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Bossrush - A Trading Card Game
Bossrush - A Trading Card Game
Inspired by Magic The Gathering, One Piece TCG, Pokémon TCG and Yu-Gi-Oh, I set out to design a Trading Card Game.
Bossrush is a game where two players build their own deck and battle against each other to see who can defeat the opponents boss card first. It's a strategic game about planning your moves and waiting for the right moment to strike.
The game is available on the Tabletop Simulator Workshop, or you can click the link here.
Role: Gameplay & Card Designer
Tools Used: Figma, Excel / Google Sheets, Pen & Paper
Timeline: 29th January 2025 - Current
Responsibilities Include:
Design and iterate on the rules surrounding the game.
Design and iterate on multiple decks and the unique aspects and playstyles of each deck.
Design and iterate on each individual card and card synergies.
Design each card and how it fits into the gameplay loop of each deck.
Design multiple decks, each deck with a unique gameplay flow.
Using Figma to design the card templates and create printable card grids.
Using Excel and Google Sheets to hold all card data and export card data into Figma to automatically fill card templates.
Create printable versions of decks and run playtests.
Contents
Contents
Early playtests on Tabletop Simulator
Concept
Concept
I began by looking at other TCG's I enjoy, and figuring out what makes those games work. Studying the evolution mechanics in the Pokemon TCG, completing combos in Yu-Gi-Oh, and the Captain mechanic in the One Piece TCG.
After studying these TCGs, I had an idea of what elements of those games I saw potential in.
I had the idea of each player having a Boss card that they have to force their opponent to fight. Developing on this idea, I envisioned 2 groups of heroes racing to defeat a powerful monster.
Prototyping
Prototyping
Using Excel, I created a simple spreadsheet to hold all of the data I needed for a card. The first deck contained 16 unique cards, just enough for a proof of concept.
I developed templates for each card type using Figma, importing the card data from the spreadsheet. Figma automatically generated the cards in both full color and printer friendly formats.
When designing the first prototype, the first step was to ensure the core game concept was fun. I threw together a loose first iteration of the game and tested it out.
I saw potential in the core gameplay, but the cards and decks needed to be carefully crafted and heavily playtested. I quickly developed a workflow to quickly develop multiple iterations to refine the gameplay, and quickly playtest these new ideas.
First playtest of Bossrush
Designing the Game
Designing the Game
Iteration
Iteration
Over the course of 2 weeks, I began a rapid iterative process on Bossrush. Running constant physical and digital playtests using Tabletop Simulator. The game evolved several times, trying out new ideas and discarding designs that failed.
To push the game further, I limited the game to only 2 different Archetypes, only developing another when the game had more structure. Having more than one deck at this early point in development was crucial. Defining the core systems of Bossrush became challenging but far more effective compared to developing around one archetype.
Each archetype had entirely different play styles which highlighted some of the original issues the game had. After this 2 week period, the game had become far more stable, balanced and fun.
The games Level Up mechanic evolved several times during development. Early on, leveling up a Character unlocked new abilities depending on that Characters level.
I wanted level ups to feel more impactful, and added basic stat changes as Characters leveled up. While the stat changes felt better, they made the Character cards far more cluttered and complex.
Iterations of level up stats
In an effort to find a way to simplify the Character cards while keeping this mechanic, a better solution appeared. Moving the stat increases onto the level up cards created gave the players control over how the character cards in their deck change. It vastly improved the variety of player decks as they balance what kind of level up cards are important in their deck.
Final form of level up cards
Designing archetypes
Designing archetypes
Each archetype is designed to play very differently while also having enough flexibility to allow player expression. For each archetype I needed to be able to answer 4 key questions.
What does it feel like to play each archetype?
What is the win condition of each archetype outside of the universal goals of the game?
How can each archetype disrupt your opponents game plan?
How does the player keep each archetype consistent?
For every archetype, I sat down and figured out how each of these questions can be answered, aiming to have each answer be unique in its own way. Once I had a solid answer for these questions, I moved on to building the archetype.
I used Excel to manage all of the data for the cards and then imported the spreadsheet into Google Sheets to be used with Figma. Every card required multiple revisions and iterations, so it was important to be able to access every card in one place.
Once I had the first draft of the archetype ready, it was time to start playtests. There was a lot of playtesting as it was crucial to help me understand the issues with each archetype had.
If you wish to view the spreadsheet for yourself, there is a link to the Google Sheets document here.
Bossrush Rulebook
Bossrush Rulebook
Below is the up to date version of the rulebook for Bossrush. It outlines the rules of the game in full. There is also a link to the Tabletop Simulator Workshop, where you can play the game for yourself.
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