As much as I love questccg, I think he has the wrong idea. As a party game, it's imperative that Pinnacle doesn't have have too much mechanical depth: it can't have too many rules.
My own personal feeling (and this is my impressions only) is that the current proposed game is much too simple. When we discussed things like Networked Paths and things like "Optimal Play", that was starting to "beef-up" the design and make it into more adult content.
Is this a high-strategy game that needs to strive for "adult content"? Or do adults like to get together sometimes to enjoy a handful of good mechanics?
This gives off a re-skinned FAMILY FEUD vibe. That's not a bad thing.
People like Family Feud, and I imagine they'll want to interact with the core mechanic of Pinnacle.
This game reminds me most of Pictionary. The game is about drawing pictures under pressure, and the board and cards merely supplement that: telling you what to draw and not much else. I fear that oxygen tanks, avalanches (the Thin Air Zone, a little bit) detract from the core mechanic instead of guiding it. However,
Simply put, it follows the TRIVIAL PURSUIT path whereby once you know the answer, the challenge is gone.
Because of this, combined with the inability to conduct THOUSANDS of surveys, strategic depth will be what gives this sufficient replayability. The challenge will be minimizing mechanical depth (rules) and maximizing strategic depth (ways to use the rules). Off the dome, perhaps having simple beneficial/detrimental spaces players would want to try to land on/avoid so they would intentionally guess the 2nd or 3rd answer. Spaces like "send your opponent backwards" like questccg suggested.
Lastly, in my experience, it's highly frustrating to make no progress on a turn without consciously choosing a high-risk option. If the Thin Air Zone is able to reduce a team's movement to nothing, then the Thin Air Zone should be really small, like 3 successful movements at max
We're still talking about this? I better get back over here, then! Sorry for being AWOL.
Say, shoutout to Noah for joining the conversation. Check your PM's when you get the chance, I sent you an updated copy of the rulebook.
That's right, I've made some changes, including eliminating the oxygen tanks, turning the bonus spaces (the special icons) into chips that you can place face down at the start of each game to increase re-playability, and (I think) we made the Thin Air Zone a bit simpler to win so it's not too much of a slog. Here's what the new mountain looks like:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qsr2a9Ow2ncP_2TyB9mBiUT2vRTjR-TA/view?u...
Still debating on how many dots should be on the board. I'm thinking 8 in the Base Camp, 7 in the Ice Wall, and 4 in Thin Air (plus the Summit). Of course, playtesting will help me decide on if the game needs to be sped up or slowed down.
BTW, if anyone wants to help me playtest Pinnacle or take one of the surveys for the game (or both), feel free to drop me a PM.