[This unedited press release is made available courtesy of Gamasutra and its partnership with notable game PR-related resource Games Press.]
San Francisco - July 17, 2013 - Jerpix, an
independent developer with a passion for strategy games, today
announced their first project -
Orbs CCG. Named a "
Digital CCG to Watch
in 2013" by Forbes.com,
Orbs CCG offers a unique take on collectible card games
(CCGs), combining strategic elements from popular fantasy-themed
CCGs with the convenience of being able to play in either real-time
or asynchronously, one turn at a time over the course of days.
Playable online from any browser,
Orbs CCG is a deep strategy HTML5-based CCG by Jerpix, a
startup game company backed by Y Combinator, the top-tier startup
incubator in Silicon Valley. The
Orbs CCG team includes ex-Google engineer and Jerpix
founder Jeff Pickhardt, and Tom Martell, professional gamer and
winner of the 2013 Magic Pro Tour Gatecrash (the highest form of
competitive tournament for Magic: The Gathering).
In addition to basic multiplayer,
Orbs CCG will also feature online tournaments, including
drafting. Furthermore,
Orbs CCG boasts an epic single-player campaign mode in
which the player must obtain all six Legendary Orbs and save
Orbworld from its impending destruction.
Orbs CCG features four types of cards:
-
Allies, who attack opponents and defend players'
life totals.
-
Objects, which players play to their board for
their desired effects.
-
Actions, which have an immediate effect and then
go to the graveyard after being played.
-
Traps, which are played face down and triggered on
an opponent's turn.
One of the core game mechanics of
Orbs CCG is a game zone called the Bench. Beyond playing
cards normally, players may bench cards by paying the cost of their
Energy (acquired by discarding cards from your hand) and playing
them face down in the bench area. These cards may then be played
for free later on, making bluffing an important part of the game's
strategy.
"My motivation for making an asynchronous collectible card game
is that I personally used to play Magic with a lot of my friends
and family," says Jeff Pickhardt, founder of Jerpix. "But for
reasons of time or location we're just not able to play together
anymore. Orbs CCG makes playing a trading card game with friends
and family much more accessible and convenient."
"As a pro gamer, I really like deep strategic games - the kind
of games that I and other Magic players have fun playing," says Tom
Martell, co-game designer and consultant for
Orbs CCG. "That's exactly what we've done with Orbs CCG.
The game offers creative deck building, and every turn features
strategic and interesting decisions to be made."
Orbs CCG Key Features:
-
Engaging, competitive, and strategic
gameplay
-
Asynchronous or real-time gameplay: Players set
their own pace.
Orbs CCG can either be played asynchronously, in which
players can play turn-by-turn at their own leisure, or in
real-time, in which each turn must be completed in less than three
minutes.
-
Creative deck building options:
Orbs CCG features an extensive selection of well-balanced
and carefully crafted cards.
-
An immersive single-player story mode: In addition
to its multiplayer modes,
Orbs CCG will challenge players in a solo storyline to
save Orbworld and reunite the formerly allied
guilds.
-
Online tournaments:
Orbs CCG includes draft, sealed, and regular tournaments
for prizes.
-
A "benching" mechanic: The Bench allows
players to play cards face-down so their benefits may be reaped in
later turns, also providing additional incentive for
bluffing.
-
No "mana flooding": Maintaining a strategic,
six-color resource system, ANY card in hand may be converted to
energy of its color by discarding it. Energy regenerates at the
start of the player's turn.
-
HTML5 developed:
Orbs CCG is accessible from any modern browser on any OS
without having to install any software or Flash. HTML5 allows for
features like spectated matches, referral links to earn free
booster packs, and easily created/shared deck lists.
Orbs CCG is currently being crowdfunded on
Kickstarter to
support development and artwork costs. A wealth of backer tiers and
rewards are available to those who wish to support the game!
Stretch goals include mobile and tablet versions of
Orbs CCG for both iOS and Android devices.
For more information on
Orbs CCG, be sure to check out the official
Orbs CCG website
and
Kickstarter
campaign:
http://www.orbsccg.com/
http://kickstarter.orbsccg.com/
About Jerpix
Jerpix is a startup game company based in Silicon Valley,
California, with a mission to make deep strategic digital games,
the kind that can support professional tournament gameplay. It's
currently developing Orbs CCG, a competitive online collectible
card game. Jerpix is backed by Y Combinator, a top-tier startup
incubator that also invested in Twitch.tv and Dropbox.
www.jerpix.com
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