Production week 5: A shot in the dark and Stealth

What have I done this week?

• Playtesting
• Playtesting
• Added, removed and redesign cards
• Playtesting

Play testing with new card type

“Stealth” is a new Card type have been tested this week. Its role is to create diversity in the game and also to reinforce the feeling of being an agent and create more player iteration. A stealth card have the text:

“Stealth (Place this card in front of you upside down). Revel this card when X happens. Do action Y”

An example of a Stealth card is Wiretap:

A stealth card never leaves the table unless it is revealed, meaning the opponent can in theory play around the stealth card the whole game. A player can have as many stealth cards in play as he or she wants. A stealth card also have to be revealed if the condition is meet. Another example:

If the opponent buys a NULL card, the stealth card is forced to reveled and the player who played it gains 0 Temporally resources the next turn.

Before everything was in the open about what a can or can´t do. With stealth cards introduced the player will feel more sneaky with his plays, which will reinforce the feeling of being an undercover agent.

A shot in the dark and its problem

One card have created a problem for the game. 

Artist: Jessica Andersson

A shot in the dark is an attack card that allows the player to attack the opponents deck. It is unique (Meaning there can only be one copy in the deck) in order to solve the problem that the opponent runs out of cards while playing. The flavor of the card is that a murder kills someone, hide the evidence and leave a trademark at the murder scene. To its name, illustration, flavor text and effect this is one of my personal favorite cards. And it also create huge problems for the game.

The effect of looking at the top 3 cards is too powerful effect for the early-mid game. What it does is allowing the player to remove key cards for the deck the opponent are trying to build. What it also does is slowing down the game, since it is removing cards and resolving  its effect can take a while. The games where this card have been able have by itself increased the playing time with 10-15 minutes. 

The solution to solve the problem is to redesign the card or changing its cost to much higher number. Right now there is two different redesign of it.

This version of the card removes itself after play. However the amount of text is increase on the card and with only a limited used each game the card become much weaker. It may be the solution for the card, however testing will show if this version works or not.

This version limits the player to only 1 card instead of 3. It does indeed attack the deck, however the effect itself can be the best lucky shoot ever or the worst hit as well. Truly it is a shot in the dark, as it can be super good or super bad. Maybe it is too underwhelming so that nobody wants to play with it. 

Conclusion

Going forward in the project more play testing will be commenced and more balancing will be worked on.