Fallen Treasures coming soon

At SaltCon earlier this year I met game designer Tucker Smedes as he introduced some friends and I to The Pirate’s Flag.

We had a great time playing the game and enjoyed getting to know Tucker. He’s the owner of publishing company CardLords and they’ve just launched a Kickstarter game for a very family friendly game called Fallen Treasures.

I asked Tucker to tell me a bit more about this latest game. Since it’s very family-focused, I thought you’d be interested in hearing more about the game as well.

Fallen Treasures card game — Fallen Treasures is now on Kickstarter!

Q: Tell me a little bit about Fallen Treasures.

Sure thing!

In Fallen Treasures, Octopus kids are gathering up items that have fallen into the sea from passing boats, not knowing what anything is. They gather together to show off all of the amazing Treasures they’ve found, and compare them to see who has the best and coolest items!

Q: How do you play?

The basics are pretty simple, but playing a few times will unlock some of the depth of play. Each player gets 3 Octopus cards and 5-8 numbered Treasure cards (based on the number of players). Each player will play one of their numbered cards, or use an Octopus on their turn, so the game only lasts 5-8 rounds. The player who plays the highest number card in a turn takes all of the Treasures that were played, but if someone uses an Octopus, it beats all number cards. It can get tricky though because if two players use Octopuses, they’ll get into a tentacle tangle and it can be anyone’s game!

When a tangle happens, each player will play their lowest number card, then draw off the top of the deck to try for higher numbered Treasures. There’s some press your luck and some strategy during the tangles that can swing the game one way or another. You only get 3 Octopuses though, so you’ll have to use them wisely!

Q: How long did it take to design Fallen Treasures?

Game designer Robert Couch spent several months working on the version he pitched to us just after GenCon in 2016, which originally had the Octopuses mixed into the deck and the item cards ranged from 1-50. We spent the next few months testing variations of different number counts, quantities of Octopuses, and ironing out the mechanics of the tangles.

One super beneficial playtest came from some Reno game designers (Danny Devine and Steven Aramini) which helped fix one remaining issue we were running into, and everything came together after that. Then it was a few months of deciding the images, art style, and how to depict it all. Mary (Mearii Berry) had to spend another couple of months deciphering my art direction and descriptions using clip art, scribbles, and awkward links to make it come to life.

Q: Where did the item ideas for Fallen Treasures come from?

Right after we signed the initial design from Robert after GenCon, Shannon and I sat down at our kitchen table and spent the next several hours writing out every idea we could think of in a spiral notebook. We had hundreds of initial item ideas, and they were all over the place. Sadly, Shannon passed away unexpectedly before we were able to narrow down the list, so I worked with our friends, her family, and used my best judgement to pick the final 30 items that I liked, and that I thought she would be happy with.

It’s a really fun list of items with some references that go across many genre’s. We really think people will enjoy the Treasure Cards.

Q: Which card is your favorite?

Ooh, that’s a tricky one.

#15 is definitely a front runner since that’s me as a bobblehead! I love the way the artwork came out on #3, the fan.

But I think the one that gets me the most is #25. The image is a snow globe based on a painting Shannon did of her and I on top of a hill holding hands and looking at the Aurora Borealis up above. That was the surprise trip I had planned for our honeymoon.

Q: What got you into designing and publishing family oriented games?

Most of our group of players enjoy short, engaging games that we can pick up and play in 10-15 minutes, then play again and again. We’ll occasionally sit down and play a longer, more complex game, but 80% or more of our time playing games is done playing what we call “filler” or “casual” games.

Q: How did you decide to use a plastic box rather than much more common cardboard or paper boxes?

One of the factors we consider with our games is how easy they are to take with you and play somewhere other than at home. We do a lot of restaurant testing and playing and we always have games with us wherever we go. As such, we wanted a box that reflected that. Our boxes are way more durable than standard card game boxes, and much smaller than two-piece cardboard boxes. It helps us stand out in a super crowded marketplace and our fans really like them.