Final Prototype Week - Making Last Changes

Final Prototype Week - Making Last Changes
Bishoy

Last week, we had the chance to play our game for the first time. We spent a lot of time during previous weeks working the mechanics of the game and ensuring that every part was fair and balanced. Everyone of our team had the responsibility of bringing in certain types of cards that would allow us to play the game.

As we played the game, certain problems came up and we took note of each one as we continued. Initially, we had some issues with balancing the draw of the parts 2 go cards at the beginning of the game. We wanted to avoid having too much "luck" in the game and instead, wanted each player to make strategic plays that didn't take too much time. To resolve this issue, we adjusted our original idea with the help of Professor Parks and made it so that each player starts out with four cards. Each player would choose 1 card and then pass the remaining cards to the player next to him/her. This would balance the draw of the cards and at the same time, would give each player an idea as to what luxury item their opponents are attempting to create.

Before playing the game, we decided to make extra Parts 2 Go cards so that in the end, not all the cards would be used. However, when we played the game, we realized that we made too many of a certain card and too few of others. This resulted in us having to "discard" multiple cards consecutively and that took a lot of fun out of the game. At the same time, we realized that a player could abuse the power to discard a parts card during the game. To fix this issue, we put a restriction on the discard play by only allowing a player to discard one card at a time for a fee of one gold coin. At the same time, we decided to make only the exact number of parts cards needed for all the luxury items. To compensate for the shortage of parts cards, we introduced new luxury items to allow the game to last longer and be more interesting. In this case, if a player decides to discard a parts card, he or she must place that card at the bottom of the Parts 2 Go deck.

Since last week, we have been able to meet outside the classroom to workout some last changes. We have assigned point values to each luxury item based on how many parts are required to form that specific item and the rarity of those parts. Additionally, we created some new chaos cards and balanced their powers. We also balanced the powers of the executives so that no one is too powerful or too weak. At the same time, we introduced a new feature where the executives can be activated or deactivated by other players. Finally, we decided to change the name of the game. Originally, I designed this game to satirize the super rich (mainly Floyd Mayweather). However, as our game progressed, we introduced new characters like Donald Trump and the Kardashians, so our game was no longer mainly focused on Mayweather. As a result, we decided to rename our game Livin it Up. This name characterizes our game well and fits perfectly with our overall theme.