Wednesday, December 7, 2016

Day 30: FotLC through the 113 lenses from The Art of Game Design

Day 30 - Lens 9: The Lens of the Elemental Tetrad (Because who doesn't love an Elemental Tetrad!)
To use this lens, take stock of what your game is truly made of. Consider each element separately, and then all of them together as a whole. Ask yourself these questions:

Is my game design using elements of all four types (Aesthetics, Technology, Mechanics, and Story)?
Yes, though since the game is a board game 'technology' I guess refers to the physical components of the game.  I think they are mostly standard, but the choices there have been strong and in harmony with the other elements. The aesthetics, theme,  and story fit very well.  The mechanics are probably the most loosely coupled in that they could exist with a different set of aesthetics, theme and story. However the ones that I have chosen work well with and support the mechanics.

Just to be specific here: The theme of self destructive strife and violent hardship straining the bonds between people is reflected in both the mechanics of the game and in its social mechanics, as well as the aesthetic choice to make the game out of distressed scrap materials and set its story in the apocalyptic future where the game is itself a retelling of the fall of civilization.

Could my design be improved by enhancing elements in one or more of the categories?
Possibly. If my use of technology allows the creation of base timers then the real time mechanics could be enhanced. I am still in the middle of testing those prototypes and am not convinced they will be viable yet.

Are the four elements in harmony, reinforcing each other and working together toward a common theme?
Very much so. I think that after almost two years of iteration they are all tightly coupled and create a strong game from top to bottom.

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