Building a Card Game

We’re on a mission to rid the world of grudge training. Most of what we do is online, but we’re increasingly helping firms with face-to-face delivery too — because standing at the front of a room and lecturing at people just does not work.

That’s where CRUX card games come in. Tabletop games designed to get people thinking, discussing, and making decisions — not just sitting there waiting for it to end.

Source of Funds

The latest addition to the range tackles source of funds. The key issue? The person carrying out the assessment needs the right level of curiosity — and then has to record their decision in a way that still makes sense years later, when entirely different people might be looking at the file.

We worked with Tom Lyes to build something that develops those core skills without ever feeling like a training exercise.

Starting with the end in mind

Like all our games, we start with a simple question: what do we want people to be able to do differently after playing? What are the core skills? How do we get them through the process with zero fluff?

From there it’s about building the game loop — trying different mechanics to see how they carry the player through the journey, testing what clicks and what falls flat.

Prototyping and playtesting

Then comes the prototype. And when we say prototype, we mean handwritten cards on scraps of brown paper. Nothing polished — just enough to find out if the game actually works. We play it internally and with customers to get honest, immediate feedback. Once we’re confident, we build a low-fidelity version for extended playtesting with real groups.

Into production

When the gameplay is solid, the real build begins. High-fidelity artwork. Colours that pop. A board people actually want to pick up. A facilitator guide so anyone can run a session straight out of the box.

Then it’s the waiting game — fingers tapping whilst the manufacturer does their thing. It takes time, but there’s nothing quite like that first unboxing when the finished game finally arrives.