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Reverse Empire Building

8 replies [Last post]
Mon, 05/28/2012 - 00:17
jwmjwm02
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Joined: 07/25/2011

I had an idea for a game for which I've developed the concept and mechanics, written out a tentative rule-book, and generated cards. Before I go too much further, I'd like to check and make sure I'm not stealing the concepts from any other game. So...

Is there any game out there where, instead of starting from nothing and building up an Empire, you start with the Empire at it's apex and try to delay its inevitable decay? More specifically, in my game, you start with a certain amount of citizens, money, food, and buildings and try to protect your citizens from starvation, poverty, and a random set of disasters that are revealed each turn. I'd like to think that the concept is novel, but with so many games out there, you never know...

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Mon, 05/28/2012 - 14:17
#1
gabrielcohn
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Joined: 11/25/2010
Someone else proposed this before...

Someone suggested an idea around a famine. I've been toying with how to implement something like this (who can keep their civilization from collapsing least), but I haven't gotten very far with it. I wouldn't worry too much. Just make the game and if it overlaps too much with someone else, the chances that both will be published simultaneously is low anyways. I think it's an awesome idea, so run with it!

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Mon, 05/28/2012 - 15:15
#2
jwmjwm02
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Joined: 07/25/2011
Thanks! I'll be sure to put

Thanks! I'll be sure to put up the rulebook once it's finished

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Mon, 05/28/2012 - 16:14
#3
jwmjwm02
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Joined: 07/25/2011
Other Concerns

My other concern is whether a game in which, by design, it is difficult to succeed will be inherently unfun.

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Mon, 05/28/2012 - 18:05
#4
Matthew Rodgers
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Joined: 03/01/2012
Cooperative games have "you

Cooperative games have "you all lose" as their natural state and it takes good play and multiple efforts to win one; they're very hot and very few people truly complain about them. Also, if you have some way of keeping score, there will be one player who lost less than the others and will be the winner.

As said above, don't worry overmuch about other games --- the only time it is ever an issue is if you knew about a (developed) game idea or mechanic and used it. Accidentally copying someone else without even knowing it is fine, but extremely unlikely. Look at a couple of game contests here... we all start with a specific set of requirements for the game, but almost every game produced in the contest is distinctly different from any of the other entries.

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Tue, 05/29/2012 - 21:03
#5
sedjtroll
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On the contrary!

A game in which it is difficult to succeed is often MORE fun than a game in which it is trivial to succeed. The challenge is where the fun lies for a lot of players.

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Thu, 05/31/2012 - 10:12
#6
MondaysHero
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Joined: 07/08/2011
On the line of co-op

Perhaps each player plays a certain member of leadership. (Have more leader choices than players, so some are left out, leaving your populace exposed to one threat or another.) Each character has a responsibility, and how much they end with compared to others determines the "better winner" if they all win. So, perhaps one player is trying to control populace, but the general, who is trying to win wars, needs men and women to fight. So, he has to take people from the first guy. The economist has money and needs money, but so does everyone else, so he has to loan out money, just as the first guy has to loan out (or give out) people.

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Thu, 05/31/2012 - 11:15
#7
larienna
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I posted an idea a few months

I posted an idea a few months ago about a deck deconstruction game. That could fit pretty well with the theme above. You try to survive some events or lose cards from your deck.

Civilization board game somewhat use the same idea of "survive all the events thrown at you", but in that game your civilization progress and allow avoiding these events.

Take a look at pocket civ for and easier way to learn about civ style board games.

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Mon, 06/04/2012 - 20:50
#8
desperadonate
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Joined: 12/07/2011
Sounds interesting

I'm not one of those experts on every game that has been or is coming up for release, but it sounds like a new concept to me. Besides, even if someone else has done a take on it, there are a lot of games out there that share themes and even some mechanics but have small differences which add up to radically different experiences for players.

I could see where you're concerned about it being too challenging, or perhaps that it could be a downer to face the annihilation of your civilization (rather than being the one to create and shape it), but I think you could set the tone of the game so that it's really fun. I think it sounds ripe for the injection of a little dark humor, but there are other ways you could go about it, such as having a really creative or compelling back story that presents the challenges facing this civilization and maybe some of the factors in its downfall. A rich setting like that could really spark players' imaginations and get them invested in preserving their civilization.

It'll be interesting to see the rules and how you implement all this stuff. Seems like fertile ground in mostly uncharted territory, so it's bound to be fun.

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