So I really love the Alien films. Specifically I love the semiotic standard symbols in the first Alien movie designed by Ron Cobb. It's a great bit of work, labelling systems and spaceship modules in a way that attempts to make it universal. A new attempt at transcending language barriers in a world where your crew can come from different cultures and planets.
I recently became aware of play-in-hand card games, single-player games where the player manipulates a deck of cards in hand by changing their order, turning them, flipping them, etc. Galdor's Grip is a great example of this.
So me being me and having this ongoing fixation with Alien and a new fixation on simple card games you can play sort of whenever, and with Backerkit doing this special event all about games you can fit in your pocket...
So I made a card game. It's called Escape the Kronos. You are trying to escape a deadly alien as it chases you through a ship, and you need to track down the rest of your crew and unlock the lifeboat before it kills you.
The base game is just 13 cards you hold in your hand, and by following the instruction sets on each card you move cards, turn cards, and navigate through the ship. All the while that alien is advancing on you, hunting you, getting angry and hungry and damaging the ship.
The design of the cards is inspired by Ron Cobb's semiotic standard. No card names, rather trying to present the ship modules, personnel, etc. with clear simple graphic design. Same for the game rules. The instructions on the left side of the card tell you what you can do, with the exact rules in the rulebook.
Here you can see me playing a few rounds and talking about the game:
I'm funding the game through Backerkit so I can do a print run of cards through DriveThruRPG. Each backer also gets early access to the game's print and play files, so you can start playing it right away if you'd like. I'll be working on more printer friendly versions, and additional ways to play. I'm still not 100% happy with the art on the cards, but it's pretty close I think. All told the game will be printed on 20 card totals in a custom tuckbox.
A lot of firsts in this project. First time on Backerkit. First game with custom cards. First time getting cards printed. So it's scary. Not running in terror from an alien as your spaceship falls apart around you, but still. Unknown things are scary.
So yeah. If you like Alien and single player card games check it out. Tell your friends about it maybe.
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