TCTC’s Proto-Alley is sponsored by Panda Game Manufacturing.
Proto-Alley is a space for game designers to showcase and playtest their latest game designs. Meet our local and not-so-local designers, play games that are in-development, and learn about the game creating process.
Legends Will Fall
Designers: Tyler Holman and Sam Cristall
Players: 2-6
Play time: 60-120 mins
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In Legends Will Fall, each player controls a pair of historical legendary warriors. From the mighty Leonidas of Sparta to the violent and elusive Jack the Ripper. All have been ripped from their respective timelines and thrust into a ruthless battle for ultimate glory. While there is plenty of direct conflict, you may also, (if you dare) tempt fate and face the horrors that lay beneath The Arena. Beware! even if you bring down your opposition, they are not eliminated. Instead they return to haunt The Arena as Fallen Warriors with new abilities and objectives.
Wizard Thieves
Designer: Jeremy Rozenhart
Players: 2-6
Play time: 15 mins
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Wizard Thieves is a pocket sized, reflex sharpening card game of meddling magic and thrilling thievery. Cast portals, throw bombs, and use the infamous Gauntlet of Stealing to steal treasures from your friends! Avoid being to hasty and becoming cursed, and win the game by taking all your opponents’ precious loot for your own.
City Builders: Rome
Designer: Andrei Filip
Players: 1-4
Play time: 10-40 mins
City Builders: Rome is a competitive city building game for 1-4 players set in the early days of the Roman Republic. In order to win the players will have to cleverly use tiles to build their districts to match the requirements of incoming citizens. The layouts evolve organically as players strive to both attract citizens to their cities as well as fulfill end-game victory conditions on monuments they build throughout the game.
Chicken Heist
Designers: Nathan Ngai, Simpson Siu, Newton Tse, Dawn Yin, Brooks Lai
Players: 3-8
Play time: 15-30 mins
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You and your friends are in a dangerous heist where trouble awaits at every corner. You may work as a team or throw your friends under the bus to avoid getting caught! With the police hot on your tails, will you make another run to the vault or takeoff in the getaway truck
Jungle Dash
Designers: Steven Baird and Elya DeVolder
Players: 2-4
Play time: 15-30 mins
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Jungle Dash is a fast-paced dice rolling game for 2-4 players with push your luck and attack your friends mechanics. Hack your way with a machete, traverse rickety bridges, and slog your way through knee-deep mud as the jungle reveals itself before you. Be the first to successfully navigate the dangers and make it back to safety.
Better Days
Designers: Michael Xuereb and Jon Benjamin
Players: 2-4
Play time: 60 mins
Marty has suffered several setbacks in their life. As friends and family you are trying your best to help Marty improve their relationships, physical health, and mental health. You can see how small changes will compound into huge gains, allowing Marty to overcome their setbacks and obtain their life goals. You only have so much time with Marty so plan your activities carefully. With your help Marty can expect many Better Days!
Day at the Beach
Designers: Michael Xuereb and Jon Benjamin
Players: 2-4
Play time: 45 mins
It’s a beautiful day at the beach and you’ve decided to build a sandcastle with your friends. It quickly becomes a competition to have your design elements stand out. Not to mention, the beach is a dangerous place for a sandcastle, as dogs, kites, and toddlers threaten to undo your hard work! Each turn you will attempt to place your toys and sand blocks in order to earn sand dollars. When the clouds roll in the day at the beach is over and whoever contributed the most to the sandcastle (has the most sand dollars) can boast to their friends.
Paper Pinball
Designer: Robin Gibson
Players: 1
Play time: 5 mins
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Paper Pinball is a dice game that tries to capture the feeling of playing pinball. All you will need is a pencil, three dice, and about five minutes. Each round, roll two dice and fill in one of the scoring zones. Some zones need to be filled in a certain way, and most will cause some sort of effect, so the order you fill them in is important. If you ever can’t fill a zone, you’ll lose a ball. Lose three balls and the game is over. Try to fill as many scoring zones as possible while triggering multipliers, opening tunnels, and getting the coveted multiball.
MiSDIRECT
Designer: Les Romhanyi
Players: 4
Play time: 5-30 mins
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MiSDIRECT is a strategic, memory game that is quick to learn and easy to play. Players compete to be the first to reach the center of the board while trying to prevent others from doing the same. Paths are revealed to players as they navigate the board but do they stay true for the win or do they MiSDIRECT to prevent a loss? MiSDIRECT is a great socializing, family game for ages 8 to 80.
Ophiuchus, The 13th Zodiac Sign
Designer: Rodolphe Destombes
Players: 4-6
Play time: 120 mins
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In this strategy game of negotiation and territory control, you embody an animal spirit aiming to spread its influence. The action takes place on the celestial sky, a borderless map allowing players to engage in bold manoeuvres. Initiate combat, outwit your opponents, or forge alliances to create powerful and swift mythical creatures. Beware, however! Ophiuchus is set on becoming The 13th Zodiac Sign and may very well ruin everybody’s plans…
Honor | The Boardgame
Designers: Javier Lavalle & Marisa Arteaga
Players: 2-4
Play time: 120 mins
Honor, The Boardgame, is a City Building Strategy board game inspired in post-WW2 Japan, where the players will collaborate and, at the same time, compete between them, to try to reconstruct and bring back to life an ancient Japanese village, that was brought down to the ground after the war.
Bishops, Baylies & the Baron
Designers: Kennedy Goodkey & Jason Kurylo
Players: 2
Play time: 15 mins
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Two Allied WWI pilots vie to be the flying ace that shoots down the Red Baron. Fast paced. Card based.
Exploding Tracks
Designer: Zach Bearinger
Players: 2-4
Play time: 45-60 mins
Exploding Tracks is a track laying train game with an explosive twist. Maneuver your train around the placed tracks picking up passengers and detonating tracks to leave opponents in the dust.
Hunt: Mesoamerica
Designer: Zach Bearinger
Players: 2-6
Play time: 60-75 mins
Hunt: Mesoamerica is a co-operative 1 vs all hunt and fight. First hunters must find the monster then they will fight the monster. Breaking parts will change how hunters have to attack and how much the monster can do.
“The Heist” Cops and Robbers
Designer: Adan Palma
Players: 2-5
Play time: 60-90 mins
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The Heist – Cops and Robbers is a strategy/hidden movement game in which you as the player will assume the identity of a Robber or a Cop and be the first to achieve your end goal. Robbers: Each Robber must hit 5 out of the 6 target buildings individually given to you by the Mafia Boss at the beginning of the game and escape into an available safe house to deliver your stash. Cops: Utilize the clues provided to you by the Robbers to catch and arrest the bad guys before they escape.
Opticall
Designer: Logan Carlstrom
Players: 2-5
Play time: 10-25 mins
website
Opticall is a strategic bluffing card game. Players take turns playing six different colors on a central pile until someone is caught bluffing by another player. The final player left in the game becomes the winner. Like Bull Sh*t/Cheat with intricate strategy.
Steam Up! A Feast of Dim Sum
Designers: Pauline Kong, Marie Wong, & Haymen Lee
Players: 2-5
Play time: 45-60 mins
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Steam Up: A Feast of Dim Sum is a light-medium weight Dim Sum set collection game. Players representing different animals will feast on Dim Sum to compete for the most Hearty Points that give players energy and strength in preparation for the Great Race. Who will be the most prepared for the race to claim the title as one of the Chinese Zodiacs? Come, let’s feast on Dim Sum together and find out!
Crimson Sands
Designer: Allan Noordvyk
Players: 2-4
Play time: 20 mins/player
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A game of strategy and memory. You are a merchant who run caravans of strange beasts across a desert wasteland map of routes connecting your home city with 3 others. Your goal is to amass the most prestige before the end of the last season in the game. Prestige is gained by successfully sending caravans between cities, spending gold gained through this trade on status symbols / public works, and by being successful in battle against the raiders who prey on your caravans.
Monstercat DJ Game
Designers: Colin Kierans & Jess Mitchell
Players: 2-5
Play time: 30-45 mins
You are all DJs playing songs to a thriving dancefloor. Play the right music to the right dancers to score the most points.
Nuke?
Designer: Thomas Hanna
Players: 3-7
Play time: 20-30 mins
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Can you trust your friends? Can they trust you? Nuke? puts you and your frenemies in the hot-seat as the world’s elite, vying for control over the global economy. Do whatever it takes to finish with the best portfolio of assets. Trade, negotiate and maneuver your way to the top in this fast paced game of wit, daring deals and explosive fun!
Additional games being demoed: “Family Crest” (by Thomas Hanna), “Delve the Depths” (by Mark Yuasa), “Infinite Monkey” and “Roll Over” (by Mark Ellis)
Panguli
Designer: Jane Galbraith
Players: 2-6
Play time: 30-60 mins for 2 player, 60-90 mins for 3+ players
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You and your friends have come to this mysterious island in a race to find the mystical creatures who live here. Through jungles, mountains and savannas you will search for your creatures and the magical gems that you need to transform them into things that you have only imagined in your wildest dreams. Who will be the first to reach the Cave of Wonders with their newly-transformed creatures and create the Ultimate Creature, the Panguli, and win the game?
Darn It!
Designers: Tucky Aalto & Pidgy Aalto
Players: 2-4
Play time: 60 mins
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Darn It! is a SUPER SOFT deck-building game! Fill your deck with Supplies and Spare Parts to repair these bygone bears. Gather your tools and choose your parts wisely, to re-FUR-bish these plush pals for a loving new home! Match your completed bears to the perfect Recipient, to maximize your points and win the game! :3
DIE21
Designers: Kyle McMurray & Dan Coleman
Players: 2-4
Play time: 15-30 mins
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Lykeland Games, (the makers of ‘WORDOS’) introduce DIE21 – A piece placement game where players are trying to obtain strategic positions on a board that is laid out as a dice! Your roll of the dice will affect where you can place or remove a piece of your choice. Build your positions, sabotage your opponent(s), and complete your DIE21 pattern before anyone else to win the game!
‘Tis Mutiny!
Designers: Tom Bauslaugh & Trevor Bradley
Players: 3-5
Play time: 30 mins
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‘Tis Mutiny – A game of cutthroat competition set in the golden age of piracy. Obey the Captain, or seize control of your destiny with a well-timed mutiny. Raid and plunder your way to prosperity, notoriety, or infamy as the flexible win conditions let you choose your own path to victory. Part strategy and part social, this is a game where none, some, or all players can win.
Titania World of Magic
Designer: Michael Goodman
High Fantasy and Tech meet head to head in this new and customizable gaming experience. Shoot down past expectations of what an RPG is supposed to be like and aim for the heavens. Go on adventures, build castles and even raise to the ranks of the gods themselves! Witness table combat like you have never seen it before! Join us as we explain the basics and introduce you to a whole new world of magic!