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Card game based on vampire book - please read

7 replies [Last post]
Mon, 07/27/2009 - 15:54
conflictuniverse
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Joined: 06/23/2009

Hi,

I'm not talking about Twilight or any other published book. I'm talking about a game based on the book I am writing.

Here is the basic idea and here is the book if anyone is into vampire stories.
http://www.vampire-life.co.cc/

SVS card game

2-6 players
Ages 12 and up
Cards only

Lord Bazador, a power and ancient Vampire Lord has been destroyed. The Vampires under his psychic control are now free and many are fleeing London before another Fairmont Lord takes over. Some fear that more than one Lord will arrive and they will become pawns in a bitter power struggle. It’s a chaotic and dark time for London… Who will take control?

Up to six Fairmont Vampire Lords have arrived and are beginning to dominate the weaker clans, one vampire at a time. You play as one of these Lords where even London, and its ten million people, is not big enough to share with others of your kind. You must drive them away, or completely destroy them.

Welcome to Special Vampire Services collectible card game

This game is based on the currently in development book where two Vampiric Fairmont Lords (Lord Jinsilver and Lord Lazarin) fight for control of London.

Both the book, and the game features sixty six vampire clans, each with there own strengths and weaknesses. What make the vampires of Special Vampiric Services universe different are how each clans feeds. Fairmont Vampire lords that represent the players for example are the most powerful vampires within the story and game. They have the unique ability to control the weaker clans through mental and psychic domination. Once a vampire has been dominated, it not only obeys the lords commands, the lord leeches psi energy from the controlled vampire.

In the game version, the lords must build up power by controlling more and more vampires. The more vampires under your control, the more psi energy you can leech and thus the more powerful vampires you can dominate. If you managed to find an opposing lords location, or nest, and manage to destroy one of more of his vampires, he receives a psychic backlash and loses psi energy. If the backlash is of a significant size, when it his turn to pay psi energy to keep his vampires under control, if he can not afford to pay for all vampires in play, they break free from his mental domination and are removed from play.

Vampires are not the only resources available. Players can recruit Vampire hunters, SVS government agents, merc’s and more, all at a price of course. Many of the books heroes and villains will show up as unique cards within the game.

Does it sound like a good idea to base a card game on an in development book.
PS: on a plus side, the book already has a lot of history which will reduced the development time of the game.

thanks

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Mon, 07/27/2009 - 16:03
#1
Dirg
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Joined: 07/15/2009
While implementation may be

While implementation may be different and your setting is different Both your book and your game sound much like existing franchises. Your book sounds much like the setting of the Anita Blake series of books though I am sure it is different in details your overview is pretty spot on. The card game sounds like the Vampire CCG where you run as a vampire lord and summon minions to hunt and battle for you. Again I am sure yours is different but the overview you gave sounds much like it. I suggest you look at both and make sure both your descriptions and mechanics are distinct enough from these to garner fresh interest.

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Mon, 07/27/2009 - 16:12
#2
conflictuniverse
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Joined: 06/23/2009
Teramort

The main character in the book is a Teramort vampire. A Teramort feeds off the sun's energy, and are generally expert swordsmen.

He was turned by another Teramort gone rogue called Darksun. Anyway, this is about games, not my book. That you for the feedback. I can see how my description and that of Anita Dark would look similar.

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Tue, 07/28/2009 - 01:14
#3
scifiantihero
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Joined: 07/08/2009
Heh.

Your question WAS about games in relation to books ;)

Anyway, I've been contemplating the same thing. (Well, generally. Somehow I got my fix of vampires with Buffy and can't take the rest of them seriously!). That is, I've wondered if I should try to make games based on things I have written. So, I guess I'd consider whether you really want to design a game or just design your story more. Having a rich back-story to draw upon will probably NOT reduce the development time of a game much. From what I've read, and in my limited experience, a lot more time goes into mechanics and working out the kinks in those mechanics. Especially since some feel (with some good reasons) that a theme should be interchangeable to a certain degree. So, it might follow that beginning with such a well thought out theme might hamper development of the actual game. For instance, I've toyed with the idea of making a game based in a world I've written a screenplay about that's pretty cool. But, my head is so filled with ideas about the world, if anyone wanted to change a game I'd created in the world, I would probably not want to, since I think the theme is seriously cool!

Are you planning on trying to publish the book? It might be easier to sell a game based on a book after people actually know about the book. Of course if the game were very successful, that might help you market the book too. *Shrugs.*

I guess I think that if you create a great game, it'll probably sell, and if you create a great book, that'll probably sell too. So it might benefit you more to decide which one you're better at creating, and focus your energy on that.

Just things your post made me think about.

:)

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Tue, 07/28/2009 - 10:24
#4
conflictuniverse
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Joined: 06/23/2009
thanks for the reply

I did some research on vampire card game and while there are some important differences, there are some things that remain the same. Going up against such an established card game will be very difficult so for now, I think I will concentrate on other ideas (and the book itself)

Thanks for the feedback, and saving me a lot of time and tears.
Gary

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Tue, 07/28/2009 - 17:13
#5
apeloverage
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Joined: 08/01/2008
On the other hand,

the Vampire collectible card game is mostly played by people who are slightly older than the target market for Twilight, and the tone is mostly grim and vicious rather than romantic.

So I think there could be a market for a game about Twlight-style vampires.

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Tue, 08/11/2009 - 21:40
#6
chopmeister
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Joined: 08/11/2009
The Vampire card game is

The Vampire card game is targeted for older audiences simply because of the complexity of the rules. As a veteran player of the said game, it would really take wonders to pique my interest in another vampire themed card game. I'm not saying you shouldn't do it, I'm saying it has to be radically different. Vampires as a theme have really been vastly exploited over the years by some very good (and some VERY BAD) writers, game designers, filmmakers etc. so it's pretty hard to make something original, when there had been decades of work on the same theme already. But, don't let that discourage you. See, for example how Anne Rice's vampires are radically different from the ones in White Wolf's Vampire: The Masquerade. Vampires from Christopher Golden's series of books are a good example of how it could be done in an entirely new fashion. All in all, my advice is: try to flush from your mind all you have been programmed to think vampires should be like, and build from that.

Good luck :)

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Wed, 08/12/2009 - 05:57
#7
zoalord
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Joined: 08/11/2009
hi sounds good to me im

hi sounds good to me im intrested what your doing i like to make my own which i drawn on paper is this gonna be like top trumps or yugioh type trading cards coz thats what i like to do i aint got no experience in game design or programming but im pretty good with ideas as i watch to many films maybe i could help in anyway

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