Tic-Tac-Tactics: ARE YOU UP TO THE CHALLENGE, SISSY?!

WELCOME TO TACTICAL TRAINING!

   Listen up you bunch of whining ninnies, this is Tic-Tac-Tactics, a military puzzle game designed to toughen up the tactician in you. Move your troops into formation and keep them out of enemy fire, or else! Will you rise to the occasion, soldier!? Or should we call your mama and tell her to start dinner for when you come crying home!?        

THE RULES

The Mission: 
Score 12 points first!

The How-to:

·        Each player will take turns placing X’s or O’s of their color on the board. Flip a coin to decide who goes first.

·        Each player draws 2 “formation” cards. Points are scored when a player places a piece onto the board that results in one of their formation cards. They may then draw a new card from the formation draw pile to consistently keep 2 in their hand.

·        Place the top card from the formation draw pile face up next to it. This is the “free-for-all” card. Either player may score with this card. Whoever places the last piece to complete the formation gets the card. After the free-for-all formation is created, the scoring player takes the card, adds it to their points, and places the next top card from the formation draw pile face up. If there are no more cards left to draw, players enter “sudden death” and must play until one reaches 12 points or they score with their whole hand, meaning they have no formations left.

·        Formations and scoring are independent of color, meaning that an opponent’s pieces may be used to score. However, if you do use an opponent’s pieces to make a formation, you must subtract 1 point from the score of that card. Only a formation of entirely one color will get full points. Place your pieces wisely!

·        If 3 of the same pieces, X’s or O’s, are placed in a row, column, or diagonal, independent of color, then all of the pieces along that line are eliminated and returned to their respective players. After a player eliminates a row, they get another turn and may place a new piece down anywhere on the board.

Reflection: This game has been received well in testing, especially by those who played earlier versions. In the beginning, I was simply trying to match shapes on the board with shapes on the cards, and it got boring very quickly. As I added more rules, such as row elimination or the point system, things got more competitive and players began to have fun sabotaging their opponent's plans. If I had more time to develop this game, I would remake the cards and board to be easier to pick up and play with, as well as redesigning the aesthetics to match with the military theme. I think this game is best suited for ages 5 and up, since it requires the player to strategize and use basic math to be able to play. One somewhat positive social consequence is that you find out if your opponent is the kind of person who likes to advance their own plans above all else, or waste time sabotaging yours just to see your frustration. Overall, this was a very enjoyable project and really made me think about what I find enjoyable in games.