M is a card game developped as a school project during our first week at ENJMIN.
The idea was to take inspiration from the audio material we were given :
Literally, « variations for a door and a sigh ». This is technically one of the first examples of sampling music. The composer, Pierre Henry, was a concrete music artist. Music taking its sounds and melodies from tangible objects and their interactions with the world.
Here’s the list of words that came out of the brainstorming session we had :
- Angoissant (Eerie)
- Vieux Manoir (Old Mansion)
- Fantomatique (Ghostly)
- Perdu (Lost)
- Cassoulet (french dish containing beans) : this one was not used in the final project
M is a card game where all the players are locked in a room-shifting mansion. Alone is the dark, they will have to learn the layout of the house and find the keys that will free them out of here.
Be the first be get out of the Manor.
A grid of 6×6 cards (facing down) is laid down on a table. Layout can be square or tweaked by the players, depending on the level of difficulty they go for. Each card HAS to be accessible by at least 1 side though.
Each player takes their turn : throwing the dice (a special 1/2/3 dice) and moving their pawn of exactly the dice result. After moving, the player looks at the card they landed on :
- If it is an Action card, the player performs the action. It will increase Madness and make everyone in the Mansion closer to their death.
- If it is an Object card, the player can take it or not. Objects can protect you from Madness, can allow you to look in another player’s hand.
- If it is a Key card, the player take it with them. Other players don’t know if it is a Key or a normal Object so be careful, they may come after you.
- If it is a Door car, the player puts it back without saying anything. Other players don’t know if it’s an object you don’t want OR an Empty Room card.
- If it is an Empty Room card, the player puts it back.
The Madness Trail fills up as players make actions. So it’s a good thing to talk about which Action card is where, but it’s not a good choice to tell where the Door card are, since only the first one to get out is the winner.
Every now and then, players reach a threshold. They then have to pick a Madness card that will alter the layout of mansion or the game situation on its own : shuffling player’s cards, teleporting players to a single card.
If a player lands on a Door card with the corresponding Key card in hand, they get out of the Mansion alive. While all the others will remain locked in it, roaming the floors forever.
Graphic Design – Gregory – Alizée Preud’homme – Marjolaine Paz – Card back Design
Game Design – Brice André, Aurélien Picolet, Bastien Besland
Outrageously Nice Writing – Paul Gerst