[WIP] (Components Ready) The Time Machine: Future Assault (Design for Novel Games Contest)

hello.
i love the concept and cant see any obvious problems so far but it is hard to judge without seeing the cards.

during the day all players draw 3 and discard 1 of them, but each character has a different number of skill slots. are there multiple rounds of this or does each player repeat until their slots are full then the next player begins? it might be easier to say " draw the number of skill cards stated on your character card +x, discard x"
this could even be an extra ability ie some characters have more skill slots but others have more choice of skills.
i look forward to seeing the card mockups.

race specific cards in one deck are a fine idea but you need to be careful. in a worst case scenario a player could only draw cards they cant use (just a guess, your maths might be right). you could gaurd against that with a "default" on each card. for example a morlock weapon that does 5 damage when used properly but only 1 when used incorrectly (by an eloi).
again this might not be a problem, i suspect you would be very unlucky to never get a useable skill, but edge cases should always be considered.

hi.
i like the simplicity of your game. your cards can obviously use illustrations, i would say behind the text. fortunately the book is out of copy and so are the original illustrations (but check they are from an old enough copy)
i would look at determination again. if i am reading the rules right it makes you immortal.

i would never worry about the weight of your game, especially it being too light to be fun. i find the opposite is normally true. the heavier the game the harder it is to make it fun.
lighter games are great for casual gamers, younger kids and those days you dont want to spend 6 hours roaming a dungeon.
also alot of the fun of games comes from the interaction rather than the game. i couldnt play memory match with my grown up friends, but my nephew will literally squeal in delight when he finds that he match i forgot. (although saying that drunk kids games can work well)
for your morlocks i would base them on the 1960s rod taylor film, when i think of a morlock thats what i see, not the god-awful thing with guy pierce.

your a better artist than i am. i'd have no hope of drawing a morlock. i like that its not too nightmarish, you dont want to terrify younger players. i might have made it a bit more "devolved", hairier, more ape-like. but thats just my personal preference. your pic does look awesome.

That Eloi looks like it would kick a lot more ass than I recall from the books. But maybe that's just personal preference.

Otherwise, the characters all seem distinct and contrasting enough that it's clear they're different from one another. They all make good character designs and would be great additions to the faction cards you have in mind.

looking at your two morlocks i definitely prefer the more human one. it looks like a feral baby, i dont know if thats good or bad though.

your time traveler is perfect, no notes there.

your eloi is also cool but as others have said she looks tough. i suppose thematically the eloi are at the point where they're no longer happy being cattle, or you wouldnt have a game.

overall i would say your there with the art. i could imagine them in the disney version, (a compliment by the way) they remind me of their tarzan film.

be careful not to take on too much feedback on the art side of things as you'll never get a consensus. your mechanics will either work or be broken but things like art are just too subjective.