Aside Events: Episode 1 - Design by Rules

Episode 20 - A Fireside Chat, Winter(spell) Edition

Today we’re just vibing. With no big (first-party) tournaments coming up soon, Merlin and Maleficent are a little low energy, even with the release of a new set just around the corner. So now’s a time for reflection on the state of the game. How do you approach new sets that don’t have a competitive tournament associated with it? Maybe the break is worth it to avoid the constant churn and potential burnout. Bolstering the local community with Set Championships could be the appropriate answer, especially compared to how serious the last couple seasons of “DLC Prep” were. So enjoy this lightly-edited, cozy episode while we recharge.

Episode 19: Rank Decay

In games with experience points and a ranked ladder, Rank Decay is when a game punishes you for not playing. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It keeps players playing and gives them a reason to engage with the game, even if you’ve already achieved your goals. There’s not a ladder in Lorcana (anymore, RIP Pixelborn), but the same sort of concept could be applied to one’s ability. You might not literally fall down ranks, but your skills do decay over time. But even more than just being rusty when coming back from a holiday break, if you want to achieve a higher level of success, you continuously need to challenge better and better opponents. And the best stage to do that is at a Disney Lorcana Challenge. But what do you do when there’s only three in your country for the entire season? How do you prevent rank decay and, even more importantly, break your current skill ceiling?

Episode 18: Hidden Mickey: Takebacks

Continuing our conversation on Disney's potential hidden strings within the game. This time: the new DLC Takeback rule. On the one hand, a more forgiving environment is a more welcoming one for new players and kids, arguably the target audience. On the other, DLCs are the highest level of competitive play open to all players. It makes sense to reward tight, correct play.

Episode 17: Hidden Mickey

Listen, we all know we’re playing a Disney card game. But how much does Disney actually influence the game? A conversation that’s adjacent to our ongoing series of “Please Know Who You Are Actually Mad At.” Disney undoubtedly has a hand in everything that passes through this game. And we can see creative design guided by the invisible corporate forces from other TCGs that don’t own their own IPs (*cough* Magic cough). Without knowing the inner workings of Ravensburger’s licensing deal with Disney, it may be an impossible question to answer. But even beyond tilting at windmills about brand identity and licensing agreements, there’s a bigger picture when it comes to designing a Disney (TM) card game. From the language we use (challenging, questing) to the victory condition (gaining points instead of losing life) to a core, central mechanic the entire game revolves around (songs, characters), the Mouse is everywhere, even if he’s hidden from plain sight.

Aside Events: Episode 1 - Design by Rules

Introducing Aside Events, a new series wherein we discuss small topics that may not fill a full episode, but are interesting (to us) nonetheless. This week, let’s discuss specific design decisions that allow the colors and cards to differentiate themselves, for better or for worse.