I've been floating this idea around for a bit and finally the concept solidified. Would love to hear some feedback and thoughts.
The premise:
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3+ players. Players are students at a space academy. The goal is to acquire the skills and resources to carry out missions and score points.
As these missions require more than one player to participate in, a central part of the game is trying to decide what skills to acquire to be the most appealing candidate for other players to add to a team.
Each player also has personal goals that score them points if achieved. Players also start with different strengths and weaknesses. I'm imagining a student ID style card that provides a bit of backstory as well.
On a typical turn, players move their character around the campus, acquiring skills by going to class, earning money by working, or improving health by resting. Missions can be carried out at some of the campus buildings, while big ones like going into space require moving to special areas like the launch facility.
To successfully carry out a mission, the players participating must have the necessary skills - though these can be spread out among team members. For example, building a satellite might require Grantwriting, Electrical Engineering, and Aerospace skills, and Player 1 has two of them while Player 2 has the other one.
Many of the skills will have prereqs, for example, one would have to study history before studying formation of societies. As players move into advanced research and fieldwork, their studies will also change some game rules, reflecting a change in technology or social systems.
I'm presently aiming for a 60 minute game length and rules simple enough for casual gamers.
Andy
In some missions, only one person has to be there, in others, like going to the launchpad, everyone has to be present, and players may need to assist each other in getting there.
Thematically it will contain a lot of classic sci-fi flavor, merged with academic/bureaucratic humor, i.e. spaceship parking permits, not having enough time to study before a final due to traveling near light speed, getting financial aid for housing on the moon, etc.
One thing I can't grasp is how the game board works.
If I went to the launchpad for a mission, do I wait there until everyone needed shows up? What if other players decide: nah, screw this guy, do I get stranded there until I give up?
If you want to penalize attempting projects solo, maybe abstract it some other way?
About the theme, I like astronauts, but maybe give the thing either a sci-fi, space cowboyish twist; or make the process bureaucratic and complicated with favourtism and backbiting.