Board Game

When compiling research outside of university I attended an event known as EGX Rezzed. This is an indie game event which showcases many smaller games. One aspect that stood out to me was the board games area which included several video game tie in games.

The one that stood out to me the most was the Binding of Issac, this is because the game is a dungeon crawler which ordinarily would not lend itself to a board game. Therefore I had to look into it further and explore how a game was turned into a board game.

Taking from this I wanted to try and create our game into its own board game. The key factors to keep in mind for our game is that it is a horror based game where a person is locked in a warehouse and attempting to escape from a terrible monster. This is something I decided to try and create the game from, making it a 2 player game where one person is trying to escape and the other is playing as the monster.

The first thing to come up with for the game is the mechanics and the way it will work with the board itself. Judging from the game we have made I decided to create a grid on the playable floor where certain tiles will be painted different colours. White for Events, Black for Actions Green for Frederick's starting point and Red for the Specimen's starting point.

To complete the game Frederick must activate and resolve 3 action cards similar to finding keys within our game, then make it back to his starting square, all while attempting to keep away from the Specimen who is hunting him down. The game is turn based and each character has their own figures and character cards. There are more action points closer to the Specimen as it forces the player to move closer to the Specimen and use the event cards to outmanoeuvre the Specimen.

The game is currently a prototype and has yet to be play tested. The reason I think this could work is because board games are a very popular medium currently and there is an inherent interest in playing a game from a different point of view, plus the inclusive multiplayer element means the game can be enjoyed by multiple people taunting and teasing one another.

To help with the development I have connections to the second largest board games retailer in the world who would be able to provide me with over 150 demonstrators who could potentially play test the game and provide feedback, they would be able to provide information on how to develop and print the game and if they deem it worthy then they would be able to distribute and publish the game for me.

Each character card explains the players turn and their movement allocation. It also explains how each character plays the game. The cards are designed to be one side each so that the back has the character while the front has the rules. As we currently have no imagery for Frederick Irwin I have chosen instead to use the concept art for Dr Bram.

Event and action cards are simple effect cards where the player that uses them can either gain extra movement or must roll a dice to determine a certain outcome.