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September 5, 2023 - Nathaniel Dalton
Why create a game mode for an already established game?
I wish I could remember who said it, but it's something that has stuck with me. It was about the complexity of board games and how difficult they can be to teach sometimes because they are all so different. Games should not be afraid to copy elements from others in order to create something familiar.
One of the reasons I think the Deck Builder genre has done so well in the last several years is because they all follow a very similar formula. They feel familiar even when they have their quirks to try and make them stand out. Dire Wolf Games does an amazing job at this. They take 2 game types that many board gamers are familiar with and mash them together. Clank! is a Deck Builder and Dungeon push your luck game. Dune Imperium is a Deck Builder and Worker Placement game.
That leads us back to... why create a game mode for an already established game? Well that comes down to the fact that I'm utilizing a game system that we are familiar with to create something unique. On top of that, a goal that I set for myself was to do it with cards that were already printed and were just bulk as most players just have it sitting around. Another reason why I am doing it is to practice my game design brain without having to create everything from scratch. Ultimately it is my goal to create my own original games. I have several that I am working on right now! This is great practice that translates to a couple games that I am working on.
To answer the elephant in the room, yes, I know they are coming out with a PvE. And maybe, just maybe, there will be room for me to continue to create fun designs in the PvE that LSS develops. Similar to how D&D has great 3rd party support (or well used to until their debacle), I want to provide great 3rd party support. Either way, this is a journey that I wanted to start. Eventually it will lead to original games and maybe some of you may recognize designs from this time period. So let me take you on journey. Who knows where it will end, but we will sure as hell have an absolute blast starting with Unofficial FaB PvE and continue on to more amazing things!
Unofficial FaB PvE: Into Darkness available here
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