You are an explorer traveling the world in search of the worlds finest riches. The greatest prize of them all sits just beyond a fragile bridge. However, lurking on the other side of the bridge is a ferocious Troll who will not let anyone pass. Using your great skills in diplomacy you are able to recruit the help of experts in the fields of distraction, construction, and exploration. With your team of navigators, engineers, and natives you attempt to trick the Troll and reach your destination before any other explorers claim the wealth.
Bridges is a strategic turn based card game requiring the use of different types of cards to advance across the bridge,to prevent other players from advancing or to protect yourself from an oncoming Troll attack. The players will be able to request help from various navigators, engineers and natives on the foreign island. The navigator is required to advance forward throughout the bridge. The engineer is involved in the construction and repairing of the collapsing bridge to help you reach the other side safely. Lastly, the natives will provide tools of distraction to protect you from the danger of the Troll.
The game mechanics require each player to take a recruit card at the beginning of every turn. They will choose between different navigators, engineers, and natives to provide the specific assistance they need at the moment. The players follow the directions written on the cards and plan their course of action. Then the player will flip a Troll card which will negatively affect the players chances of reaching the other side of the bridge. After a player has finished their turn phase the player on the right goes next and chooses from the remaining recruit cards. Once every player has gone all the recruit cards are placed back into a pile and the player on the right is the first to pick between the recruit cards. Once a player reaches the other side the game is over.
The Process of Creation
ReplyDeleteThis week some of the mechanics and structure of the game were discussed. During this process, we touched upon what could be improved, more ideas on how to make the game interesting, and some minor problems with the game so far. As we delved further into the details and rules of the game, more and more modifications were added.
The latest version of the game includes three decks; the role deck, the ogre deck, and the bridge pieces deck. The role deck contains various roles for the players, each specific role having a specific ability that can only be used when the player chooses that role. Some roles will affect every player, while others will not. For example, as the "Tree Cutter" everyone will be able to cut down some trees for wood, but the player who chose that role will have an additional advantage of being able to cut more than one piece of wood. While in the role of "Engineer", only the person who chose that role will be allowed to use its ability of constructing the bridge.
In the ogre deck, there will be a mix of cards that target specific roles, specific types of wood, and every player in the game. The ogre deck will just be filled with cards that bring disaster to the players, which adds anxiousness to the game. It will keep players on their toes and keep each round interesting. It is essentially the "world changer" in the game, as each time the game is played, the disaster happens in a different order. It also renews the game after every card played, as the player has to use various tactics in order to keep up with all the misfortunes played each turn. It does not prevent players coming up with strategies for the game, as there some strategies that aid in winning the game regardless of the ever changing problems that arise.
The bridge piece deck has numbers on the bottom, which helps keep track of which piece of the bridge the ogre is attacking. In order to win the game, the player must have assembled the pieces of entire bridge, as well as having constructed the bridge. The various roles help in the entire process of building the bridge, from getting the wood to make the planks, to putting the planks together to create the bridge.
The entire process of game creation was a learning processes in how much effort and planning actually goes into creating a game. Little details had to be worked out before proceeding, as those details could change the entire game. It was hard making sure that no player had an advantage over another, and to keep "the rich get richer" problem from occurring. As a team we worked out the kinks, and kept changing ideas for how to solve the problems. So far, we have a concept, a theme, and rules for the game. Obviously, nothing is in concrete, as we will continuously modify the game to keep up with new problems that we uncover.