10 Things I've Learned From Clank
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 1 ส.ค. 2024
- In today’s video I’m sharing the various design lessons I’ve learned from Clank and its various iterations: Clank in Space, Clank Legacy, and expansions.
You can just include the word(s) to the left of the colon in the captions.
00:00 - Introduction
01:00 - Art and Theme
04:40 - Setup
07:01 - Deckbuilding
10:15 - Clank in Space
12:49 - Adventuring Party
15:46 - Collective bag building
18:00 - Clank Legacy
22:07 - Strategic paths
24:00 - Map expansions
27:00 - Tension
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Intro animation by Jeff Payne vimeo.com/jaaronpayne and video proofing by Cody Simonsen - เกม
Jamey I don't have any Stonemaier game but I love how you talk about other people's games! I love your content you put out and it's just that much better with you being a designer/ publisher
The pop culture references and theme of Clank! In Space really helped my dad "get" the game. He is a huge fan of Doctor Who, Star Trek, and scifi in general.
Personally, I enjoy the longer game time of In Space because I feel like I get to better enjoy the deck I built.
I bought Clank! purely on the basis of your enthusiasm for the game and I love it. Sadly my partner doesn't care for it so it doesn't hit the table very much.
Here's a little Clank! story: when my son and I played our first game we (I) had apparently misread the rules. We thought that monster card that trigger dragon attacks first appeared they triggered, but also that they continued to trigger EVERY turn if they remained in the market row. Every turn was a dread that some attack trigger would flip and a prayer whispered that we'd draw enough swords to kill the monster causing the continuous attacks. Suffice to say this made for a very frantic and tense first game that we both handily lost to Nicki the dragon. We figured out the correct way to play by our second game and it was a lot more fun.
However one thing I noticed from our first play through was that having attack cards trigger as long as they remained in the market effectively forced us to buy cards that were suboptimal or to spend turns fighting monsters, and I kind of liked that added pressure to be honest. It only needs to be tuned a bit so you're not being obliterated too quickly.
I love your observations and lessons from Clank. I share some of them and hadn't thought of some of the others until you talked about them. My own experience with Clank started with the Clank: In Space series and I have all the expansions. A group of friends and I have also played through Clank Legacy Acquisitions Inc and we had a real blast with it. I've never played any of the fantasy based Clank editions (aside from Legacy), but would be open to them. When you talked about the map expansions with the original game series, I think it's worth mentioning the map expansions and the modular nature of all of the Clank: In Space series. Each expansion adds some additional modules, all double-sided to vary the construction of the ship on the way to the objectives in the command module.
I'm glad you mentioned that about the modular Clank in Space boards!
The nodular boards is absolutely the way to go imho. It's the ONLY reason I was tempted to buy Clank! in Space over regular Clank! I ended up going with Clank! only because I enjoyed the theme more but I still have buyers regret from missing out on the modular board.
Jamey, thanks as always.
I haven't yet fleshed out the asymmetry chapter of my book but here's my initial answer to your question on when asymmetry enhances vs diminishes a game experience:
How asymmetry enhances a game experience:
- Provides a helpful heuristic
- Fun to try out different factions (appeals to the "Exploration/Suspense" element of why we play games), adding to replayability
- Fun to master different factions (appeals to the "Mastery" element of why we play games), adding to replayability
- Fun to feel powerful/special (appeals to the "Wish Fulfillment" element of why we play games)
- Symmetric games can often have scripted openings; asymmetric factions (especially with modular setups) are less likely to suffer from this
- There may be a thematic reason for asymmetry
How asymmetry diminishes a game experience:
- Asymmetry may not fit a game genre in which it's a norm to have an equal starting position, like a deck builder, action retrieval game (e.g. Concordia), or abstract strategy game (unless asymmetry "becomes the game", like in Santorini or a Tafl game). In these cases, the benefit of "Wish Fulfillment" (feeling special from an asymmetric power) is outweighed by the cost of violating the implicit norm of equal footing. In these sorts of games, emergent asymmetry (which evolves over the course of the game) is the expected norm, as opposed to designed asymmetry (from the outset)
- If the designer's not careful, asymmetry can turn from helpful heuristic into a heavy-handed force that pushes the player down a particular path
- Asymmetry adds complexity without necessarily adding depth, harming the complexity : depth ratio if the designer's not careful. If the depth of the game doesn't come from trying/mastering different factions but rather from the core gameplay experience, then asymmetry can detract from the core experience.
- Asymmetry can make it difficult to understand how to stop other players since you need to know how they play, not just how you play
- Asymmetric games may require a particular balance from the other players - if a specific role isn't being played or if it's being played by an inexperienced player, this can throw off the balance the designer intended
Only a few minutes in and I already know I like this video - hopefully it can be part of a series? Like expanded versions of your favourite mechanism videos where you go beyond a single mechanism and talk about good things the game achieved in all parts of its design, marketing and publishing.
Yep, it already is a series--see similar videos about Roll Player Adventures and Ark Nova. :) I'll continue to make them on occasion for games that really inspire me (enough so to make a "10 things" list).
Great list.
Another great thing about Clank! I’d say is accessibility. I’m no game designer, but I think this can be applied.
I play Clank! With my 4 year old son that I introduced to my games early on because I didn’t want to play small kids games during lockdowns. He might be a little further when it comes to games.
That being said he can absolutely play this game without lots of help. He counts the movement, talent and fight icons. We printed boards to keep track of them from bgg.
The art helps him remember what the cards do once I read them to him and the iconography is really on point. Sure, I don’t play overly competitive against him, but it’s fun to just go on this adventure and tell stories around what might have happened during the run.
It’s hard to find a game that is this much fun for adults and kids at the same time.
This is a very minor thing, but in Clank every time a new card is flipped into the market the players hold their breath. This is unlike any other game where revealing new cards for a market isn’t something you pay much attention to.
Absolutely! Yeah, that's what I was talking about with the tension and the way it feels like the game is interacting with you (not just players interacting with a static dungeon).
The simplicity of this game has helped me introduce heavier games to my gaming group.
The design of sharing a bag and pushing your luck is perhaps my favorite aspect of this game as well I like how some seemingly powerful cards like the magic carpet can be powerful but mostly depending on situation. Great video! I appreciate these break downs
I love clank! It's also one of Jerome's favorite games of all time. Glad you enjoy it so much too! 😀
Jamey, thanks so much for your videos! Each one is engaging, inspiring and packed full of insights.
One of the things I've learned from Clank (Legacy) is the way the Vault cards work. It's a simple idea, which I don't know if they've expanded on in other versions, but that the Vault card is added to your discard pile at the start of the game and then gets shuffled in after that first reshuffle is a cool little boost and adds some neat asymmetry. I wish that more deckbuilders and even Clank could explore that idea further, that there is some extra bonus which happens every time you shuffle. Of course, there is the innate bonus of getting access to the cards you've recently purchased but there is some more design space there I feel. I'm working on a mini expansion for the game that I'm developing which tries to explore this space further, so kudos to Clank for the inspiration!
Thanks Carl! I really liked that too, particularly the twist that the extra card starts in your discard pile.
Love this new series of videos! Really a lot take away. Thanks!!!
I never really got the "heist" theme very strongly (but I've only played the base version of Clank, maybe t's more pronounced in Acquisitions?), but I do love how it makes you feel like you're physically inside the dungeon; I totally agree with you that it feels like a dungeon crawler in that aspect, more so than some of the more recent ones which are more about tactical combat than about the joy of exploring a dungeon and finding its secrets. I think Clank is one of the most immersive games I own, where you truly feel like you're roleplaying more than just executing mechanisms. I wonder what aspect of Clank you think makes it achieve that feeling (other than the "arrive" keyword, which is quite cool). I think for me it's the bag of clank cubes (so thematic! So nerve-racking!), but more importantly the fact there's just one main board where all players are at all times, which really draws you in. Kind of like in Teotihuacan, where having everything on one giant board (instead of 74 separate sideboards like some games do) somehow makes it feel more immersive for me. On top of that, the state of the board in Clank is constantly changing, so you're always scanning it for new (and lost) opportunities. So yeah, the main thing I learned from Clank from a design perspective is that you can achieve immersive gameplay from simple art and basic components that are integrated perfectly with the theme.
Anyways, great concept for a video series, looking forward to seeing more!
I feel you almost said it yourself on the asymetry question what I would say. Terra Mystica is a good example to contrast with Clank's deck building. There is inherently high variety of decks people can construct normally so the starting state does not contribute as much on the overall building. I've seen and heard many people being conflicted with this type of asymmetry too, because deviating from the characters inherent strengths feels like you are playing suboptimaly or the characters skills don't matter when the market doesn't have cards for your characters strengths.
On the other side, TMs factions have much more strict playspace, mostly because in Clank everything comes from the market randomly. And in TM most of the decisions and strategy come from the player board and how it interacts with rest of the game.
I hope this makes some sense as I'm non native english speaker and having a good fever 😅
Loved the video! Also I love the Thinker Themer shirt.
Would love to see a SM game inspired by all of these things that makes clank so great
I’ve not played adventuring party but the asymmetry problem sounds like the issue Richard Garfield described with designing asymmetrical characters for King of Tokyo: when you have a game like KoT or a deckbuilding game like Clank, a lot of the fun is in adapting to and opting in to strategies as they appear. Asymmetrical player boards put you on rails so you play them the same way every time, undermining that appeal. This is why the power ups in KoT only appear randomly. You can try to actively roll into an evolve strategy to get the bonuses, or you can just go with the flow of the dice.
5. Bag building.
Robinson Crusoe: Adventures on the Cursed Island has the similar mechanism, only with cards. Players gain a bonus now, but they have a chance that a bad card will appear in future.
That's true--I love that mechanism in Robinson Crusoe, and Clank eliminates the need for shuffling by using the bag-building mechanism.
I've been playing a lot more Clank! In Space lately and I have to say as cool as the factions are in theory, I feel like the balance is negatively impacted because of how much better the decks can be that choose to synergize highly with one color (particularly purple or orange (green is kind of weak imo)). It's like when you flip an amazing card for the next player to purchase, except the factions amplify just how good those cards can be. I find that the point total differences are much more drastic at the end of a Clank! In Space game compared to the original.
I would have added "humor" to the list. I think there are few games that do this well - put in humor without spoiling the immersion of the game. I'm mostly familiar with Clank in Space, and I think the humor on the cards is really nicely done.
I totally agree with you that better balance doesn't necessarily make a better game. It can make it blander. I think deck building games tend to attract players though who really like to craft their decks to pure efficiency, which creates almost a tournament mindset, where balance is highly sought after. Interesting that after making this point you went on to say that there was too much asymmetry in that one expansion and that you like starting off from an equal point in deck building. I have not played that Adventuring Party expansion, but I have played the Expedition Leaders expansion to Lost Ruins of Arnak, and I thought it was a fantastic expansion. Maybe because the deck building in that game is more minor (your deck goes from 6 cards to maybe 12, rather than the constant buying of cards you see in Clank).
@20:44 he talks a little bit about the humor. :)
Your videos are great, to tighten them up slightly, pick out your examples before you start filming (though with cats in the room pre-planning sometimes is thwarted). Just played Clank with some friends after Geekway, because they knew how to play it! Didnt love the player elimination aspect, but it did feel like a dungeon crawl.
When monsters show up in the card line, it does make it semi-cooperative, as the longer the monsters are in line, the more Clank tokens get removed 😬. Im trying to sell my friends on the legacy version 😁
Interesting. The Adventuring Party I think is our favorite expansion. We love starting slightly different. Dune Imperium does it very similar where you have a different passive ability and a different signet ring ability. I really enjoy starting slightly unique in both games.
That's a great point, Carol. I like the mix of a slightly asymmetric start paired with an easy-to-remember ongoing ability (or asymmetric abilities that you unlock when you're ready, like in Scythe).
@@jameystegmaier Yep, love that in Scythe too. Even choosing personalities in Charterstone or the starting cards in Euphoria. Terraforming Mars Corporations. I think I'll really like the Arnak expansion for this reason as well
I think there is an argument to be made that the Rolling Realms promo cards are like new maps.
My dad has tried the go in grab the first artifact and haul (speed strat) at least five times and it hasn't worked once. If you get two of the with the backpack it has worked but that takes a little longer of course.
After over 20 games in a row ending like this with many people simply not being able to win or counter it, we got rid of the game.
@@cjpeach11 Would love to see it happen, because I just don't see how that can be unless everyone stays below the surface or a rule being played wrong.
@@cjpeach11 with the teleport cards, getting to the bottom and back out alive works, but that person still didnt win 😂
Gotta look at catacombs too
Of course! Here's my video on it: th-cam.com/video/TiPhfNYLBOs/w-d-xo.htmlsi=sqm6QD5nsrfbT6u1
Just found your channel from your Canvas video and I love how dense they are with info. Just yesterday I proposed to my now fiancé by putting the ring inside of Canvas for her to discover. What’s the best Stonemaier game for a newly engaged couple (i.e. best that works well at two players)?
That's really neat, Adam! I think it depends on your gaming preferences, as we have a range of different games, all designed to work at both lower and higher player counts. If you like the set collection and creative side of Canvas specifically, you might enjoy Between Two Castles or Red Rising.
Also, congrats on the proposal, and check out this semi-related article: stonemaiergames.com/three-weddings-and-a-baby/
Wingspan works great at 2
Scythe also works great at 2, and there is the expansions that add even more replayability, and you dont have to fight each other either 🤘 if you plan on children, My Little Scythe could be an investment into the future.
@@jameystegmaier I didn’t realize you did Wingspan, and that’s already on my list for next paycheck. Between Two Castles looks like it would be perfect for us, I’ll going to get that as well. That article was great! I really respect your dedication to the fans.
@@nib71286 no kids in our past or future! Been looking at trying Scythe, so this jumbos that interest
If the asymmetry/abilities in Adventuring Party didn't provide what you were hoping for it terms of fun because you prefer the asymmetry to emerge through the deck building, how do you feel about the Role cards and the Vault cards in Clank Legacy? Those are essentially two special player powers in each player's deck at the beginning of each game.
I liked the Role and Vault cards, perhaps because the asymmetry was smaller and easier to remember?