BlackJack Brawl is a fresh take on the classic card game of Blackjack, with exciting new twists. Inspired by the indie game Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers, it adds unique mechanics to make the gameplay more fun and action-packed. Players face off against a computer opponent in rounds of Blackjack, where winning a round damages the loser’s health. The game ends when one player’s HP drops to zero.
Special cards and power-ups spice things up, letting players turn the tables and add new strategies to the game. These features make each match unique and exciting. BlackJack Brawl takes a classic game and turns it into an intense, fun-filled battle.
Web-playable version of your game.
In this section, explain how the game should be played. Treat this as a manual within a game. Explaining the button mappings and the most optimal gameplay strategy is encouraged.
In BlackJack Brawl, the player plays a modified version of blackjack with augmented rules against a computer enemy. In regular blackjack, the player(s) and the dealer take turns drawing a random card from your deck (aka "hitting") and adding its value to their total. The players stop when they feel they don't need to draw more cards (aka "standing"). Whoever gets closest to a total of 21 without going over is the winner. If you go over 21, you "bust" and automatically lose.
There are four "classes" of deck in BlackJack Brawl (2 defense and 2 offense): Club, Spades, Heart, and Diamond.
- Club: deals 1.5x damage to the opponent when you win
- Spades: when you win with a hand of 21, deal double damage to the opponent
- Heart: when you win, heal yourself half of the amount of damage you do
- Diamond: when you win with a hand of 21, heal 21 hp
Before the game begins, the player selects what suit they want their deck to be. This adds an element of strategization to the game, as the player must consider their playstyle and what type of power up they think will benefit them the most. This turns blackjack from a wholly luck based game to a part luck part skill game. The enemy is also assigned a suit.
There are also 5 special cards that are included in the player's deck, each with a special effect. You can click the cards on the table to see them
- Uno Stop: forcibly end the enemy's turn, worth 5 points
- Uno +2: add 2 points to your enemy's total, worth 2 points
- Tarot The Fool: increase your max score limit by 1 point, worth 0 points
- Aggie Card: add 5 HP to yourself, worth 5 points
- Joker: deal a random amount of damage between 1 and 10 to the enemy, worth 5 points
The special cards add a new dimension of gameplay not present to normal blackjack. There is a tradeoff between how useful a special card's effect is and how many points is worth. Thus, drawing a special card with a good effect may be very useful to you, but the better the effect the more points its worth, the more danger there is that you bust.
When the game starts, the player and the enemy both begin with 100 hp. Each round proceeds the same as normal blackjack, with the player and enemy taking turns drawing cards blindly from their deck and adding them to their hand. The goal is to draw until you decide to stop, and hopefully get closer to a total of 21 than your opponent. If either player exceeds a total of 21, they "bust" and automatically lose with a total of 0.
Of the basic poker cards, there are numbers 2-10; J, Q, and K (all worth 10), and A (worth either 1 or 11 depending on which benefits the player more).
After the round is over, the game compares the totals of the two players, and calculates the difference. That amount of damage is done to the losing player. Deck suit and special card effects are applied, the current hands in play move to the card graveyard, and another round begins. The game ends when one player's HP depletes to 0.
Add it here if you did work that should be factored into your grade but does not fit easily into the proscribed roles! Please include links to resources and descriptions of game-related material that does not fit into roles here.
- Producer + Press Kit and Web Demo: Yiming Feng
- Game Logic (Scenes) + Audio: Qingyue Yang
- Game Logic (Cards) + Gameplay Testing: Brian Li
- Game Logic (Table) + Visuals: Stephanie Hsia
- Game Logic (Player/Enemy) + Trailer: Alex Chen
Your goal is to relate the work of your role and sub-role in terms of the content of the course. Please look at the role sections below for specific instructions for each role.
Below is a template for you to highlight items of your work. These provide the evidence needed for your work to be evaluated. Try to have at least four such descriptions. They will be assessed on the quality of the underlying system and how they are linked to course content.
Short Description - Long description of your work item that includes how it is relevant to topics discussed in class. link to evidence in your repository
Here is an example:
Procedural Terrain - The game's background consists of procedurally generated terrain produced with Perlin noise. The game can modify this terrain at run-time via a call to its script methods. The intent is to allow the player to modify the terrain. This system is based on the component design pattern and the procedural content generation portions of the course. The PCG terrain generation script.
You should replay any bold text with your relevant information. Liberally use the template when necessary and appropriate.
Describe the steps you took in your role as producer. Typical items include group scheduling mechanisms, links to meeting notes, descriptions of team logistics problems with their resolution, project organization tools (e.g., timelines, dependency/task tracking, Gantt charts, etc.), and repository management methodology.
Team Scheduling and Meeting Coordination - As the producer, I organized team meetings, coordinating times that accommodated everyone’s availability. I ensured these meetings remained focused by preparing agendas and setting clear goals.
Task Division and Team Coordination - I ensured that tasks were allocated fairly and strategically among team members, considering their specific strengths and availability. Task dependencies and deadlines were mapped out to prevent bottlenecks, implementing principles from agile project management and dependency mapping. See notion tasks page for details. (press the triangle on the leftside of the task to see subtasks)
Project Structure Framework Design - I developed the framework that serves as the foundation for our game. This structure included defining key classes such as Player, Enemy, Card, ScoreCard, and Table, along with their interactions. The framework was built to align with our modified blackjack-inspired mechanics, ensuring scalability for future additions like more unique card effects or extra game modes. See project structure for details
Debugging and Development Assistance - While primarily handling producer responsibilities, I assisted in debugging game mechanics and adding features. Specifically, I improved the main game logic in the Table class to ensure smooth gameplay and accurate scoring based on our blackjack-inspired mechanics. I implemented the Enemy Stands label to provide clear feedback to players during enemy turns. Additionally, I designed and implemented smooth card movement animations for added visual appeal and created the card deck's on-click functionality to display deck contents and allow users to interact directly with the deck
By overseeing scene transitions, managing the global game state, and integrating player-selected card suits into the core experience, I helped create a more immersive, responsive system. The player’s chosen suit affects the main table setup, the card decks, and the final outcome. I also connected meaningful background stories and cohesive audio elements. As a result, the user encounters a consistent flow from start to end, with clear visual and auditory feedback that enhances engagement. My work establishes a solid foundation for future expansions and refinements.
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- The current card suit that will be used in the main table
- Can be updated by the player in the select menu
- The default is HEARTS if not selected
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- The current winner status of the game
- The default is set as UNKNOWN
- Game State will change to PLAYER_WIN if enemy hp goes to 0
- Game State will change to PLAYER_Fail if player hp goes to 0
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- This is a function that can translate the selected card suit to strings
- Those strings are used to load card assets
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- Change scene from one to another
- Start Menu
- Main Control: Control the background music logic and the loop music logic
- New Game Button: Control the function and the behavior of the "Start" button
- Exit Button: Control the function and the behavior of the "Exit" button
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- Prepare the select scene for the start of the game
- Load player and the main table in the select scene
- Play the background story during the loading adn before the selection
- Show the card suits that the player can choose
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- Stop the playing of the background story
- Skip to the card suit selection
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- Show the background notifications
- Show the call-word of the card suit selection
- Show the card suit selected by the player
- Show the effects of the card suit selected by the player
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- Play corrsponding sounds and show effects when selected
- If selected by the player, update the selection in global script
- Change the scene to the main table after the selection
- Make sure the card suit in the main table is the card suit selected by the player
- initialize_deck
- Fill the player card deck for the first time with the selected card suit
- Fill the enemy card deck for the first time with the player selected card suit
- The player and the enemy will use the same card suit in the game
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- Check the current winner if one of player and enemy hp goes to 0
- Set the game_over is True to prevent recrusive calls
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- Reset the sound, stop the bgm if anyone wins
- Show the winner message according to the current winner
- Play the winner bgm of player or enemy according to the current winner
- Switch to corresbonded end screen
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- Show winner message with the player win bgm
- Change to the end screen if "Continue" is pressed
- Set the background texture to win background
- Set the button of the end screen as "Main Menu"
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- Show winner message with the player fail bgm
- Change to the end screen if "Continue" is pressed
- Set the background texture to fail background
- Set the button of the end screen as "Try Again"
- Set the background texture as win or fail according to the current winner
- Set the button texture as "Main Menu" or "Try Again" according to the current winner
- Exit the game if "Exit" is pressed by the player
- Back to the Start Menu if "Main Menu" or "Try Again" is pressed
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Sprite2D class Card, which is the base class that all card objects used in game inherit from
- Contains variables for score, suit, and description of card
- mechanism function (only used by special card classes that extend card) that takes in two Controller parameters
- Has two signals, mouse_entered and mouse_exited
- Card class has Area2d and CollisionShape2D
- When mouse hovers over card, emits mouse_entered signal
- When mouse leaves, emits mouse_exited signal
- Two signals used later to allow for description of card to appear when hovered over
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BasicCard class, extends Card and is used for all of the basic poker cards used in game (A, 2, 3, ..., K).
- Has a custom_init function that can be used to set score and suit of a BasicCard
- Makes it so that when we need to populate deck with cards, just create new instances of BasicCard with different parameters
- In custom_init, matches are used to assign the appropriate score
- Texture of card set to correct asset
- Correct description set
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Special card classes: 5 total, each with own score and mechanism
- JokerCard: Score = 5, use StatusCard's update_hp function to deal random amount of damage
- AggieCard: Score = 5, uses StatusCard's update_hp function to heal HP by 5
- TarotFoolCard: Score = 0, uses ScoreCard's update_max function to increase max score by 1
- UnoPlus2: Score = 2, uses ScoreCard's update_score function to increase enemy's score by 2
- UnoStop: Score = 5, sets the enemy's is_stopped bool variable to true to forcibly end their turn
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Class responsible for holding array of cards, represents every deck object in game (regular deck, display deck, used card deck, etc)
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Contains functions that are used during game
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CardDeck has Area2D and CollisionShape2D to detect clicks, used to implement function for looking into deck when you click on it
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Signals/variables
- signal clicked, used for when a deck is clicked on when player wants to see its contents
- cards array to hold all Card objects associated with CardDeck
- deckContents, reference to DeckContents scene that is used to load scene where cards in deck are displayed
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generate_random_card: Selects a random card from array of Cards using randi(), used when drawing card from deck
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add_card: Appends a Card object to CardDeck's array
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- Accepts a Card and CardDeck, moves that Card in current CardDeck to another CardDeck
- Uses add_card to add a card chosen using generate_random_card
- Removes card from curent CardDeck afterwards
- Simultes the drawing and placing down of a card in game
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- Swaps the Card arrays of two CardDecks
- Used when your main deck runs out of cards, can swap main deck with used card deck to repopulate main deck
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- When Area2D/CollisionShape2D has been clicked, function is called
- Adds the DeckContents child and calls its display_cards function to show Cards in CardDeck
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- Called every frame
- Check if CardDeck is empty
- If empty, should have no texture, set texture to null
- If not empty, set texture to back of card asset
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Scene that displays the Cards that a CardDeck has
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If you hover over a card in this scene, this scene will display the description
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Contains Label node and Button node (for exiting the scene)
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Variables
- cards: array of Cards
- label_control and label: used to control position and text of Label node for displaying descriptoin
- button: reference to Button node
- deck: reference to original deck that wants to display its contents
- color_rect: background of scene
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- Set up the window, background, label, etc
- Connect the signal "clicked" from the CardDeck to the function display_cards in DeckContents so it gets called when you click on a CardDeck
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- Accepts a Card object
- When called, sets label's text to card's description
- Called only when Card is hovered over
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- When Card not hovered over anymore
- Reset label's text to nothing
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- Function for displaying the cards in the CardDeck's array
- For loop that goes through each card, connects "mouse_entered" and "mouse_exited" signals to "_on_card_hovered" and "_on_card_exited" respectively
- For _on_card_hovered, use bind() so that Card is passed in as parameter
- Use a for loop to display all cards in the deck, changing position so that they are laid out neatly in grid
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- Leaves DeckContents scene to go back to game
- Sets this scene to invisible
- Removes all Card childen using remove_child
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- Called when button node in DeckContents is pressed
- When called, calls exit_scene function
- Class that keeps track of current hand total out of 21 for player and enemy
- Extends Control class, has Label child node
- Two variables current_score and max_score
- Updates score using update_score, updates max score using update_max
- Changes text of Label
- Class that keeps track of current HP for player and enemy
- Extends Control class, has Label child node
- Two variables current_hp and max_hp
- Updates HP using update_hp, updates max_hp using update_max
- Changes text of Label
The table scene is the main scene we see in the game, it contains the player, the enemy, the hit button, and the stand button. On the player side the player (packedscene) is loaded in, and the enemy (packedscene) is loaded in on the enemy's side. At the top of each side a notebook style tile set was used to display player and enemy's hp, score, and hp change. As well as in the middle, at the end of each round a comparision symbol is shown (tie: equal, player win: greater than, player lose: less than).
Turn Management
Order of turns:
- At the start of a round, the enemy draws a card, and the player's buttons are enabled.
- After the player's turn, the enemy takes their turn (player buttons are disabled), and so on.
- When both the player and the enemy stops, by either busting or standing, the winner of the round is checked.
- The win/lose art is shown and the hp of the player and enemy are changed accordingly.
- Then everything resets and a new round starts from the beginning.
Checking Winner
Checks all possible scenarios after player and enemy both stop:
- Same score or both bust: tie
- Only enemy bust: player win
- Only player bust: enemy win
- Both don't bust: compare score
The score is calculated in the table by checking the current cards in the player and enemy's hand (which includes ace logic within, whether ace is 1 or 11), and using that we can determine who wins and how much damage is supposed to be dealt.
Suit Effect if player wins
If the player wins, we also apply the suit effects and change the damage/heal to enemy/player:
- Club: deals 1.5x damage to the opponent when you win
- Spades: when you win with a hand of 21, deal double damage to the opponent
- Heart: when you win, heal yourself half of the amount of damage you do
- Diamond: when you win with a hand of 21, heal 21 hp
Main UI
As for the IU of the table, I used hboxes and vboxes to organize where the player, enemy, avatars, and buttons would go.
- Main (hbox):
- Player: includes current score, current hp, displays heal or damage received
- Center controls (vbox)
- Round winner
- Hit button
- Stand button
- Enemy: includes current score, current hp, displays heal or damage received
Table also checks if there are any more enemies left after defeating one and loads enemy, which we didn't end up using.
Player
- Initialize player card deck, including special cards
- Manage Player health
- Manage Player Card Shuffle and Refill
- Manage Player score
- Manage Player turn
- Manage the card movement animation
Enemy
- Initialize enemy card deck, including special cards
- Manage Enemy health
- Manage Enemy Card Shuffle and Refill
- Manage Enemy score
- Manage Enemy turn
- Manage the card movement animation
- Manage Enemy Behavior (hit or stand)
List your assets, including their sources and licenses.
- bgm
- ingame_bgm (original KD_Searching, Geumhyun Do, extended by suno.ai)
- player_fail_bgm (by suno.ai)
- player_win_bgm (original News broadcast opening song of CCTV, extended by suno.ai)
- start_bgm (by suno.ai)
- sfx
- background_story (I created that myself)
- button_focus (from pixabay-cardeffect)
- button_press (from pixabay-cardeffect)
- button_start (from pixabay-cardeffect)
- card_flip (from opengameart.org-cardeffect.zip)
- card_plcae (from opengameart.org-cardeffect.zip)
- card_slide (from opengameart.org-cardeffect.zip)
- card_sound (from opengameart.org-cardeffect.zip)
- game_fail (from pixabay-cardeffect)
- game_win (from pixabay-cardeffect)
Describe the implementation of your audio system.
- SoundManager
- This scene is autoloaded and can be used as SoundManager
- All the bgms and sfxs are used as an AudioStreamPlayer node
- Use all sfxs by names of the nodes
- play_bgm: Play the bgm that can be used in the whole game
- play_sfx: Play all other sfxs in the game, such as button sound effect
- play_story: Play the story in the select menu
- stop_audio_smooth: Stop the current playing sfx or bgm smoothly
- tween_complete: Helper function for the stop_audio_smooth
- stop_start/story: Stop specific bgm or sfx
- play_finished: Indicate that the audio is finished
- get_audio_durition: Get the duration of the audio
- stop_all: Stop all the bgms and sfxs
Document the sound style.
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bgm: The background musics are bright songs that has a fast speed. To keep up with the game's fast-paced action, they feature straightforward English lyrics and rhythmic beats. They keep player interested by using a lively, contemporary tone. The selected composition enhances total immersion by portraying the protagonist's journey and blending in well with the game's ambiance. Their existence guarantees a genuinely happy, unforgettable sound experience.
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sfx: Every sound impact in the card-based interactions is made with distinct, guided signals to improve player comprehension. Important gaming moments are indicated by clear deal noises and crisp clicks that help the player make judgments. The atmosphere seems dynamic and intuitive because to the well-chosen audio components. This method ensures a fun, clear user experience while keeping the focus on strategic decisions and reflecting the dynamic character of the game. They have a natural feel.
Link to google drive folder of testing results
- Overall impression of game from testesr is that it's a fun game to pass time
- Testers reacted positively to game's art style
- Confusion over how to play the game
- Lack of instructions at beginning
- Some testers didn't know how to play blackjack
- Mechanics like being able to look at deck and what special cards do not explained well enough
- Game takes a long time to conclude, b/c damage done each round too small?
- Not enough to do in game, only one boss and after you beat them in blackjack the game is over
- Add clearer instructions to game
- Refine game mechanics so game is more skill based (adding more ways to use special cards?)
- Make game not last as long
- Add more levels/bosses?
Include links to your presskit materials and trailer. see the trailer here
I add our unique special cards and some typical gameplay videos. Also I include some Moments of Excitement.
Include links to your presskit materials and trailer. see the presskit here
Since this is a complicated card game and not everyone knows how to play blackjack. So for the presskit, I focus on explaining how to play our game, the game mechanism, and the key features of our game. I also put the trailer, some screenshots of the game, and all the necessary links.
To fit our school theme, I drew a lot of the assets in a hand-drawn, kinda sketchy/scuffed style. Also using elements like blackboards and a school desk.
- Card deck:
- Basic cards: by me via Procreate
- Aggie card: by me via Procreate
- Joker card: from flickr and edited by me
- Uno card: from narogame on itch.io and edited by me
- Tarot card: from dettamada on itch.io and edited by me
- Paper tile set: from srtoasty on itch.io
- Table: photo taken of a UCD table in the library and edited by me
- Hit and stand buttons: from npkuu on itch.io and edited by me
- Title and end scenes (blackboards) + buttons/hover: by me via Procreate
- Adding more special cards
- Adding more enemies that have different special cards and mechanism
- Level-up mechanism: player can gain more special card when they defeat a enemy
- Chips: Player can choose a chip as their secret weapon that affect the game