by KAndrw
I'm working with an artist named Simon to finalise artwork for Dexikon, which is on-track to be kickstarted within a month or two (it's being published by Eagle and Gryphon, but they've allowed me to oversee the graphic design, which is a wonderful if slightly daunting opportunity). He's come up with the ideas that I really like, and TO ME they communicate exactly what I wanted them to. The problem is that I can't be sure whether somebody would take the same message from the artwork WITHOUT knowing ahead of time what I wanted to perceive!I'd love to get some feedback about what this artwork 'says' to other people...
Dexikon is a deck-building spelling game. All cards have the same back, which looks (at the moment) like this:
How does the back feel to you? What theme do you take from it, and what does it say about the complexity/length of the game?
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The cards are split into two groups - four different core cards (which form the initial decks and are always available) and one stack of pool cards (six of which are on offer at any time). Three of the core cards share this style:
This card can be used as either an E or an S. It's not worth many points, but it's fairly flexible and you're unlikely to want to get rid of it - cf Penalty cards (no image yet), which are fully wild but lose points at the end of the game. What theme does the background evoke? Does it fit with the rest of the cards (below)?
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Green 'Cleanup' cards have an effect at the end of your turn if you use them in a word, usually letting you draw more cards in your next hand. They look like this:
What does the green pattern 'say'?
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Red 'Attack' cards dole out Penalty cards to your opponents, diluting the value of their deck and costing them points at the end of the game.
What does this pattern 'say'?
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Black 'End of the game' cards don't do anything for most of the game, only kicking in once the game end has been triggered.
What message do you get here?
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There are also Action cards (have an effect when played) and Response cards (defend against Attacks), but Simon is still working on those. It would be really helpful to find out whether the styles Simon has created (and which I love) are actually managing to communicate what they're supposed to - and to make sure I'm not just seeing what I want to see!