Paper Prototyping & Playtesting
Core Gameplay Loop Map
SETUP
Mail Game Board
Dice
Character Pieces
Apartment Game Board
Character Cards
Money
Furniture Peices
Gameplay Cards
Core Gameplay Loop
P L A Y
Roll Dice
Aethetics
Move around the board
Decide order in which turns are taken
Earn bonus points for aesthetics matching your character's aesthetic
Buy furniture items of different aesthetics to undermine other players
Money
Spend money on furniture items
Pay bills
Collect income
Place Furniture
Earn points for placing furniture
Fill your room to go out and end the game
Receive a repo card
Receive a hand-me-down item
Receive a bonus from work
Receive a bill
Receive a refund card
Sub-Goals
Have the Most Points
Defeat Other Players
Shop 'till you Drop
Decorate Your Apartment
Goal of the Game
WIN THE BEST ROOM
FINISH
Prototype #1
Planned on testing the placement of the stores at the mall board and how it should be fair for each player. Trying to make the board feel like a mall, we added two starting places and had the stores to the side of the path (so players had to use one of their moves to go in the store).
Rulesheet
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Select a character
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Roll dice to move around the board
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Buy furniture items to fill your room
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The first person to fill their room forces the others to finish within two turns
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You must stay within budget
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The person with the highest points at the end wins
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Buying items that match your character aesthetic earns you bonus points
Outcomes
Players were excited to play the game after all the game systems were finally implemented and enjoyed the shopping aspect. They were worried the game might take too long because of low dice rolls.
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Plans for Improvement
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Change die to a six-sided die
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Have players jump directly into shops
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Must move one way (Can’t jump back into stores)
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Implement Job/Money/Mail center systems
Prototype #2
Testing how the payment system works. Updated the board by having the stores as a spot players can land on during gameplay, as well as, gave a pop of color with sticky notes as the spots themselves.
Rulesheet
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Select a character
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Roll dice to move around the board
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Buy furniture items to fill your room
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The first person to fill their room forces the others to finish within two turns
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You must stay within budget
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The person with the highest points at the end wins
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Buying items that match your character aesthetic earns you bonus points
Outcomes
We realized we need a better way to keep track of money as players felt distracted by memorizing the amount they had. They felt that it would be better to have a physical way to count their money. Players enjoyed the pacing, however, didn't like the eight-sided die since it was not enough to get them moving across the board. Players were often confused about which direction they could move across the board. For now, players are receiving enough money to purchase items.
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Plans for Improvement
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Adding directional paths to the game board
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Adding player sabotage (Close stores, Roadblocks, etc)
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Change the dice system
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Plan to use two six-sided dice
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Improve money system by using physical bills (like monopoly or payday)
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Give purpose to purple space (random decor selection)
Prototype #3
Planned on solidifying strategies for moving across the board.
Rulesheet
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Select a character
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Roll dice to move around the board
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Buy furniture items to fill your room
-
The first person to fill their room forces the others to finish within two turns
-
You must stay within budget
-
The person with the highest points at the end wins
-
Buying items that match your character aesthetic earns you bonus points
Outcomes
Players suggested that directionals for moving across the board need to be clearer. They felt they had a choice in what they purchased and were satisfied with the money system. Although, perhaps had too much freedom with movement across the board. Players noted that passing over payday to collect income can be exploited and they suggested income could be collected every three turns or so instead of it being a physical spot on the board
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Plans for Improvement
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Collect income every three turns
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Players cannot move backwards down the pathways
Prototype #4
Is the game playable by people not in game design?
Plan to test our game outside of class with non-game design friends.
Rulesheet
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Select a character
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Roll dice to move around the board
-
Buy furniture items to fill your room
-
The first person to fill their room forces the others to finish within two turns
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You must stay within budget, not staying within budget results in being unable to purchase items and being stuck for a turn
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The person with the highest points at the end wins
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Buying items that match your character aesthetic earns you one bonus point per item
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Follow the directionals on the map
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Payday is collected every 3 turns
Outcomes
Players liked the shopping concept and couldn't wait for the finished product. However, they found the directionals confusing. The money system worked but could use improvement. Our game felt fair for players, other than the pathways in the middle of the board. Some suggested changing the layout since the winner prevailed by lingering on one side of the board where her shop was just by looping constantly using the middle pathways.
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Plans for Improvement
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Add a $10 Bill Update game board (Spaces, Directions, etc)
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Adding a banker role could be helpful for managing the money system
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The lowest roller at the beginning of the game will be given the banker job
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The pathways down the middle of the board should be one-way only