- Key details -
Playable with a standard deck of cards.
Signing and tearing cards.
Three player game.
Signing and tearing cards.
Three player game.
This was a solo project.
- Overview of my tasks -
- Find affordances of cards that match modern relationship language.
- Design a simultaneous 1v1v1 matching card game loop that dynamically changes the goal of the players.
- Design mechanics that match the desired game feel.
- Balance progression to increase playtime before finally tearing cards.
- Write the final rules of the game.
- Feeling in Love -
This game started as an exercise in micro card game design. The goal was to make a game that requires 15 or less cards.
Inspired by Love Letter, my favorite micro card game, I wanted to do a game that makes players feel "in love".
While Love Letter is a great game and has a romantic premise, it doesn't make me feel "in love". I feel like I am "hiding" when I play it.
How does Love Triangle makes players feel in love?
As cards where my only tool to design the game. I started looking at affordances:
Matching is already used in dating vocabulary thanks to dating apps. Using that word helps with on-boarding.
Signing their own card at the start gives players a sense of attachment to something physical and starts the game with a high interest curve.
Tearing the card ends the game on a high note as players hesitate because they actually want to do it but it is not a common thing to do. Some players get a sense of relief after tearing their card, which is also good.
Counting and keeping track of the total numbers demands attention and presence and forces players to think of the other players and predict their cards.
Signing the card of the other winning player(s) gives them an emergent keepsake unique to that play-session.
The first iteration of the game used only one suit, 13 cards, the Ace was not used to cancel a match, and it was played in turns. A play-session lasted 1-2 minutes.
Most of the player feedback included complaints about how short the game was and about how unfair playing in turn was.
The final version of the game uses 43 cards. I excluded the face cards reserved for characters as there can only be 3 per play-session. The game now plays simultaneously to be fair for everybody. The Ace as a Cancel Match card was added to expand the game's length and to save losing players from a first turn match. An average play-session now lasts around 10-15min.
Players reacted much more positive to this ruleset as it provides the same feel, the same strategies applied, and cards lasted a bit more before tearing enough face cards to have an unplayable deck of cards.
- Falling in Love -
By accident, what was a simple party game became an actual tool for people to find a partner.
During playtest, I acted as a dealer for me to know what cards the players had (without the playtesters knowing).
Because of this, I discovered a couple of things:
Because of this, I discovered a couple of things:
1. Players avoided winning early in hopes of winning later with the "right" person.
2. Players who knew too much intentionally lost so that the other two could win together.
Players also added meaning as to how they won.
1. If they matched on the first turn, then it was love at first sight.
2. If they matched by using all their cards then it was meant to be.
3. If they could've matched by playing their cards in a different order, then maybe in another life they could've been together.
4. If they do the math and there was no combination of cards to match with anyone, they don't think it is unfair, because love isn't fair either.
These findings were added in the final version of the instructions as I believe they became more important that the game itself.