It might be time for a pivot.

When I started this blog, my intent was to chronicle the design, development, and testing of Disco Candybar — one of the most ambitious game designs I’ve ever attempted. At a minimum, it would record the history of a project that rose from curiosity and opportunity. At its best potential, it might have been an incredible preamble to a published project.

I’m not saying that the second version of the story will never happen. Hell, in the last playtest I ran for it, one reviewer commented that it could be one of the most compelling and original game experiences around… but it would take a LOT of work and time to fully realize.

At that same playtest, I showed a newer game I’ve put significantly less time and planning into. Despite the lower sweat-equity invested in the more recent game, it consistently came away with stronger scores than Disco Candybar, and was estimated to be closer to a finished product, with significantly less strain to get there.

The game has a name, but I’m hesitant to print it here; it gives away too much of the gameplay. Frankly, the fact that the name alone can inform players of so much of the gameplay is probably a good thing, as instant familiarity helps get the game to the table quickly. But for a game I’m currently pitching to publishers, I’d prefer to keep a little bit behind the curtain so that there’s still some drama in the eventual reveal.

For purposes of talking about it here, I’ll give it a codename. “Disco Candybar” is a nonsensical name that’s just fun to say, and this new game deserves something like that too. It’s definitely less mysterious and ambitious than Disco Candybar (the game, not the name) is though, so maybe a more directly applicable codename makes more sense.

What I’ll tell you (which, honestly, you could have deduced already from the preview image for this post and the photo I posted in Eating the Frog, or Playtesting for Mental Health) is that it’s a small-box card game. It’s also got a bit of a “comfort food” vibe; not quite a “cozy” game, as is trendy right now, but still something that feels like a cartoon-filled Saturday morning with no pressing responsibilities. PB&Js. Cinnamon rolls. Grilled cheese and tomato soup.

I’m going to call this one “Goldbug”, at least here in the blog.

There’s a slight degree of pun to it all, but it’s highly unlikely anyone’s going to pull the correct meaning from just seven letters. Part of what I love about the name is the direct callout of a beloved childrens book character (look to the Richard Scarry Busytown picture books); Goldbug was a character you searched for in every spread. He’s sort of an unspecified game hidden within a story, and my game was initially created to be a bit of a strategy game hidden in a very basic classic card game.

If Disco Candyfactory and discocandybar.com are going to grow to make more room for other game design stories, I might as well start with Goldbug’s. (No name imminent name change for the site or URL; rebranding after aligning other pieces to point people here would be inefficient.)

The beginnings of Goldbug actually came from a pretty snarky joke about a game my friends at The Op had helped develop and publish. Flip 7 is a simple but very catchy card game that can be described as “Blackjack, but for gamers”. The effectiveness of the recipe is pretty apparent the first time you play Flip 7; its similarities to Blackjack make it immediately graspable, while the innovative twists it puts on the classic casino game make it fresh, new, and addictive.

“The trick,” I joked a few weeks ago with an associate, “would be to take the most basic card game I find, and remake it so that gamers would actually pick it up again”. As if the formula was actually so easy. Turns out, it might have been.

Generally speaking, that formula has several things going for it.

• It roots the game in something people already know, and can therefore pick up, play, and teach quickly.
• It refreshes the source material with new twists that appeal to players looking for a little more depth and strategy — without turning off those who haven’t specifically sought those twists out.
• It’s easy to produce, even in a tariff-choked economy, and can potentially be made domestically.
• It fits in a small box, and can usually be retailed at a surprisingly low price, increasing accessibility.

And then there’s the unexpected element that is likely about to make the gamer audience give these kinds of game even more consideration:

• Earlier this week, Flip 7 was nominated for a Spiel des Jahres, verifying that the formula can garner not just commercial, but also critical success.

For those unfamiliar with the Spiel des Jahres (or SdJ), they’re effectively the global Oscars of board games. Just getting a nomination typically boosts your game’s profile considerably, and that can quickly translate to more attention, reviews, and most importantly, sales. A win puts you in company with some of the most iconic games of the last several decades.

Of course I’m biased, but I feel like Goldbug is hitting very similar notes to Flip 7. Immediately accessible, but with enough depth to satisfy gamers? Check. Easy to make? Check. Consumer-friendly pricing? Check. SdJ nomination? Remains to be seen.

I’ve got both physical and digital prototypes of Goldbug ready and available for demos, and print-and-play files for building more prototypes have already been shipped to curious parties. It’s been playtested with a wide variety of players, spanning a spectrum of “gamer types”.

In one of those tests, a player commented, unprompted, that Goldbug would, even in its current form, replace Flip 7 for them as the game they’d teach their non-gamer friends at parties. You can take it or dismiss it as you wish. Personally, I’ll take it.

My next step is probably to start booking more show-and-tells with other designers and publishers, like I did for Disco Candybar. For as proud and excited as I was about that game, I think — without hesitation — that Goldbug is the more relatable and marketable game. If either one is going to help make a stronger reputation for me, it’s the latter.

While I keep knocking on doors with it, wish me luck.

And point any curious testers and publishers my way…

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