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Break my Game: Modern Tactics

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lucasAB
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Joined: 07/26/2008

This is my first break my game thread, and I am hoping many guys will pitch in to pillage my game. I also hope you will have fun, and will learn a thing or two that I have done wrong, or things other people pitch in.

Throughout this thread, I hope to detail the various mechanics of my game. But first, here is a brief description.

MODERN TACTICS (working title) is a fast paced squad-based modern combat tactical game set in the 21st century in an urban city. Players battle between buildings, but the scale of the game features multiple city blocks, and not just a few buildings like many zombie games today. Later, I will ask you guys for some advice on how the map/board/tiles should work. But for now, game round comes first.

As of right now, I am using a initiative-promoting mechanic. The players (preferably a team game, 2, 4, or 6 players) draw a selection of action cards. 7 or so. There are two types of action cards: Decision cards, and Response cards. After all the players have drawn their cards. The game begins. At any moment, a player can play a decision card. If he plays it down before any other player, he gets to conduct the action. Like moving some infantry, stacking up on a door, throwing a smoke grenade, etc... the other players can play response cards to counter any moves he might make like ambushing, etc. Once a player is done with his decision card, he DOES NOT draw another card to replace it. But now, any player can play a decision card.

Here's what this means. A player can quickly exhaust all his decision cards (or so the other players think), and then the other players have free-range of roaming around without too much reactive re-positioning. But... this also creates some strategies. Maybe the players want to wait and see what the other players do. Maybe they want to blitz it and quickly gain better positions with good fields of fire.

Players do not draw cards, until the beginning of a new round. Once all players have "passed", declared they have no more decision cards, they can replenish their hand with new action cards. I haven't decided whether the un-used response cards can be ditched or not. Maybe all the cards must be dumped and new ones redrawn. Maybe the deck is re-shuffled every round. That would mean the deck is balanced every round and experienced players can't "count cards". Time for opinions.

So... do you see any problems that this might have right off the bat?

Evil ColSanders
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Joined: 12/08/2010
There is nothing wrong with

There is nothing wrong with it, but also, there is no game to break. You have only given us a concept of a single mechanic. It's like asking, "I'm making a sports game. There will be 6 men to a team. Is there anything wrong with it?"

You need to give information such as:
How many cards you get.
Is there a reason you would ever want to hold cards?
Are the cards balanced?
What other actions take place after everyone plays there cards?
Are the cards themselves the only actions you can take?
Is there a board?
It is grid or hex based?
Is the whole squad a single unit or do you control individuals which comprise a squad?

Just to break it as-is. I would burn all my cards to get to a good spot on the first turn.
Discard anything that isn't a reaction and redraw.
Discard anything that isn't a reaction and redraw.
Come at me bro. Just going to turtle.

lucasAB
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Joined: 07/26/2008
Haha. Good point.

Haha. Good point ColSanders. I will have something longer listing off the main mechanics soon. Still working through some of the fundamentals, but I thought I would get opinions on my initiative-turn mechanic while I wade through some of the other mechanics. I'll have something soon!

Thanks for pointing that out ColSanders.

Evil ColSanders
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Have the cards have an

Have the cards have an initiative value on top of that. Like 1-fast through 10-slow. Cards like, "Instinctive decision" Initiative value-1 (meaning opponents have no time to react). Reaction cards should be very high but maybe some decisions can beat them out.

Just food for thought as I was reading your stuff. Glad to help.

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