final thoughts

                  During this final week of our card game design, we had actual game developers come in to play test our game. We found that for the most part, the developers liked the concept of Sushi Chef. Creating a sushi roll would be fun thing to do in real life. Inevitably though, we still had some kinks and issues that were brought up throughout the game. People had issues with the two-card hand limit, so we tried increasing it to four cards. This turned out to be successful because it gives players more flexibility and choices when it comes to trading and discarding cards. We also realized that we should add more of the rare ingredients into the deck because some rolls require that one ingredient that can be near impossible to get at times. Also, our wild cards should not be labeled “wild card” on the back as we have them; this would not allow the other players to know if one of them has a wild card. It is interesting to see how even making one adjustment which we often see as an improvement to the game, can open up an entire new alley of problems that were not there before the adjustment. Game design involves constant revision and testing.

                  Observing the game developers and how they reviewed each game made me realize that they are still normal people with normal opinions. Even though they are professionals, and much more experienced than us students, they still have varying opinions. The opinion of one developer did not always match with the opinions of the others. One of them could make a suggestion that contradicted the suggestion of another, as often happened with our game. Previously, I had a feeling that all the developers would critique the game in a similar way because they all work in the same field, but this was not the case. Some developers enjoyed certain aspects of Sushi Chef, while others criticized those exact same aspects. In the end though, all of their comments and suggestions were well thought out, and helped us see flaws in our game and problems we need to work on.

--Fady Youssef

Week 5

This was an exciting week for our game sushi chef.  We were at a point, as a group where we were a little nervous that our game was to easy.  We had played it several times and were worried that other players might get bored of it, and perhaps we only thought it was fun because it was our game.  In class, we had the other groups play our games and we were happy to find out that a lot of players said our game was fun and enjoyable.  When we first started the game, we agreed that we wanted our players to have fun and think about sushi, which is a food that is associated with creative and exciting feelings.  We did however notice that the game was to short if there are only three players, and it really needs to have four.  When there were only three players, it seemed that someone won right away.  Some players also said they felt there was to much luck, but we discussed it and feel that the cards are fair.  For example, some players expressed their sushi roll had one ingredient that was at the bottom of the deck or another player had it, which made it impossible for them to win.  However, each roll has an ingredient that is special to that roll specifically.   Of course we duplicated some of the ingredients such as avocado, but each roll has at least one ingredient that none of the other rolls need.  Some of these ingredients include:  brown rice, mango, jalepeno, truffle oil, ect.  We also decided to add an extra wild card, to total 7 different ones that you could get – some would slow down the game and a few would speed it up.  Overall, we were happy with the responses we received from our classmates and only had to make a few minor changes from what they suggested.  Our biggest challenge, we realized was that players were unsure of what they could do on their turn.  As we discussed in class, we decided to make a reference card so that a player could simply look and know exactly what their options are on their turn.  We noticed that several players didn’t look to take/trade a card with their co-card-players, and we were kind of unsure of why not.  We feel that the option of taking a players’ card is a great strategy because you might be taking a card you know they need to win, for example.  Again, if players were reminded they could do this, or played it more than one time we think that would be a choice made more often.  We were also happy that we decided to add the option of creating the public roll, and having at least three cards down on the table to pick from.  Our game changed a lot from the rules we started with and we think that each time we played it we changed minor details to make it a little longer and give our players more options/strategies.

In addition, playing other students cards games was helpful when we returned to discuss our own game.  We were able to kind of compare and contrast the different features, rules, creativity, complexity, and overall fun-ness!  We were happy with our game and felt that we enjoyed playing our game compared to some of the others.  This might have been just relating back to our theme, and that we feel it is a laid back topic.  When people are sitting a Japanese restaurant, they spend time talking about the menu and what they want to order, and we think that the laughing and feelings it created for our players was exactly what we were looking for.  We felt a little frustrated when trying to learn a few of the games, but also believe that has to do with not having a reference card.  We also thought our game was coming out to be  more successful because all of our group members were so reliable in doing what we agreed on doing each week.  Our communication processes were really open and our team work and dividing up work was fair!  We are excited to have the new-comers play our game!

  

--Olivia Paladino

Week 4

Last week, we played the game with the changed rules and some new cards. As Professor Parks recommended, we decided to add a new rule which is drawing threeingredients from the top of the deck and put them face up in the middle of the playing area. This made our game more successful and interesting. While playing the game, we kept figuring out how to make the game better. Because of the public roll, we were able to get a lot of choices and these wild cards created the game more difficult and interesting. The game was very successful and we played the game without the troubles or hesitations. After collaborating to make the game successful, we decided to create some menu and rule book for references and new wild card that can add interesting factors to the game. We also designed the back of the cards, and organized the rules for other people to understand it fast and easy.

A new wild card which is called “one of your ingredients is not fresh” will take away one of the ingredients that each player has. This will hinder a player from winning the game and also provide difficulty towards this game.  Also, we designed the back of the cards with image of sushi chef and the title “Sushi Chef.” The back of the cards will indicate whether this card is an ingredient, wild or roll card. Next week will give us the last chance to improve the game before the presentation. We will work hard to revise the game in order for other group members to enjoy this game.

--Younsub Shim

Week 3

This previous class was the first time we tried playing our game at full speed with the printed out cards and current set of rules set. For the most part, we thought the game was too easy and that it involved little strategy with the pace we played at. It was too quick and a little too simple, even with the wild cards we added. We tried coming up with more ideas to extend the game and to add more paths of victory to solve the lack of strategy in our game. After collaborating for a while, Professor Parks helped with some new ideas that sparked more dimensions to the sushi game. Instead of having one single path of finishing the game, we added depth by creating a rare roll that everyone could see and create. When putting ingredients down on the table face up instead of face down, this added the element of manipulation and deception. With this new element to the game, it forces all players to observe their opponents moves.

Another new rule that we decided to add was that we were going to show the first three cards on top of the deck, the reason for this was to see whether or not your opponent would pick the same ingredients you wanted to pick. With these new rules, you had a sense of what the other players wanted to build. We also added a large menu that showed every single sushi roll and every single ingredient to form that roll. We all worked really well together in order to brainstorm and collaborate new ideas and solutions for the flaws in the game that we currently had. Overall, we are excited to test run our updated game again and look forward to see how our advancements in the game design affected the overall play and fun factor. 

--Melvin Mendoza

Week 2

            This week, my group and I discussed how we are going to tweak our Sushi game. We decided that the players of the game must have more direct interaction throughout the game. This way, when a player wins or loses at the end, he or she will feel that it is due to the choices that were made rather than the luck he or she had. We discussed how perhaps only having two cards in your hand at a time may be limiting to these choices, and that we might need to increase the hand size to three or four. For now, we will try playing the game with just the two card hand and see how the game feels. We also decided to add more wildcards into the game to add variety to the game. If all the players could play were ingredients for their rolls, the game would become very redundant after a short while. The wild cards will allow the player who uses the card to break one of the games parameters, such as drawing two cards instead of one or taking another’s player’s ingredients.

            The second thing that the group did was divide up the work for this week. Our goal is to have the game in a playable prototype stage by next class, that way we can playtest it and see how it feels. Some members were assigned to create the cards, others were assigned to print, and others to bring in materials to play the game. Play testing it next class will help us to tweak the game further, since all we have done to this point is talk about how the game will flow. We are all looking forward to playing this game because it is simple, creative, and seemingly.

---Fady Youssef    

Card Game Assignment: Sushi Chef

During our first group meeting we unanimously decided on moving forward with the game called Sushi Chef.  Our experience of sharing our ideas was successful and each group member provided valuable feedback and constructive criticisms as to why we agreed some card game proposals seemed more realistic to create over others.  I think that the way we presented also contributed to the group deciding on the Sushi Card game.  The Sushi game was the last proposal to be discussed and throughout each presentation, each group member felt more comfortable talking about their ideas and there was a sense of progression as a group.  By the time the last presenter went, we were able to compare and contrast how the Sushi Game specifically would make a good, fun, and possible card game.  In addition, after playing citadels in class we realized that two of the other games were similar to it and felt that they wouldn't be as effective because there were too many issues or questions.  In a way the games were to complex and seemed to difficult for us to create.

We also started discussing the theme of our game, the behaviors of the future players, and emotions we want them to feel.  We agreed that the game had potential to be fun, especially because eating sushi is a common cuisine and a lot of people enjoy talking about what rolls they like!  We agree that the game will simulate the experience of having sushi or talking about your sushi dinner.  We think the game is competitive because the object is to create your sushi roll first and there are ways to prevent other players from completing their roll.  The game has humor elements, social and can be considered a "beer and pretzels" game.  After reviewing the game, we agreed it seems simple, but not too simple and will allow the players to enjoy the game but also has elements that will make players frustrated and use some kind of strategy.  For example, the game allows you to take a card directly from an opponent player, so that allows players to take a card that might be needed or might not.  This creates an uneasy feeling because the opponent player may need the card you are taking from them, and at the same time you might need that card or the card that was on the top of the deck.  We discussed creating the game and how we can take specific ingredients on each card and can use pictures from the internet.  We talked about specifically how many cards we will need what will be on them and the mechanics of the game.  We came up with an additional wild card that would make the game more fair from the original proposal.  We were able to talk openly about the game and began changing and evaluating the game mechanics.  Overall, our first group meeting was very successful and we all are excited to start creating and testing our game. 

--Olivia Paladino