The Game Show Forum
The Game Show Forum => The Big Board => Topic started by: mxc0427 on December 28, 2010, 03:58:12 PM
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http://buzzerblog.flashgameshows.com/games/moneyvault/ (http://\"http://buzzerblog.flashgameshows.com/games/moneyvault/\")
Rules: Fifty cards line the Money Vault walls. Forty are Cash Cards ranging from $1,000 to $100,000. Ten are “Bail Cards”. If you choose a Cash Card the value will be revealed and you may place it in any of the ten available slots. Cash Cards must be placed from lowest in slot one to highest in slot ten. If you cannot place a card in an appropriate slot, the game is over. If you successfully place Cash Cards in all slots, you win the entire value of your bank. If you draw a “Bail Card” you are allowed to walk away with a portion of your winnings. You can walk with 5% of your bank for each Bail Card you draw. If you get stuck you are given two Key Cards. One is “Pass”, which lets you pass the Cash Card and draw again. The other is “Swap”, which lets you swap one of Cash Cards already placed for the card just drawn.
Strategy is everything in "Money Vault." As you close your gaps, the game gets tougher but much more exciting. With a leaderboard, you play against others from around the world! Can you beat the Money Vault?
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I like the game; after playing it a couple of times though I've had to turn the sound off. You might want to look into getting a professional voice-over artist to do the lines.
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[quote name=\'TeppanYaki\' post=\'253527\' date=\'Dec 28 2010, 04:15 PM\']I like the game; after playing it a couple of times though I've had to turn the sound off. You might want to look into getting a professional voice-over artist to do the lines.[/quote]
Ditto... Verbatim.
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What is "Xvid Codec"? I haven't heard of this...I'm assuming this is safe, but thought I'd ask here first.
Edit: The game started itself up this time. Pretty fun game--though I could go without the long, drawn out reveals that have become so stereotypical of today's game shows.
4/5
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It's just a video thing, Mark.
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I've been enjoying this game. I find myself getting far too riled up when I'm down to the last 2 or 3 open slots, considering that I'm playing for precisely zero real money. It's a fun round of high-stakes Rack-O.
One gameplay suggestion: picking all 10 bailout cards automatically awards the full bank. Or, to guard against the extremely slight possibility of grabbing all 10 before a single cash card, the option to walk with the current full bank.
[quote name=\'TeppanYaki\' post=\'253527\' date=\'Dec 28 2010, 03:15 PM\']I like the game; after playing it a couple of times though I've had to turn the sound off. You might want to look into getting a professional voice-over artist to do the lines.[/quote]
Yeah, the voice work could use some sprucing up. I'm available, by the way...
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I know the game is all about risk, but I'm not big on not offering a chance to stop.
Maybe offer a few automatic bailouts should be offered whether you find a bailout card or not. One for say, 10% if you place five cards, and then after 9 cards, maybe 20-25% of the final amount.
Either that or a small amount of money for each card placed, and you can walk with that.
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[quote name=\'Modor\' post=\'253533\' date=\'Dec 28 2010, 03:13 PM\']What is "Xvid Codec"? I haven't heard of this...I'm assuming this is safe, but thought I'd ask here first.[/quote]
Something that if you don't already have it installed, you really probably ought to.
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How are the values of the "Cash Cards" determined? Are they just randomly generated numbers between 1 and 100? That's important for game play, knowing that they aren't weighted to the high numbers or the low numbers. It's very well designed, both as a game and as a computer program.
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So Endemol Rack-O, with a bush league announcer.
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[quote name=\'Matt Ottinger\' post=\'253548\' date=\'Dec 28 2010, 09:46 PM\']How are the values of the "Cash Cards" determined? Are they just randomly generated numbers between 1 and 100? That's important for game play, knowing that they aren't weighted to the high numbers or the low numbers. It's very well designed, both as a game and as a computer program.[/quote]
Correct. They are randomly generated. As random as you can get! And, there is only one of each amount.
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[quote name=\'fostergray82\' post=\'253539\' date=\'Dec 28 2010, 04:12 PM\']I know the game is all about risk, but I'm not big on not offering a chance to stop.
Maybe offer a few automatic bailouts should be offered whether you find a bailout card or not. One for say, 10% if you place five cards, and then after 9 cards, maybe 20-25% of the final amount.
Either that or a small amount of money for each card placed, and you can walk with that.[/quote]If I'm producing, I ditch the bail out cards, and the Key Helps. If you place all ten cards sequentially, you win the total prizes on the board. I also allow the contestant to nominate two "pit stop" chances along the game, but only after three cards are on the board. If you reach that plateau, you can take the money that goes with that amount and wuss out, or press on and chuck the safety net.
In terms of the computer version, I would straight away get rid of the ascending cash values. I'd prefer not to have to wait that long to find out my card was $97,000."
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Doesn't work on my iMac?
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[quote name=\'gaubster2\' post=\'253558\' date=\'Dec 28 2010, 08:40 PM\']Doesn't work on my iMac?[/quote]
1) iMac or iPad? If the latter, yeah, it won't.
2) Update your Flash.
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I'm going to agree with a lot of what has been said.
The VOs are pretty weak, but then I seem to see that a lot these days (Ludia Games, anyone?).
The "suspenseful" money value climb also just becomes annoying after awhile. In fact, I posted this while waiting for some high values to climb. Yawn.
All that aside, I do think it's an interesting game. Just needs tweaking.
Also, you could allow a DonD style "Had you gone on..." scenario so that the player knows if he/she made a bad decision.
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[quote name=\'Sodboy13\' post=\'253538\' date=\'Dec 29 2010, 12:00 AM\']One gameplay suggestion: picking all 10 bailout cards automatically awards the full bank. Or, to guard against the extremely slight possibility of grabbing all 10 before a single cash card, the option to walk with the current full bank.[/quote]
Devising a special rule for a 10 billion-to-1 shot seems a little unnecessary.
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[quote name=\'Matt Ottinger\' post=\'253548\' date=\'Dec 28 2010, 08:46 PM\']How are the values of the "Cash Cards" determined? Are they just randomly generated numbers between 1 and 100? That's important for game play, knowing that they aren't weighted to the high numbers or the low numbers. It's very well designed, both as a game and as a computer program.[/quote]
This, exactly. Knowing what numbers are available changes the strategy.
-M
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[quote name=\'MyronMMeyer\' post=\'253573\' date=\'Dec 29 2010, 07:00 AM\'][quote name=\'Matt Ottinger\' post=\'253548\' date=\'Dec 28 2010, 08:46 PM\']How are the values of the "Cash Cards" determined? Are they just randomly generated numbers between 1 and 100? That's important for game play, knowing that they aren't weighted to the high numbers or the low numbers.[/quote]
This, exactly. Knowing what numbers are available changes the strategy.
[/quote]
Yes, but it makes it a different game (and rather closer to DoND). In the game we're given, there's a deck of 100 valued cards that's been shuffled, and 40 have been dealt onto the board. Play accordingly.
I see the suspense value, by the way, in the ascending number-reveal. Well, I would see it if we were playing for real money. For fun, yeah, not so much. Fun game, though.
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[quote name=\'Modor\' post=\'253533\' date=\'Dec 28 2010, 06:13 PM\']though I could go without the long, drawn out reveals that have become so stereotypical of today's game shows.[/quote]I like the reveal, maybe make it a bit faster like the way Pointless does (http://\"http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=t63CFSH7AMk#t=348s\") (of course ascending)?
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[quote name=\'tpirfan28\' post=\'253583\' date=\'Dec 29 2010, 11:27 AM\']I like the reveal, maybe make it a bit faster like the way Pointless does (http://\"http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=t63CFSH7AMk#t=348s\") (of course ascending)?[/quote]
There's always the (IMO, far superior) Power of 10 option (http://\"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wG65S9nUfXk&t=2m20s\").
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I don't have a problem with the reveal. The way it works now, once you have a few cards on the board adjacent to each other, you go through the following:
1) "Okay, we're in a safe zone, you can stop now."
2) "Okay, it would be REALLY good to stop here 'cuz you'd be close to another card."
3) "Oh, dammit, we're in a bad zone now, don't stop here."
4) "Okay, we're back in a safe zone, stop anytime..."
Using the Power Of 10 reveal would ruin all of that and be no better than just flipping the card over.
Which, for my way of thinking, works pretty well. I was also impressed at the way the reveal just jumps to the end at the point where you are officially screwed (because you are higher than the lowest card that does not have an empty slot above it). Thought that was a nice little touch to recognize that. A lot of people wouldn't.
Overall I liked the assessment of it being "high-stakes Rack-O." The first few cards play themselves, pretty much (since you don't know which 40 are on the board, you're kinda forced to assume it's an even distrubution and play them accordingly), but it definitely gets interesting after that.
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[quote name=\'clemon79\' post=\'253592\' date=\'Dec 29 2010, 03:26 PM\']I don't have a problem with the reveal. The way it works now, once you have a few cards on the board adjacent to each other, you go through the following:[/quote]
I wish it were a little faster, but that's just a quibble. As Chris said, it really has a nice bit of suspense. It made me wonder, if you were to turn it into a game show, how you could stage it with drawing cards (which is nice because it makes it feel authentic and honest) yet keep the dramatic reveal.
Terrific idea.
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One way would be to draw the cards and stick them into a slot.
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[quote name=\'gameboy2000\' post=\'253598\' date=\'Dec 29 2010, 01:17 PM\']One way would be to draw the cards and stick them into a slot.[/quote]
Exactly what I was thinking, and you could probably get away with that in this day and age.
The problem with that (and, again, in this age of gameboards on video screens and CGI and such, nobody cares, sadly) is that now as a viewer at home I have no physical proof that the card they chose matters one whit.
That said, here's a compromise that could fly and make everyone happy: Retrieve card, stick in slot, do dramatic reveal. Then, after, host pulls card out of slot and opens it to reveal physical pre-printed dollar value.
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There's two big problems as the game stands. (And this is just the game; not if you're making it as a game show or anything)
1) I'm not winning stuff. The tease-thing doesn't work because I'm not playing for anything. "Aw shucks, that card didn't fit. Oh well." I wasn't getting excited/deflated as the tally neared my valleys and passed over my "bad" areas, because there isn't a stake in it.
2) the game really plays itself. If you do what I did and play the averages, you will end up with roughly a 10% chance of winning the game if you get down to the last placement. The one time that I hit the dumb button was placing 38 in the three-spot, forgetting that the first spot is one through ten, and then moving up. If you do what's sensible, like place a card where it will do the least harm, or it will give you the biggest gap possible, then that's the sum total of the strategy at hand.
It looks nice, and there are nice touches like not dragging out the tedium when it is obvious that you lost, but I just can't see myself going back to play again and again.
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[quote name=\'TLEberle\' post=\'253615\' date=\'Dec 29 2010, 08:22 PM\']1) I'm not winning stuff. The tease-thing doesn't work because I'm not playing for anything. "Aw shucks, that card didn't fit. Oh well." I wasn't getting excited/deflated as the tally neared my valleys and passed over my "bad" areas, because there isn't a stake in it.[/quote]
If you're playing it as a gambling game, sure. If you're playing it as a hmm-I-want-to-see-if-I-can-place-ten-cards game, it works better. But, yes, the "do you want to stop or go on?" cards don't interest me in the slightest.
2) the game really plays itself.
That's what I meant about the first few cards. Once you've seen a couple more, and you've had to place them someplace you wouldn't because its "home slot" is unoccupied, it spices up a little.
But, yes, until such time as you can't, you're gonna play the averages, and unless the cards chosen ARE a representative distrubution, it's probably going to bite you in the ass at some point. :)
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I have felt some suspense at the slow count-up of the card towards the end of the game waiting to see if it fits where I want it, but it's more annoying at the beginning.
Maybe if it's possible to make the count go progressively slower as the game goes on. As in card one reveals immediately and each one gets a little slower until the tenth card counts up at the current speed.
Granted I know nothing about programming (I'm sure Lemon could chime in here), and I don't know how easy that would be to do, but it would be a nice addition.
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[quote name=\'LA the DJ\' post=\'253635\' date=\'Dec 30 2010, 12:33 AM\']Granted I know nothing about programming (I'm sure Lemon could chime in here)[/quote]
Well, I'm hardly an expert myself. :)
But the nutshell is this: Sure, if you really felt like it, it would be pretty trivial to ramp down the reveal speed over the course of the first X cards, until you got to the point you wanted to level it off at. Most likely, just doing that would achieve the desired effect most of the time.
The possible problem is that in some games, you're going to have occasion to put two cards next to each other early on, and as soon as *that* situation is in play (and the possibility exists that the next card ends the game or forces the use of a lifeline) you'd probably want to go directly to the slowest reveal. And that's going to look kinda jarring, I think. Certainly it's an easy situation to trap for, but then as a hobbyist you have to ask yourself if it's really worth the effort. :)
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are the amounts determined as the game starts or after you draw
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[quote name=\'toetyper\' post=\'253657\' date=\'Dec 30 2010, 01:19 PM\']are the amounts determined as the game starts or after you draw[/quote]
Doesn't matter in terms of actual gameplay so long as a value isn't repeated, but I would wager that he populates the array before the game starts. Easier to manage later thay way.
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[quote name=\'clemon79\' post=\'253620\' date=\'Dec 29 2010, 08:59 PM\']That's what I meant about the first few cards. Once you've seen a couple more, and you've had to place them someplace you wouldn't because its "home slot" is unoccupied, it spices up a little.[/quote]I actually played this sort of game as a solitaire exercise as a youth; to see if I could make a pyramid of ten cards without goofing. And it works as a timewaster while waiting for Halftime to be over or for your friend to get there. But I'm not crushed if I lose or don't make the leaderboard. The big thing for me is that the game still doesn't require much from me. I'd rather play Wurfel Bingo, and at that with a group of friends. I may have to play a roll that will wreck a row, but I can choose wether to fish or cut bait, or work on a four-of-a-kind, and so on. In Rack-O there's either a place to play it or there ain't.
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[quote name=\'TLEberle\' post=\'253687\' date=\'Dec 30 2010, 09:40 PM\']The big thing for me is that the game still doesn't require much from me.[/quote]
I agree. It's probably sad that I am holding this above Deal Or No Deal just because there's something other than stop-or-go to it.
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[quote name=\'clemon79\' post=\'253688\' date=\'Dec 30 2010, 11:54 PM\'][quote name=\'TLEberle\' post=\'253687\' date=\'Dec 30 2010, 09:40 PM\']The big thing for me is that the game still doesn't require much from me.[/quote]
I agree. It's probably sad that I am holding this above Deal Or No Deal just because there's something other than stop-or-go to it.
[/quote]
Well - there hasn't been any gimmicks thrown in yet.
/oh - you meant gameplay