Interview Cardgame

The collector’s edition of the game comes with a special gift – a card game of The Guild 3.

– Please tell us how the idea came about?

In the last 30 years, I had a lot of ideas for games – parlor games, pen & paper rp-games and video games. But 99% of those ideas are just notes in my notebooks – and I have a lot of them in my drawer. The idea for the card game started growing a few years ago. But it was in the autumn of last year, when I brought the gameplay elements of “The Guild 3” together with the ideas of rules for the card game. As ever, I wrote my notes. Some evenings later – TV was boring as hell – I started designing the first cards and a week later, there was the prototype…

– How well does the card game matches the actual video game?

It is not a one-on-one copy of the video game. But the card game is based on the main gameplay elements of the video game: economy, politics, intrigues and roleplay. We have artifacts that help you or that can be used against your opponents. And we have different actions. You gain experience points with every action that you take. Thus you climb up the social ranks, which grant you more power.

– Which gameplay elements from the video game did you left out, and why?

I tried to make the game as much complex as possible without overwhelming the players with rules and/or possibilities. The time you need for the card game is another important factor, because too much complexity slows down the gameflow and may be boring for the players. Nevertheless it was my goal to create a card game that fits in The Guild series. So the Societies are not part of the card game, same as historical and random events, because it was just too much. But I kept all the ideas for a possible add-on to the card game – around 34 of these cards are already designed 🙂

– What’s the most enjoyable part of playing the card game?

In the beginning, you mainly concentrated on building businesses, buying artifacts, heighten your political influence and trade with your opponents. But then, when that basis is set, you start fighting your opponents with offensive actions or dastardly intrigues. And this is what makes the most fun to me; to see the played anger and laughing at the other players, while I place a bomb at their business or I poison one of their “own” office holders. And when the “Town Hall” was built and someone calls out the mayoral election in the next round, everyone becomes hectic and tries to win as much votes as possible – or “destroy” votes of his opponents. That’s the best part.

– Do you have plans to offer the card game as a standalone product?

I invented the card game as goody for the video game. And I am not in charge to make such a decision. But I think it depends first and foremost on what the players think of the card game. I am eager for the feedback.