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Alternis LDCG is my now-current project. It is heavily based off of the Bravely Default One-shot, with a few mechanics removed (the turn-storing system amongst the forefront), and a few pocket-level mechanics added. It’s just proving a monumental design challenge due to the Locations needing to be vague enough to work with most decks (especially when your Location ISN’T chosen), but powerful enough to warrant being a choice in the first place. I want to fully reveal the game once it’s actually playable.

Otherwise, I’ve been pretty sick, and involved with some other obligations.

Find it here! https://agesccg.com/one-shot-ccg-bravely-default

While you could remove the terminology and have the game work on it’s own, there would be a massive art requirement and a few things as to not be sued into oblivion by Squeenix, so that’s why the game is a one-shot and not a full portfolio project.

Bliss Stage RPCG

• Figuring out effects. Namely, Anchors weren’t working out from previous just for the sheer amount of text they required to have three abilities. Might take a page from LoLDCG and make them scaling effects.
• Still sorta worried about the whole relationship aspect of the game (which is on a meta level… the entire point. You aren’t supposed to be comfortable with it). I really don’t want to piss anybody off, but I’m not sure if it’s even possible to show it respectfully.

LoLDCG

• Still stuck on effect implementation that doesn’t make burst damage incredibly too good. The actual game also has some issues with this and their balance is in systems that aren’t emulatable in card game form.
• Some kits when they’re ONLY on paper are absurdly broken… like Yasou.

MLPCCG Review

• Still waiting on the expansion for the required data for a full review. The initial set has its own problems but it’s the expansions that decide where the game goes from here.

One-Shot CCGs

• Still planning to do these, likely starting with Disgaea. One-Shots are CCG images that may or may not fit to a fleshed out game, and won’t ever go past proof-of-concept prototypes.

Other Stuff

• Adventure Time has their own LCG-format game coming out. Not only is it coming out for the correct target audience, but there’s actual player interaction! And a DIGITAL version at the same time! Granted, I’m not a fan of the fonts used but that’s an IP liberty (and somewhat of a target audience one).

Honestly, I’ve been trying to get a review out for the game for two weeks, but it’s been rough. The game is still too fledgling to make a final decision on, and I feel like the first expansion will be the best indicator of how good the game will be for the future.

Not to say that I don’t have some current thoughts, though.

• Troublemakers are in a bad spot mechanically… in that they’re binary TWO ways. Either the card is too good or too bad, and the usability is either early game or late game. It should be telling that the best troublemakers in the game are Yellow Parasprite and Purple Parasprite by FAR (and the Yellow one should be a playset in every deck you can possibly make, making it the first true “staple” card)
• Control in general is stupidly good, and no real anti-mechanic to match it. As the resources are limited in the early game, that’s when its easiest to gain a lead and keep it. The mechanic meant to do something (Speed) about it doesn’t even work enough of the time to be a consistant balance. Then Speed even requires the elusive Ultra
• The specific color spread behind the game will make it problematic to nerf and buff colors, as essentially every deck will be able to carry a buffed color. Meanwhile, Some colors desperately need a buff (orange) but can’t get the one they need without increasing the overall power of the game.
• It’s nothing new. The primary mechanics are lifted nearly part-and-parcel from some of the creator’s previous games. Star Trek CCG 2nd Edition makes up for many, many of MLP:CCG’s mechanics, to the point that calling the latter Star Trek CCG 3rd Edition isn’t too far off. With a bit of Star Wars CCG in there with the faceoffDestiny mechanic for flavor.
• I’m not a fan of fixed cards, and even less so for cards required to PLAY THE GAME being fixed. It’s exploitative of the game, and I feel as if it’s an unnecessary money grab (if the game was more obviously better, and better advertised, they would need to do it). Then you have the powerful promos (Blue may not function nearly as well without Rainbow Dash, To The Rescue, which is Promo-Only)
• The game is going to be particularly weak to the Three Creeps: Power Creep, Rarity Creep, and Complexity Creep. Power due to how ccgs tend to sell cards lately (and expect some Magic Bullets), rarity creep for similar reasons (and the game has a MASSIVE Rarity = Power problem, all just to sell packs), and Complexity has to happen as otherwise the win condition becomes near-solvable with just one or two cards more per color. All three creeps need to be avoided and mitigated as much as possible, and I don’t see the effort yet for MLP:CCG.

Really, it feels like the game is sacrificing things just to get some of the money back when it was entirely unnecessary with proper planning and playtesting. As a player, the game is somewhat okay, but as a creator the game just bugs me.

I will be withholding judgment, though, from an advertised review until the expansion. Maybe Enterplay can actually fix the issues and go above and beyond. And maybe my cynicism will be proven right.

After the break, cause it’s a long list!

Continue reading →

• 11o cards: 10 Pilots, 20 Anchors, 30 Threats, and 50 Events.
• No “Groups”, so no Group Bonus-type effects yet.
• OCTGN Plugin. No automation enforcement beyond the basic commands.
• ETA Unknown. Gotta make sure it actually works, but I’ll leave the flow testing for later.

Will be edited with a basic card list.

Got something up for MLP:DCG (explaining the situation), and posted a ton of info for the Bliss Stage RPCG (which is the new primary project while LoLDCG is on hiatus to figure out issues).

Honestly, if I can get the cards formatted and the OCTGN stuff moved over from the MLPDCG plugin, it actually wouldn’t be too far off to get a working pre-alpha prototype up and running for BS:RPCG.

Enterplay’s official MLPCCG is out, so I’ve been busy with that, moving when I really shouldn’t have, and figuring out how to pay the bills. RL stuff still means I can’t take donations.

There will be a review of the game when the dust starts to settle on it. The game’s meta is rapidly changing as people with skill start breaking into it, and people without get extremely lucky and stumble onto something overpowered. Double T1 Yellow Parasprite, who knew?

At this point my MLPDCG is now unavailable to download from my site. It is still playable over OCTGN but good luck finding someone to play.

Anyway, LoLDCG has hit a bit of a snag with it’s deckbuilding requirement of seven cards (five champs, two Summoner Spells) and a 60-card deck, which isn’t going to fly at all. And as it would be such a major change, I have to figure out how skills in particular are going to work. Interestingly, Gold = Items = Level works out way better than expected.

I am also going to see if I can get the oldest fleshed-out concept, Bliss Stage RPCG, into a playable but artless state just for the portfolio. You -could- play it but the content is NOT for everyone. I just want to get the sexuality mechanic done and out of my head; I’m not even sure if it’s tasteful. It works in context but without it it’s the elephant in the room.

Seriously, if you’re offended by it,

stop reading now.

It’s after the break. Continue reading →

…doesn’t look too bad. Though as it is just a single card type it’s impossible to review the game as of yet.

Granted, I’m still concerned about player burden, complexity, and the faceoff mechanic (the preview card shows that the manipulation of that mechanic is going to be extremely powerful). The screencap area is also still a bit small, and I feel that is an artifact from a time of 480p sources.

Also, you tell players that they can’t use their favorite, powerful cards due to a banlist. Bigger, more successful games can get away with using one, but having one from the first set?

I highly suspect that the reason behind it was a manufacturer-level defect that would have critically impacted the game. Especially if it’s indeed “just a few weeks” as that is around the timeframe to get a new batch of cards made, packaged, and shipped. Also highly unlikely that this delay will introduce any tweaked gameplay, of which I am a bit sad for but ultimately not surprised.

IF it was gameplay, it had to have been to patch a glaring, gamebreaking flaw if it led to the whole initial printing run being scuttled. I’m hoping that’s not the case, though only because a lot rides on this game in terms of “IP-based Screencap” ccgs. (Hey, maybe they removed the destiny mechanic! I can only hope…)

Though I will laugh and laugh if they had to correct the website listed on the packaging and in the rulebook. Considering I own the obvious one (and they never responded to anything despite seemingly reaching out to me)… actually, I doubt they’d make such a novice mistake.

Full review and dissection of the game upon it’s release.