4. Test your game

Feedback and Change log:

I had my first prototype ready and was super excited to test it!

Here is my Test log:

Test: My dad told me the game was too slow.

Improve: I added some “Effect Cards” to speed up the game. These cards do things like steal plants, skip someone’s turn, or increase your Pull Score.

Test: My mom told me I have too many butterflies because we kept getting only butterflies, and no other cards.

Improve: I reduced the butterflies to 8.

Test: After playing a few times, I wanted to study the ratio of Butterfly to Host Plants to Nectar Plants to Effect cards.

Improve: I wrote down some ratios of every card to one another, so I had a better picture of my deck. (8 Butterflies, 8 Host Cards, 20 Plant Cards, and 13 Effect Cards)

Test: When we played the game, the math got quickly out of control because we were so engrossed in the strategy!

Improve: My dad suggested I add a Pull Score sheet, to keep track of the Pull Score. As well as reduce the number of effect cards and make more plants.

So I created a sheet to track the Pull Score, and replaced some of the Effect Cards with new plant and butterfly cards.

Test: On our last play test, we realized we ran out of cards quickly for 3 players.

Improve: I added even more cards for a second deck (for 3-4 players) because the first deck wasn’t enough for three players.

I got to work on making the cards look better (I got some design tips and a mini-lesson on PowerPoint from my parents)

I just got it printed my color version and here I am!!!

Review with business mentors at Score

Score is an organization where you can find kind and helpful mentors to help you bring your product ideas to market.

I recently presented my latest version of Flutter to my Score Mentors and they had some great feedback!

1. Make the game 2 levels.

   1. Keep it Simple: (Level 1 for Ages 5+) Goal will be to first build the garden and then attract butterflies. We call this the 'Flutter cycle' without the Catch up feature (effect cards). It will only focus on getting the nectar and host plants to attract a butterfly. The person who attracts 3 butterflies first wins! (No Life Cycles)

   2. Advanced level for Ages 10+: The goal here is the same. First person to attract and finish 3 butterfly life cycles wins! This version will include the effect cards and will require clever thinking to fend off from Predators and other disasters in the garden. Tactical game play will be required to complete the full butterfly life cycle including securing the 3 stage cards (eggs, caterpillar and cocoon).

2. Tokens are cumbersome: In the advanced version of the game, I had some tokens you move every turn to keep track of the life cycle, but they said a dozen tokens are a dozen things that get lost and people will lose interest in playing the game. I never thought about that! Instead of tokens, I am using Life Cycle cards to track the stages of a butterfly.

3. Kids love Fun Facts! Every butterfly card should have a Fun Fact about that butterfly. I have some fun facts on the Plant cards and some of the Predator cards. They wanted me to call it out as a 'Fun Fact'. I also learned what makes good fun facts. It is important to make Fun Fact relevant to game play, Good E.g Spring Azure's Host plant is Dogwood. Bad E.g Dogwood was first discovered by ----

4. Lastly, I realized I only mentioned the matching butterfly on the 'Host Plant card', but not the matching 'Host' on the 'Butterfly card'. I am currently incorporating that into my Butterfly card design.

5. Talk about where is this garden? Which country? Climate? This garden is for a section of Butterflies found easily in Mid Atlantic USA.

6. Does this game have capability for Digital Game Play? Yes.

Testing Questions from the Design Guide

Would they play with your invention again? Yes

What did they like the most? It is unique. It addresses a present issue with pollinator and insect decline. (Most recent report on Monarch Butterfly Migration: Eastern Monarch Butterfly Population Plunges by More Than Half ). The effect cards are relevant to the game and help tell the story of a butterfly in its wild habitat. It is a STEM game, everyone can learn something new about the environment.

What didn't they like? The tokens can be a cumbersome addition to both the manufacturer and the customer.

Was it too long? No

Were the instructions clear? Yes

Was it difficult to use? No

What would they change? Add relevant Fun facts and the region where the game takes place.

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