First public playtest of Beta Break. RoKC North in Kansas City. Thankfully (or perhaps by unintentional-yet aware-of-my-own-self-consciousness-sense-of-self-preservation) the play testers were all friends from my weekly climbing meet-up session. In short: I could trust them to be honest. Plus, most of us are game nerds, so I knew they would focus on what I need (do the mechanics work? Are the mechanics fun?) instead of what sometimes comes from early playtests: opinions on visual design. Visual design is important, but for now I need focused, gameplay feedback.
Playtest overview
Game 1: four players
Game 2: five players
Overheard:
“This is such a good idea.”
“I think gyms would stock this game”
Mid-game, from a non-player: “I want to play. Let me know when this game is over.”
Other players answering questions about the rules without turning to me. This is a positive sign of player investment. The player, not the creator, is compelled to help others understand the rules.
What bummed them out?
Having to take a Take-a-Break/Breather card when they just want to climb.
Take-a-Break/Breather card questions didn’t seem to prompt interesting conversations.
New players who want to join mid-game cannot.
Climbs get too hard when too many holds are eliminated.
Stealing a Send doesn’t seem to have much benefit. Sure, it depletes another player’s health, but is that enough?
Wants more ways to increase health
The variety of problems means that some effects become impossible on some problems. For example, a campus only card would be impossible on some slabs.
Points of friction:
Game is too long
With big groups, players are just sitting around most of the time
Confusion about cards that seem to overrule other cards. For example, would Fabric Softener (a card that forbids static moves) apply to a problem with a second start, meaning every start has to be a campus?
Color blindness concerns regarding the red, green color schemes on the cards
Good ideas that I still need to bake on:
Instants (like in Magic the Gathering). Is there a place for them? How to use them. Should they be one-time use, one move modifiers? Should they be beneficial for the player, or should they be detrimental to the opponent? Both?
Card Types
Ruleset
Bouldering Card Game
Setup:
Each player starts with 10 health.
Pick a problem to climb. If skill levels differ, each player may choose a different problem, with the other’s approval.
Game Flow:
Players take turns drawing a card.
Follow the card’s effect and attempt the climb.
Eliminate cards remain in play until the end of the game or until a Reset (see below).
If all cards from the deck, shuffle all the cards and keep playing.
If you fail your attempt:
Lose 1 health.
The other player can try to Steal the Send. If they fail, they lose 1 health, and the card effect is canceled.
If they succeed, you lose another health, and the effect stays active. If the other player skips their turn the card effect stays, and it’s their turn to draw.
Overwhelmed by effects?
All players can agree to remove all effects by losing 1 health each. This is called a Reset.
Game end:
The game ends when either player loses all of their health.