This is my first attempt at designing a game and I was hoping for some feedback. This is a children's card game for 2 to 6 players ages 6 and up. It is played using a deck of 100 cards that each have a different category on the back.
Examples of some of the categories: Something red, Something tiny, Something stinky, Something that would be gross to eat, etc.
Setup involves placing 26 cards face down in a large circle in the play area. The remaining cards make up the draw pile and are placed in the center of the circle. The youngest player starts and play continues clockwise. The first turn consists of turning over any card in the circle. This card represents the letter "A." The remaining 25 cards represent the other letters of the alphabet in order from B to Z. Cards will be turned over in order from this point clockwise around the circle until all 26 cards and letters have been used. The person who collects the most cards wins.
A typical turn involves turning over a card, reading the category, and naming something in that category that starts with the appropriate letter of the alphabet. For the first turn, the player turns over any card, reads the category Ex: "An animal" and names something in that category that starts with "A" Ex: "An Ape." At this point he can choose to keep this card, taking it off of the board and ending his turn, or try for more cards by turning over the next card reading the category and naming something in that category that starts with "B." If he is able to do this then he can keep both cards or go for more. Once he decides to keep the cards, then play continues clockwise with the next player turning the next card in order and naming something starting with the next letter in the alphabet.
If a player cannot think of anything in the category starting with the appropriate letter, then his turn is over. Any cards that he has turned over stay that way. The next player now can steal all of these cards by naming something that the previous player could not, or he can take the top card from the draw pile and place it on top of the latest card to change the category. If he now can name something, then he can keep all of these cards or go for more.
Some hard letters such as "W" or "J" may end up being worth several cards as new cards are placed from the draw pile until someone finally turns over a category that works. This allows some come from behind wins since "X" "Y" and "Z" come up at the game and usually end up being worth 3 or 4 cards each.
I have made some practice cards and tried playing the game with my 5, 8 and 10 year old. It seems to work well - not too hard for my 5 year old, not too boring for my 10 year old.
I would like to get some feedback. Thanks.
Thanks for the ideas. I may need a timer. Especially if people get really competitive when playing. My kids usually give up after a minute or two on their own. The board is a great idea. The nice thing about knowing which letter comes next is incorporating some strategy ie stopping before you get to "X". Having an alphabet deck would be a nice way to add some chance and an alternate way to play. Thank you for the suggestions. I need to play test with some other kids to try these changes out.