Adapting the mechanics of a hardcore fighting game to a casual card game presented a series of challenges and pitfalls. On one hand, the source material was incredibly dense and would need to be abstracted in order to base a card game on it. On the other hand, we learned from the fighting game community that fans of this franchise are a small but devoted group, and would be intolerant of an attempt to "dumb it down."

After securing approval from the license holder, which included a basic monetization scheme, competitive product research, and a high level concept that would differentiate our game from the most popular collectible card games, I began work on the core systems.

Set Priorities

In researching the potential competition, I found a wide gap in the middle of the complexity spectrum. On one extreme, there was a small variety of intricate and complex games that use cards to model combat. At the other extreme, I found droves of overly simplistic digital collection-building games. We wanted the game to capture the nuanced decisions and mind-games that occur in a fast-paced fighting game, but not let the complexity of that task get in the way of an experience that is easy to learn. I knew that these goals wouldn't always align well with each other, so I had to decide which side we would err on when we encountered a conflict of interest. Given that our target platform was already saturated with simplistic collection building games, it was clear that we should prioritize depth of play over ease of use (when no alternative was available).

Map Core Concepts

Knowing that our most devoted player group would be existing fans of the franchise, my first objective was to devise mechanics that resonated with that audience. To this end, I compiled a list of every action players could perform in the fighting game, as well as every key concept or strategy that high-level players employ. Then, I researched all the properties, statistics, and rules that define these actions and concepts. Next, I linked all the properties, actions, and concepts that relied on each other. Finally, I prioritized my list in order of importance to the player. Rules and properties that players rarely think or talk about were sent to the bottom of the list. Those that were unique to the brand were given additional weight. The end result was a clear map of all the relevant systems at play.

From this information, I identified the base properties that would become an attack card's statistics. If a particular map node had a vast web of connections it became a core statistic. These were descriptors that players would rely on to determine an attack's outcome. While these statistics would undergo further revisions during the design process, it was enough to begin prototyping.

Prototype

I generated a set of cards that covered an array of different stat distributions. To round them out, I scanned my map for things that made sense as card abilities, jotted down a quick description for each, then copied the word or phrase onto a card.

I began testing with printed cards, searching for ways to let these ideas shine in a turn-based game. Often, rules were invented, modified, or deleted during play. The first broad strokes were a literal translation of the fighting game's systems to a card game, relatively complex but undeniably close to the brand.

Once a functional set of mechanics were in place, my goal shifted from creating something realistic to something impressionistic. I simplified interactions that took too long to resolve and abstracted information that was too cumbersome to process. I eliminated anything that didn't absolutely have to be there. My map began to shrink to a manageable size, since eliminating one node often eliminated its dependants. At this point the flavor of the brand was present, I was happy with the pace of play, and the complexity level was low. Furthermore, the minimalist rule set could withstand the turmoil I would put it through in the next phase of the process.

Create Depth

Going back to my map, the systems that hadn't already been implemented in some way were high-level strategies and concepts. My task was to mold the rules in a way that supported the most important concepts. Again, I searched for well connected nodes, repeatedly adding new ones in order distill the game's most essential ingredients. Eventually, I arrived at a pair of properties that were inextricably linked, indirectly impacted everything, and their presence would infuse the game with meaningful choices: risk and reward.

Every action a player takes in a fighting game can be described in terms of risk. Every outcome can be described in terms of reward. And fundamentally, the level of risk defined the reward. In order to create depth, I needed to ensure that the rules (rather than the abilities of a card) gave players a constant choice between high-risk high-reward outcomes, low-risk low-reward outcomes, or something in between.

This goal required revisions to many rules. The amount of cards a player could invest in an attack became a choice rather than a fixed number. Failing to defend against one card guaranteed that the rest of the invested cards hit. Certain defensive actions were improved, allowing players to nullify each card the opponent invested in the attack, and then immediately retaliate while their opponent's resources were low. This pair of modifications added a range of risks and rewards to each decision, and ensured that as the reward increased, so did the risk.

These changes weren't compelling enough on their own. One last ingredient was required to make it all click: hidden information. By partially hiding the contents of an incoming attack, players now had a reason to feign strength or weakness. This fostered the mind games that the genre was known for. It rewarded players for goading their opponent into using a valuable resource to counter a bluffed attack. It also rewarded players for determining that the coast was clear and making a big play.

Focus Test

Now that the first full design pass was complete, I put my prototype in front of a series of focus groups and continued to iterate. Each group represented a different target audience: core fans of the franchise, those that were unfamiliar with it, players that were experts in CCGs, and players that had never played card games. The goals of these tests were not to achieve a state of balance, but to ensure that the core mechanics met our goals for each group: A dutiful representation of the brand, rules that were easy to understand, depth of play, and an overall enjoyable experience. After two sessions with each of the 4 groups, we were ready to move on to the next stage of development.