone not to finish what they were trying to build.
What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout?
The metaphor that I think of is that it is a game of life, and each tile you place represents your future. But each tile you look back on is the past, and it cannot be changed.
The game mechanics that stick out most to me are the builder pieces, which is a nice addition that makes it easier to finish structures. But also, I find it interesting how once the game is coming to an end, everyone is looking for that one specific piece they need, basically gambling on whether or not they will ever find it.
Battle Cups is a game Owen and I worked on last year, and I still believe that it is flawed and needs a revisit. The concept of the game is that you are playing battleship, but instead of trying to guess exact spots, you are shooting a ping pong ball into the cups. It adds a sense of skill to battleship, which others and I seemed to enjoy last year.
Cup Darts
This game is a teammate game in which you switch positions every turn, while also playing against another team. In this game, it starts by having a dartboard on the ground like a cornhole board, and you have to throw a red solo cup with a dart attached to the bottom at the board. It behaves much like normal darts, but your teammate that did not throw the dart has the chance to throw a ping pong ball at the cup. If the hit the cup, it is a 2x multiplier, and if you make it inside the cup it is a 3x multiplier. You can play this with any traditional dart game, such as cricket or 301.
Structural Integrity
In this game, you are given a deck of cards that are custom made for the game. On each card, is a different structure that you have to attempt to make out of red solo cups. In a separate deck of cards, there is a required weight that your structure has to hold. (EX: One pound, 1/2 pound, etc.). The way you win the round is by your structure being able to withstand the weight you have drawn. First player to 3 rounds won wins. To wrap this game up, why not add a classic sand timer as well.
Towers
In this game, you are given a large stack of red solo cups. The objective of this game is to create the largest or most creative structure out of red solo cups possible. You have 5 minutes in order to make your structure. At the end of the 5 minutes, the person with the largest or most creative structure wins.
Flip Cup Race
In this game, it is much like a normal game of flip cup. But instead, you will line 10 cups on the edge of the table and be on teams of 2. You will start about 10 feet away from the table and when the buzzer sounds, you run to the table and attempt to flip your first cup. If you do not land the cup, you must try again until you do so. If you do land the cup, you must run back and tag your teammates hand to let him go flip a cup. You keep alternating turns until the other team finishes first, or you finish your cups first.
Was it fun? – I do think the game was fun, though it felt short, I did enjoy playing it and winning!
What were the player interactions? – after we had figured everything out, we just started attacking each other, in-game and verbally. I did enjoy the uniqueness of the game pieces like the player card with the life and the little green power cubes though.
How long did it take to learn? – I think the rules made it more complicated than it needed to be, taking us more time to figure out the specifics than playing the game it feels.
Would you play it again? – I think so, though it’s not really my type of game, I do enjoy the competitive aspect of it
Analyze the game using the 3-act structure. – Learning the rules and establishing them in the game, then playing the game as we understood it and interacting with the board, hearts, and ability cards, the lastly winning battles in the game and eliminating players, and I WON
What is the collaborative and or competitive aspects of the game? – the game is all about competition, battling over who will be the king of Tokyo, it came down to trying to save hearts, use abilities to your advantage, and then trying to win
What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout? – can you become the one and only king of Tokyo? The mechanic that stood out the most to me was the factor of how you could lose hearts, though you can gain them back with ability cards, it felt like it was a constant process to try to keep your hearts.
Bohnanza:
Was it fun? – I think the game was okay, I enjoyed the art more than playing the game
What were the player interactions? – trading cards, growing beans, and trying to keep similar cards. I think I enjoyed that aspect the most as I was with my friends, so it was easy to trade.
How long did it take to learn? – It was pretty confusing, we needed a lot of help at first but after we got it, it wasn’t too bad to play
Would you play it again? Yes, we didn’t play the whole length of the game, as we were supposed to get through the deck three times, and we only did it once.
Analyze the game using the 3-act structure. – Learning the game, and setting everything up, then beginning the step-by-step process each player is intended to do each turn, then gathering money by selling beans.
What is the collaborative and or competitive aspects of the game? – We collaborated the most by trading and gifting cards but competed by trying to get the most money from selling the beans
What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout? – “to bean or not to bean” The mechanic that stood out to me the most was the factor of gathering matching cards and trying to trade cards with the other players. I felt like not a lot of other games we have played have a positive aspect to player interaction with each other while maintaining the need to individually win
Tasty Travels is the game that I was talking about last week, in which players must travel across the board to collect ingredients before making their dishes.
another game idea which involves collecting would include Plant Life:Theme: Botanical Collection Gameplay: Players cultivate their own gardens using a grid-based board. Each player collects different types of plants and herbs (represented by tiles or that are placed on the grid) that require specific conditions to grow. Players must gather water, sunlight, and soil cards from the conditions deck in order to nurture their plants. Special events can change the environment, affecting what plants thrive. Collecting rare plants earns bonus points, and players can also trade plants at a market. The market is where it gets competitive. Here, payers must sell their tiles with the cards attributed to them. If the cards are the perfect conditions for the tile (as listed on the tile’s underside) they get the full amount of points. If it is off, they will make less depending on how severe the conditions are for their crops.
My Little Monsters is a fantasy collection game set in a whimsical market where players collect magical tiny creatures and monsters. Each player starts with a small amount of currency and must navigate a market board to acquire these pet creatures/monsters through auctions, in which you can buy a creature from someone else, or trades, in which you can swap a creature with someone else. There are also duels in which you can kill a creature/monster with your monster and it dies completely and can’t be used anymore. these creatures have different abilities and rarity levels, affecting their value. Players can form alliances or sabotage others to gain valuable creatures. The goal is to have the highest valued collection by the end of the game.
Oceans 14: is an Art Heist game in which players assume the roles of art thieves trying to collect the most valuable masterpieces from a high-security museum (a game board). The board features different rooms, each with unique artworks. Each player when it is their turn must draw a card, and role a die to see how far they move on the board. Players use strategy cards to bypass the security guards, but they can also set traps for rivals. such as smoke bombs, bear traps, or slippery oil. The goal is to collect the most points from stolen art. However, players risk losing points if caught by the security guards. This is if they land on a security guard square on the game path.
Scribble n’ Sell: is a Drawing based collecting game in which Players create their own art pieces using drawing prompts provided by cards. Each turn, a new theme card is drawn (e.g., “fantasy landscape,” “abstract emotions”), and players have a set time to draw their interpretation (there will be a two minute long timer). Once completed, players can trade their art pieces at the trading post for various art supplies or other player artworks. Players earn points based on creativity, originality; all judged by their successfulness or unsuccessfulness with their trade of the artwork. Each bid is documented. The game ends after 10 rounds, and the player with the most valuable artwork spread wins.
Forager – This game is about gathering different types of mushrooms, using a board and little tokens with small mushroom drawings on them, the idea of the game is to collect similar edible mushroom species. However, there are many chances to stumble upon toxic mushrooms! If you accidentally gather a toxic species, you will lose several mushrooms in your basket written on the token – i.e.: Ink Cap Mushroom = Lose 3. The board is set up with multiple sections where mushrooms will grow, these “Forests” can provide more opportunities for gathering similar mushrooms, but you can only be in the same forest for two turns. This game is very similar to Takenoko
A Box for my Trinkets! – This game is about collecting trinkets, each player has a unique box where they will collect and hold their trinkets, however, you are given one “style card” that will vaguely tell you what size, style, and type of trinkets you can collect. Don’t worry though, there will be dozens of trinkets that can fit these requirements, it’s all about trading, bargaining, and gifting your fellow collectors (other players). Such as when they want to trade you have to give them something in exchange. Other players will not be able to tell what trinkets you have, and you’re meant to keep them a secret! The goal to win the game is to have a box full of trinkets that fit your “style card” and a special trinket that is golden – your most prized possession.
Green Thumb – A game about having a lot of houseplants, but only a little bit of room! The idea of this game is that you start with 4-5 house plants, You’ll begin with a room space with a window and some shelves, At the beginning of the game, you get a few plants that will tell you where your plants go in the room if you have the space, correct lighting, and proper temperature, your plants have a good chance of surviving. Now the idea of the game is to fill the space and keep your plants alive, the greener the better! Once you have filled your space and feel that your plants are of the highest quality of life, you win! However, there are many opportunities for pests to infect your plants, plants of optimal quality will begin to flower and spread – or cuttings will need to be harvested. This factor will be decided by chance, and each player will have a different affect happen every two turns.
Media – Mediums – A game about gathering up different experiences through trying new art mediums. Each player will begin the game with one art medium that they are good at, and throughout the game, they will have to gather different unique art mediums that can not only benefit the medium they have already mastered but also create something that represents all mediums and their uniqueness. (This game is more of a long-term commitment, so I’m not sure how well this would work irl)
To be a Frog – Though this game a self-explanatory, this game is about being a frog. You must establish an area in the pond where you will eat, sleep, and lay your eggs. The way to achieve this is to collect lily pads for your pond and ensure you have eaten enough flies to establish your area and avoid predators. At the beginning of the game you will start with a card that explains what your frog has as skills, are you able to eat more than 4 flies? Are you a poisonous frog that can ward off predators more easily than others? The way to win this game is to establish your home, create future generations, and establish a food source.
Compete to have the best garden by planting plants and sabotaging other players with bugs.
Contents
50 Garden Objective Cards
50 Plant Cards
25 Bug Cards
4 Garden Boards
Instructions
Setup
Every player selects a Garden Board.
Shuffle the Garden Objective Cards, Bug Cards, and Plant Cards to form three draw piles, face down. Leave room for discard piles.
Turn over the top 4 Plant Cards and place them in a face-up row next to the deck.
Turn over the top 2 Bug Cards and place them in a face-up row next to the deck.
Deal 3 Plant Cards, 1 Bug Card, and 1 Garden Objective Card to each player. Players may look at their cards, but should keep them a secret from the other players.
The player who owns the most house plants goes first. Play proceeds in a clockwise manner.
Gameplay
Points are earned by completing Garden Objective Cards, using Plant Cards. Players must plant all of the required plants on their Garden Board by laying Plant Cards on their board, face up. Some Garden Objective Cards are more difficult, and, therefore, are worth more points at the end of the game.
On Your Turn
Perform Actions
Players perform 3 Actions on their turn. Players may perform the same Actions multiple times, and they can be performed in any order. The 7 Actions include:
Draw a Plant Card
Plant a Plant in your Garden
Draw a Bug Card
Sabotage Another Player’s Garden
Play a Good Bug Card on your Garden
Sweep the Plant Cards
Use Pesticide
Draw a Garden Objective Card
Draw a Plant Card
Draw a Plant Card, either from the top of the deck or from the row of face-up cards. If you take a face-up card, replace the gap with a new card from the top of the deck. There is no limit to the number of cards a player can have in their hand.
Plant a Plant in your Garden
Place a Plant Card face-up on your Garden Board. Each Garden Board has two plots, Plot 1 and 2.
Draw a Bug Card
Draw a Bug Card, either from the top of the deck or from the row of face-up cards. If you take a face-up card, replace the gap with a new card from the top of the deck. There is no limit to the number of cards a player can have in their hand.
Sabotage Another Player’s Garden
Place a Bad Bug Card face-up on any other player’s Garden Board on one plot. The Bug immediately eats one Plant. The affected player discards this Plant Card. The Bug will continue to eat Plants in the player’s Garden until it is killed with Pesticide. A Bug takes 1 Plant at the beginning of the affected player’s turn until exterminated. Additionally, players cannot meet Garden Objectives when a Bad Bug is in their Garden. Only 1 Bad Bug, in addition to 1 Good Bug, can be placed on a plot at a time.
Play a Good Bug on your Garden
Place a Good Bug Card face-up on your Garden Board on one plot. A Garden Objective completed with a Good Bug Card applied to it will score additional points at the end of the game. Only 1 Good Bug, in addition to the 1 Bad Bug, can be placed on a plot at a time.
Sweep the Plant Cards
If you do not like the four face-up Plant Cards, you may sweep them away to get four new ones. Discard all four cards and replace them with the top four cards from the deck. You CANNOT sweep the Bug Cards.
Use Pesticide
To remove an unwanted Bad Bug from your Garden Board, you must use Pesticide. Remove the Bad Bug from your affected Garden Board Plot and place it in the discard pile.
Draw a Garden Objective Card
Draw a Garden Objective Card from the top of the deck OR exchange a Garden Objective Card by discarding a Garden Objective Card from your hand and drawing a new one from the top of the deck. NOTE: Players can only have 2 Garden Objective Cards in their hand at a time.
Completing Objectives
When you have met all of the requirements on a Garden Objective Card, you may lay this card face-up in front of you. Requirements are met when all of the Plant and Bug Cards shown on the Garden Objective Card are placed on one Garden Board plot. All of the Bug and Plant Cards on the plot that fulfill this requirement are discarded. You may complete Objective Cards anytime during your turn and it does NOT count as one of your standard Actions. It is possible to complete more than one Garden Objective Card during your turn.
If there is a Good Bug Card applied to the Garden Plot that completes the Objective, stack this card underneath your completed Garden Objective Card in front of you.
Garden Objectives CANNOT be completed with a Bad Bug on the Garden Plot. Bad Bugs MUST be killed with Pesticide first.
Types of Cards
There are three different types of cards throughout the game: Plant Cards, Bug Cards, and Garden Objective Cards. The following describes and provides examples of these cards.
Plant Cards
Plant Cards enable players to complete Garden Objective Cards, which are necessary to earn points and win the game.
Bug Cards
There are two types of Bug Cards: Good Bug Cards and Bad Bug Cards.
Good Bug Cards
Good Bug Cards are white and feature bugs that will benefit your Garden.
Only 1 Good Bug Card can be placed on a Garden Board Plot at a time.
At the end of the game, you receive 2 additional points for every Garden Objective Card completed with a Good Bug on it.
You CANNOT place a Good Bug Card on another player’s Garden Board.
Bad Bug Cards
Bad Bug Cards are black and feature bugs that will harm other player’s Gardens.
When a Bad Bug Card is placed, it immediately eats 1 Plant Card. That card is then discarded.
A Bad Bug eats 1 Plant at the beginning of the affected player’s turn until exterminated.
Only 1 Bad Bug Card can be placed on a Garden Board Plot at a time.
You CANNOT complete Garden Objectives with a Bad Bug on your plot. Bad Bug Cards MUST be killed using Pesticide before an Objective can be completed.
You CANNOT place a Bad Bug Card on your own Garden Board.
Garden Objective Cards
Garden Objective Cards are necessary to earn points and win the game. Garden Objective Cards are completed by obtaining and planting all of the required plants on the card.
Garden Boards
End of the Game
The player who reaches 7 objective cards first triggers the final round. The remaining players get one last turn to try to complete objectives in order to earn points. The player with the most points tallied up from their completed objective cards wins.
Tally the points from only the COMPLETED objective cards
Add an extra 2 points for every Good Bug that you completed a Garden Objective with
What were the player interactions? It always felt like we were attacking each other no matter what.
How long did it take to learn? 10 minutes
Would you play it again? Yes
Analyze the game using the 3 act structure. Start of the game we decided whether to go for points or taking out other players. Then people started to be killed and it became a battle between just two people and then one eventually came out on top.
What are the collaborative and or competitive aspects of the game? It was purely competitive, but it was quick enough to make you want to try again
What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout? I guess there was no real metaphor except for giant monsters trying to kill each other. The dice rolling mechanic for points, healing, or attacking combinations was the main focal point and a fun alternative to always just drawing cards.
Bonanza Response
Was it fun? Not really
What were the player interactions? We spent so much f*cking time trading and talking that we only got through the deck once and had to end the game.
How long did it take to learn? 10 minutes, with help from Ames
Would you play it again? Nah
Analyze the game using the 3 act structure. 1. Figuring out how the game works and the best bean combinations, 2. Getting the hang of the order of operations and beginning to trade better. 3. Realizing the game is too close to call and finding out who has the most coins
What are the collaborative and or competitive aspects of the game? Trading was a key element and as I said we spent much more time than we probably should have trying to trade and team up.
What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout? The metaphor I got from it was “Don’t play games with the theme of f*cking dumb*ss beans.”
5Game Ideas
You’re a Geologist! – Players take rocks from a limited selection and try to keep the other players from stealing them.
Ooh Shiny- Players must avoid being distracted by shiny objects and get out of the treasure cave alive.
Swap Meet- Players buy and sell good to and from each other to get the best collection sets for the most points.
Tooth Fairies- Players draw card sets and compete to try to collect an entire set of teeth.
Knick Knack Tower- Players play card in their hand to build their knick knack tower the highest or with the most pieces.
Nature’s Harmony– Players explore vibrant environments to collect sounds from creatures and plants. solve puzzles to unlock new areas and create a unique musical experience that influences the world around you.
Time Traveler’s Gallery– Players travel through different historical periods to collect famous artifacts. Make choices that affect the timeline and build a personal gallery, and the story is then shaped by your choices.
Dreamscape Collectors– Players will collect dream creatures the represent different emotions in different dream worlds. Craft your dream escape to upgrade your abilities, and trade with others to compete in collections.
Artifact Archetype– Players will collect and trade cards representing ancient artifacts, each with their own abilities. Strategize your building strategy to form the best deck and unlocking unique events and cards.
Mythical Menagerie– Players will create and manage their own sanctuary for mythical creatures. Explore to collect different creatures, take care of them, and customize your sanctuary to attract visitors.
