Our team is current planning on a game that combines monopoly with gambling/RNG elements. Here are some questions that can be answered through prototyping.
1. How much control should the players have over RNG/gambling components of the game?
This is important because the decision making of the players. Too little control over RNG would be too similar to simple dice rolling, and too much control removes the randomness coming from the mechanic.
To prototype this, several RNG minigames can be made and tested to see player’s experience. For example, if we were to add a slot machine mechanic, we can make versions where the results are fully random versus where players can arrange tokens to skew the results to their favor.
I expect that giving players a small amount of control would make the game more fun and engaging.
2. Would players that go last have a major disadvantage?
In the very first round of the game, if the prior players purchase up all the properties in the first few tiles, the last player may start at an disadvantage with fewer property to purchase and a higher chance to pay rent to other players.
To answer this through prototyping, we can test several starting tiles arrangement and play only one round to see the results.
I expect that having more RNG-based events in the beginning may help bring down the disadvantage that the last player has.
3. How can we encourage more direct interactions between players?
In the monopoly base game, direct interactions are relatively few, typically through paying rent. More direct interactions can help promote the social mediation aspect of the game.
To prototype this, we plan to try out individual mechanisms we have brainstormed for the game, such as loans and auctions.
This informs us whether these mechanics add to the fun in the game and promotes social interactions between players.
