By: Kay Anderson
Before our project 3 meeting adjourned, we decided to play a card-game called Coup to get more sense of deck-building games. It is essentially a game of deduction and bluffing. It was my first time playing this game and I found the overall experience to be really fun and exciting – and a little toxic (lol).
The rules were concise and straightforward, and so even if we didn’t have someone who has played the game before (which we did), I’m sure we would’ve been able to figure it out quickly. Additionally, the compact size of the game made it easy for impromptu gaming sessions, so playing after we worked on our project is basically how we adjourned our meetings. With its short playtime and dynamic gameplay, each session offered a fresh experience as we could adapt our strategies with new characters and engage in psychological warfare with each other.
To begin, each player represents a powerful figure in society – such as a Duke, Assassin, or Contessa – each with their unique abilities to influence the game. Based on the design of cards, I imagined this game to take place in a futuristic and tech-based world. The goal is to eliminate opponents’ “influence” by forcing them to reveal their character cards, essentially through clever manipulation. In my opinion, this game was psychological warfare at its peak. Throughout the game, players take turns collecting coins, launching assassinations and coups, and using their characters or alleged characters to gain an edge.
However, there was a catch. Since players can claim to have any character, even if they don’t possess it, other players can choose to challenge them if they don’t believe them. If they do have the card, the player challenging them would lose a character, revealing it to everyone. If they don’t have the card, the player that was challenged would lose a character of their choosing, also revealing it to the table. Keep in mind that everyone starts with two cards, so bluffing and misdirection are crucial skills, as one wrong move can quickly lead to exposure and/or elimination.
So it was important to weigh our choices carefully, anticipating and keeping track of everyone’s move, and adapting our strategies accordingly.
