The final version of the game is the rules from the 3rd iteration, combined with the new card designs, complete with illustrations.

Link to the Playtest Video: https://youtu.be/XcMfa8-ybV8

Feedbacks

• State in the rules which direction the players shousl take turn playing.
• On the initial planet cards, write down the bonus rule, as well as saying that the card will not be used to play. Most Importantly, make the back of these cards different from the playing cards.
• Flip the visual Hierachy of the cards: Put tha action verb on top, rather than the card type. That way, it is easier for the players to see which cards they have on hand and strategize.
• The simplicity of the cards are an effective aesthetic choice, with the visuals communicating how different planets have different amount of areas, as well as the cartoons on the action cards.
• Decide if the action cards can be traded
• It would be interesting to try changing the number of the turns each player have, since it would change the dynamic of the game.
• Give a backstory to the players on what they're doing or who they are, which would create a more cohesive narrative between the gameplay and the theme.
• 12 planets might be too much. The same for the number of the action cards in the game.
• Some action cards can be combined since they do similar actions.

Post Mortem

Main Struggles

The first struggle we encountered early on was that the game took too long to finish, since there weren't enough action cards for the players to really do anything except depending on luck to draw a lucky steal card or another planet area card. In addition, when we implemented in new action cards, there were a lot of decreasing and increasing the number of each cards type, before it really felt balanced.  Most importantly, our instructions on how to use the action cards weren't clear enough. Although the players understood how to use the action cards when we explained again, the rules and the description, as well as the name card, could definitelt be better worded to decrease of initial confusion upon starting the game.

Main Triumphs

Our main triumph is that the game allowed different players to employ different strategy to win the game. Some players can be more aggressive in taking other player's cards, while others might be keeping more cards to themselves, and both would still have a chance at winning the game. I think we did well in making a balanced game that has a sense of uncertainty as to who would win. Another triumph is that the game is simple enough, so it is easy to get into, but later on it requires strategizing. This links back to the game allowing players to come up with their own personal strategy. In addition, color-coding the planet area cards and the action cards, as well as using simple illustration, were something we considered to be successful.

Next Steps

The first thing to be change would definitely be the rules and the descriptions of the action cards, which could be worded clearer. In addition, changing the back of the initial planet cards to be different from the playing cards will really help in setting up the game, as well as lessen the confusion of new players. There is also an oppurtunity to add in action cards that allow trading cards with consent, or combining the 'Steal' and the 'Attack' cards which already do similar actions. Moreover, I think that giving a narrative to the game could really enhance the players experience and how they would feel playing the game as some kind of character.