Spiritual Successors

Played XCOM: The Board Game a couple of weeks ago. Fairly entertaining experience, especially when we barely eked out a victory.
This got me thinking about the game, which made me start a list of games I'll need to pay once I feel I've progressed enough in my career choice that I can relax at home... Might take awhile longer :/

It also made me think of the spiritual successors and clones for the original game, and whether this remake will spawn new ones. Maybe it will, or maybe it just isn't as innovative as the original and mobile games are where such things pop up now.

I've played quite a few number of these games, and rate them much higher than most reviews.
While analyzing what made these games appealing I started coming up with my own ideas.

The aerial combat of sending interceptors against UFOs always seemed on the slim side compared with the squad level combat - what if it had more depth to it?
What if there was ground combat element of using armored vehicles against a massive alien invasion, while still having squad based combat for terror missions or clandestine operations?
What if I used elements from the "chariots of the gods" theories and give an ancient Egyptian or Mesoamerican theme to such a game, shrinking down the geoscape but expanding base management into more of civilization building game?

Super villain guild - flavor

Going back to thinking about my programmable action deck building game, and the super villain guild leader theme.

There are a few mechanics and flavor ideas I don't want to forget.

a. Before regular play begins, players will choose a super villain card to add to their deck, in some form of bid, with some sort of balancing mechanic put into play - perhaps the one who chooses last gets to go first.

b. One super villain will be left over, and would dictate scenario conditions, special rules and winning conditions. A fun idea for that would be to have different artists prepare a small 4 pager comic to some back story fluff and cool art

c. The map will have area control aspects - each action would allow to place at least one cube onto an area, with certain cards improving upon this mechanic. Having a cube at a specific area would give certain benefits (influence,) having more cubes than any other player would give better benefits (control.)

d. Cube could be played to areas with influence (with a starting area designated by the initial super villain choice each player makes) or to adjacent areas.

e. Police cars and super heroes would foil player plans, by removing cubes, forcing discards, changing order of set cards, etc. These would be follow a specific rule set, perhaps with players turning a card at the end of each turn (AI)

New theme for my game

Been playing around with the theme for my programmable action deck builder, changing it from a space opera to a game about going an expedition to explore north America, in the same vein as Lewis & Clark.

Players would start at a major city, a set amount of money and supplies and a basic deck. Before heading out to explore, they would bid on a random set of cards to enhance their deck, with the player who payed the least (or has the fewest cards, or a similar device) starting first.
Each player could move forward at least one space. Those falling behind could move faster, as the territory was already explored, giving a bit of a catch up mechanic and something players must consider. Those discovering new territory would also flip over an event card, with various beneficial, harmful or neutral effects.
Moving would also exhaust supplies which would have to be replenished through hunting or bought at various checkpoints (towns/forts) along the way.
Recruiting people such as European traders or native guides would also be an option along the way, with these having benefits over the basic cards.
Some cards would go onto a players board, rather than into his deck, giving a permanent effect.

Finally, the length of the game could be changed to suit players wishes by giving different paths to explore.

Narrowing the Playing Field

Been giving a lot of thought as to the all important basic actions one could perform in my game (which I think I'll start calling Starguments, after a funny exchange on facebook)
What I came up with, which also affects the game board, is a politics action for exerting control over the galactic house and the various planets, a navigation action for reaching and connecting these planets and a trade action for collecting bonuses from said connections.

Each player would start with a home planet of his color and a connection to the planet where the government is seated.
The full board will be build from modular components selected by the players according to their actions in the initial tutorial phase, as well as choose their unique alien race with it's specific powers (and goals?)
Tutorial actions will also allow for deck customization by replacing basic cards with randomly drawn powered up version, if the player so chooses.

Everyone likes lists

Things to possibly include in my game:

Galactic map - possibly modular

Tutorial - A short explanation of game mechanics that would double as a set-up randomizer

House of Representatives - area control type deal for various combos and end game victory points

Multiple victory paths - with some randomization available

Variable player powers.

Different ways to add cards to deck, i.e. playing an action that involves the house of reps may allow to add Politic cards, visiting cantinas may allow to add smuggler cards, visiting a starport for ship upgrades.

Player pieces moving around the board to collect cards and change spheres of influence.

Tutorial Level

An abstract idea has popped in my head, fallout from a past Ludology podcast, I believe.

Ryan and Geoff had been talking about the difference between board and video games, and how most people would want to jump straight into the full board game experience, without messing around with truncated versions designed to teach the game...

...What if a compressed version of the basics of the game would change how the main game would play out?

A simple example could be one timed lap of a race to determine pole position, but that would have a lot of player downtime, not cool.

Single cells organisms competing with each other to evolve into complex creatures, changing the game map and gaining special abilities according to performance is more along the lines of what I'm going for.

Snake Oil

My roll and move game has a snake oil salesmen theme to it.

The basic premise involves moving around a track and choosing the action that would be most beneficial for you while being careful not to help your opponents even more.

After rolling and moving your pawn, you may choose an action, perhaps from a limited set according to location, and receive a bonus for it, which your opponents can then follow (to help eliminate down time, one of the problems of classic roll and move.)

These actions may include collecting ingredients, brewing concoctions, improving potions and equipment for a variety of bonuses and combos, and selling your product for gold and reputation.

Mechanics That Don't Make A Game

Drafting is still playing a big role in my pipe dream game ideas, I find the possibilities of completely changing how you play the game via the cards you are dealt exciting.

I have a problem though, it's not enough to make a game.

Trying to come up with a thematic reason to start a game with a draft has lead to the concept of a master and subordinate, one of your cards will serve as your main character, with powerful abilities to help you during the game. A second card would have more limited abilities, based on what it could have had if it was chosen first.

This idea has also lead to find uses for other cards from the draft: a starting building, currency or even a map piece.

From there I started thinking of settings. Starship captains for a sci-fi flair came first, but didn't seem to hold together very well. Wizards with apprentices came next and is a stronger idea, I think, but I also like the idea of demons vying for control until hell freezes over and the game ends, which is what I am playing with right now.

4X: Navigating Space

No real reason for being silent over the past week. Updating sort of slipped my mind while I was busy with visitors from Germany, Harucon 2013, birthday party...

Anyways, reporting on some thoughts I've had about my game, concentrating on space, both physically and metaphorically - the board on which the game will be played, representing outer space.
Currently thinking I may have each game played within a single (simplified) galaxy, with several options available for different player numbers or play experience, as less planets may mean more combat but slower research.

Each Galaxy will be made of a number of suns, connected by nodes, through which players could travel. Each player will receive a home system: a planet matching his color orbiting a sun (and perhaps a second mismatched planet for future colonization?) Each other node will have a circular card placed around it. One side of these cards will be unknown (fog of war type graphic) while the other will have between 0-3 planets orbiting it.

Now that I think about it, it would probably be best if both sides had a sun printed on it, both to save costs of punching an additional hole, and of having a clue as to how many and what planets might be in orbit.

Players with their space ship on the appropriately colored planet (similar to their home, or through later research) may be able to place a colony and improve their production/position.