Phase Two

Thanks to the feedback from recent playtests and team discussions, Sunrise City (Now featuring a new name!) has taken strides in development, and has a clearer vision for how the game could play moving forward. We were able to test out several new features of the game, including: physical pieces representing the players’ achieved goals, adding a D4 die to determine turn order and fundraising, and retooling the disaster cards to be based on level of protections, rather than specific protection cards. Looking at games like Takenoko was extremely helpful in believing that the towers would bring good physicality to the game, and this most recent playtest certainly proved that. Additionally, players noted how speedily the game ran once the rules were established. Since we are aiming for this game to be used in a classroom curriculum, this was great news to hear. However, there was also a lot of helpful critique.

An important piece of critique noted that the disaster cards seemed one-dimensional. They attacked protections, taking them away, and if that wasn’t had, took away the goals. One playtester suggested adding additional effects that disasters could inflict; for example, perhaps a flood makes that year’s budget decrease as funds are spent on relief efforts. This was a great piece of feedback well worth considering, especially since disasters are typically multifaceted in nature. A chief concern we noticed was players hoarding money. Thanks to the new D4, gaining funds was much easier, and allowed players to stockpile funds before making big purchases. While this addressed the concern of players having little action after a purchase, it did not solve the underlying problem of fundraising not being an interesting or fun mechanic.

A new idea that will be playtested is a social unrest meter. Inspired by the stockpiling of funds, the meter will increase if players do not purchase enough goals or protections in a turn; if they solely fundraise or enhance a protection, social unrest will grow. This is to address player inaction, and to mirror public policies; people celebrate big victories (goals and protections), decry failures (inaction and loss of protections/goals), and are blind to small incremental steps that may still help (enhancing protections). We believe this will instill more of a sense of urgency in players and add an interesting dynamic of juggling different elements of the game.

Another new mechanic to test will be the retooling of the fundraising system. Instead of making a roll on a players’ turn, there will be a town hall meeting to discuss where a pooled budget should be distributed. Not only does this more closely mirror real budgeting, it also allows players to plan and decide socially how to best tackle the turn ahead, which leads into our third new mechanic: an action to replace fundraising.

To encourage teamwork and keep the game feel positive, players will be able to take a turn together, allowing them to pool their funds for a purchase, at the cost of both their turns. This allows more social behavior between players, and allows those without major funds a chance to still feel like they’re contributing to the game.

Overall it was a very productive week, and the team is excited to implement these changes! Sunrise City is shaping up to be quite the municipality.