Hi all,

Here's a quick list of learnings from making Splintercard:

• Physically printed stuff is much harder to design for.

• CMYK is kinda muddy
• colours don't print how they look on screen
• Bold graphics are needed. You can't get away with much detail!

• Playtesting is crucial. You can't not.
• Proofread proofread proofread! Yes, it's exciting that the game is nearly done, but putting it off a few days to get it right is always worth the time.
• Tactical depth requires one main factor: the player needs to be making decisions. Stressful decisions! If there is a META, or a "best way to play" (like tic tac toe) that's not great design. Likewise if it's completely random and there's no real way to affect the outcome (snakes and ladders) this is no good. The best games are the ones where the actions of the opponent are forcing decisions that could go bad, or could go well, and the player is having to deal both with the math and probability of the scenario but also the psychology of their opponent. See: chess, poker, etc.
  
  • I've tried, but mostly I've been playing solo, so it's tricky to get this right.
• It will never really be finished.

Anyway, it's been a blast. I might do another :)