6 Pinoy-made card games worth your attention

Easily accessible yet hard to put down, card games offer a lot in terms of fun and replay value. Filipino game developers know this, and they’ve been hard at work creating experiences we’re confident gamers will love.

Listed below are six such card games.

1. Combatron. From The Epic Gaming Regiment (TEGR) come this 2-4 player card game based on Berlin Manalaysay’s legendary comic series of the same name.

In the game, players select which Combatron characters to use, then “pick attacks and assists… to overpower their opponent(s) in a series of duels that play like rock-paper-scissors,” said TEGR game designer Thomas Regala. “It's a quick fighting game that rewards smart plays and outwitting your opponent by predicting their moves.”

Regala has loved “Combatron” since he was a child.

“I recall drawing Axel and Combatron a lot and waiting for the next issue of Funny Komiks, and my first comic book crush was Metalika! So when Ludus Distributors gave us the opportunity to design the game, I grabbed the chance immediately,” said Regala.

Gameplay-wise, “Combatron” was inspired by fighting games such as “King of Fighters” and microgames like “Dragon Punch.”

“I also made sure that fans of the comic will have reasons to own a copy – the manuals of the game double as full-sized posters!” he said.

Regala is already working on a “Combatron” expansion that covers “all the other characters like Axel and even the story’s big boss, Megadeath,” Regala said, adding: “The game system is very mutable and we’re looking into crossovers with other local comics or series.

2. Puti. Here is a horror cooperative memory game from Nicanor Valdez of Balangay Entertainment.

“The players are trapped in a house haunted by a white lady,” said Valdez. “The only way to get out is to follow a trail of clues left by the previous tenant: a little boy. Players have to work together to mark the trail, remember it, and escape the house within three rounds or they all get trapped inside forever.”

Valdez wanted to make something that “innovated on a game component that is rarely integral to gameplay: card sleeves.”

In “Puti,” card sleeves are used to leave marks on the cards to help players remember the way out of the house.

Also inspired by Philippine mythological creatures. Puti would've featured a variety of monsters but Valdez realized he wouldn’t be able to give each monster the attention it deserves if he put so many of them in one game.

So he’s now planning on making a game series, with each game thrusting a different monster into the spotlight. He already has an idea for a game about Manananggal, which could be the follow-up to “Puti.”

3. Bamzoozle. According to developer Fable and Bone, “Bamzoozle” is a 2-4 player “animal-themed card game that involves bluffing and skill.” It uses “hidden role” and “set collection” mechanics.

“There are over 80 cards that have a variety of unique skills,” said Fable & Bone’s Oaby Lopez. “To win the game, each player has to collect the most animals that belong to his/her designated ‘secret habitat’ without revealing it.”

Players draw from four different decks representing the habitats Forest, Savannah, Sea, and Home. Each contains various animals.

“At any point in the game, an opponent can ‘Bamzoozle’ or guess an opponent’s secret goal, punishing the opponent and rewarding the guesser,” explained Lopez. Players must strategize and bluff about which deck they drew their cards from to keep their goals a secret.

Lopez and his fellow developer Martin Afable are avid tabletop gamers and animal lovers.

“We really wanted to raise awareness (about) endangered animal species and how we can protect them, and to encourage young kids and adults alike to play games together physically, rather than online.”

Fable and Bone hope to launch a Kickstarter campaign for “Bamzoozle” soon.

4. Lovestruck. A 2-player game where “both players are playing as a couple in a relationship,” the object of the game is for the couple to get married.

The road to happily-ever-after isn’t easy, however, as “Lovestruck” hurls trials to test the couple's resolve. To triumph over such challenges, the partners need to strategize together.

“Lovestruck” was inspired by its developers’ research about the modern media’s “blissfully unrealistic” portrayal of romance and relationships.

“This plants unrealistic expectations in its viewers, giving them a false idea about the true nature of romance and love in essence,” said developer Heven Sanceda from Asia Pacific College. He and his team therefore created the game to show the reality of what being in a relationship is like, “highlighting the pain, rewards, growth and mutuality of romance.”

Sanceda and his colleagues are refining the game. “We're planning to make the game more chaotic,” he said, adding that they want the player to make harder decisions as the game progresses.

5. Datestravaganza

BongGaming Studios’ Datestravaganza “is a tabletop card game that pits modern and traditional dating methods against each other. At its very core, it can even be considered a matching game. A regular session would take at least 30 minutes and involves a lot of strategy.”

BongGaming Studios is a group of Asia Pacific College students under the guidance of Conrado De Jesus. Rex Temporosa serves as project manager and designer, Nicolas Dela Cruz as lead designer, John Vargas as designer, and Beatrice Baylosis as the artist.

“Datestravaganza” evolved from a random idea.

“The concept of dating was brought up during a brainstorming session in class,” said BongGaming Studios. “It went through various stages until we ended up with a game that was worthy of being exhibited at Indie Fiesta (at ESGS 2018).”

“Datestravaganza” is being rebalanced. BongGaming Studios is constantly adding new mechanics to it while adjusting existing ones. They hope to one day publish the game.

6. Rapids

Developer Cy Aspiras describes “Rapids” as a “simple, intense, fast-paced party card game” where players assume the role of whitewater rafters who must observe a river guide’s commands while avoiding tumbling into the raging river.

“All players must follow the leader’s command,” said Aspiras. “The slowest player will be penalized by drawing additional cards. All players must compete to be the quickest to discard all their hand cards. The first player to discard all their hand cards wins the game.”

After hearing from others about the thrills of whitewater rafting in Cagayan de Oro, Aspiras wanted to challenge himself to translate the experience into a tabletop game. This ultimately gave rise to “Rapids.” — LA, GMA News