From idea to software:
The First Prototype:
In the initial stages, the game has been conceptualized and delivered on roll20.net platform. Being a long-term Dungeon Master and a player of D&D as well as similar games, I have believed myself to be familiar enough with the platform. While, with the parameters and assets I have included in the game have allowed for a successful resolution, the technology involved proven rather uncooperative.
In accordance with my initial goal within the AGILE methodology framework, the game was tested for the time it took to resolve, as well as the ability to resolve at all. The goals were met and are further reflected upon in the game design section. While I have created a simple graphic montage to represent the abdominal structures, the artwork and the narrative were at the time not prioritised for development.
Having an online platform has proved invaluable during the lockdown situation of the years 2020 and 2021. Overall, when comparing to the later versions of the game, the structure - the dice, the modular board arranged into four 3x3 quadrants have conserved into the future versions.
The project went on a hiatus while I was busy with other submissions. I have flirted with the idea of using the Tabletop Simulator. While the software had more polished gameplay, it suffered the same issue as the roll20. The technology needed an orientation session before proceeding with the gameplay instructions. Moreover, Tabletop Simulator is a licensed commercial software -as such additional copies of the game had to be bought and securely shared. Overall, the mechanics of the Tabletop Simulator proven themselves to be quite conducive to the gameplay and while the financial investment coupled with the software's obscurity have ultimately made it unfeasible as a testing platform, it can be successfully used to play the game in the future.
Made in Fablab:
The Second Prototype:
Having completed my other assignments and with the covid restrictions easing, I have been granted access to the FabLab maker space within the John Lennon Art School. I was introduced to and learned some functional skills in Corel Draw and the use of laser printers. After the first (55x55mm) cardboard tile prototypes were successfully fabricated, I ordered four sets of 60 differently coloured 10mm six-sided dice. I have chosen 10mm version for the balance between readability, portability and price. Purchasing said 240 dice including the shipment costed me £24.59 on a retail price. I have researched the wholesale custom dice prices and the overall cost came down to below 6 pence per custom printed die if bought in large enough quantities, the cost of dice per game set would be £14.40.
The design was tested with the MDF and the plywood. Early versions included an etched design, that later became the tract pattern. There was an initial issue with one of the laser cutters and the etched pattern board elements, could not be used later. For the sake of expediency non-etched tiles were printed for the further testing. Each tile was sized 60x60mm and had 10 mm niches for the dice. I had originally intended the dice niches to allow for easy tile reversing. As an unintentional effect, the empty niches help to secure the dice in place to avoid accidental moving of the dice.
After the fabrication of all the elements, I have painted them. The tiles were primed with a range of spray paints and coated them in four colours - some of them fleshtonnes. Later, I have used POSCA acrylic markers to draw the patterns upon the tiles. Initially, I have intended to use white as the tract colour and add red and pink to represent the connective tissue and the blood vessels. I have later decided to limit the colour use to two - the negative space of a base coat and the white of the tract. It made for what I found a cleaner, more readable layout. After the dice have arrived, I have discovered that some of the niches were not large enough for the dice to fit in easily. After some closed playtesting, I have returned to the Fab Lab and the printing studios to fabricate the third prototype.
The Sum of Lessons Learned:
The Third prototype:
When approaching the third prototyping run, I have compiled the lessons of previous runs. I have enjoyed the empty niches as dice receptacles and I have further decided to forgo the laser etching, as it would become redundant or even detrimental to the later paintwork. The dice niches had their size increased to 11mm each side. I had tested the safety and feasibility of cutting the painted MDF material and found to my positive surprise that it is not only safe to laser cut printed material, but also, it leaves no significant singing.
Previous prototype has been visibly a handmade object without a polished standardised quality and as such I have elected to use silk printing for the board pieces finish. Initially, I had planned four different negative space colours, in congruence with the second prototype. I did consider using a metallic undercoat and only two print colours for a "special release" edition. Because of the time constraints imposed by the summer break and covid-related workshop closures, I had to default to the second approach instead.
Using a lightbox, ink brush and some measuring tools I have created a stylised layout of the small intestine with the visible villi. The resulting layout was then scanned and transferred to a screen using an UV-reactive medium.
The silk printing has shown itself to be a more time-consuming and labour-intensive process than anticipated. Also, it required juggling utmost precision in print placement, with acting fast enough not to let the printing medium dry on the template. Minimal alignment issues were observed on the MDF prototypes, however the plywood turned to be too uneven and flexible to make for a good material. As such, MDF painted and varnished is as it stands the choice material for the board tiles.
Lastly, for the purpose of worldbuilding, I have attempted to create custom vinyl-cut cardholders shaped after common bacterial specimen. While the size of the prints was smaller than anticipated, these proven to be a conversation piece in later tests.
Lastly, the concept of cards has been later introduced to the game. The card art was drawn by hand using inkpens and ink brushes. It was later scanned and manipulated in the Adobe Illustrator. 80g card stock of colours matching the board pieces was purchased to later print out the cards. While initially confident, I would be able to produce the cards using printers and guillotines available for the students, I have found out it would be an extremely wasteful and imprecise process least I had access to the Fab Lab, which was unavailable at the time.
Overall, I am happy with the results and I now possess a wealth of knowledge and working files, I can use for further production runs. In future iterations, I will likely either outsource the board tile production to an external body, or use a stencil and paintbrush over paint roller as my painting approach. Also, for the sake of sustainability I would like the final product to use a biodegradable material instead of vinyl and wooden dice. For the access to the raw production files click. For the playtesting logs click.