Overview

Doggy Rescue Team is a cooperative and competitive strategy board game designed for 2-9 players. Players take on the roles of search-and-rescue dogs or a cunning wolf pack, engaging in a battle of teamwork, deception, and strategic movement. With asymmetrical roles, dynamic board interactions, and hidden information mechanics, the game offers a highly replayable experience for players of all ages.

As the team leader, lead mechanics designer, and project manager, I initiated and led this project from concept development to iterative prototyping and final refinement. I designed and balanced core gameplay mechanics, faction asymmetry, and strategic depth, while also managing workflow, team coordination, and version control across multiple design iterations. Through extensive playtesting, data-driven adjustments, and digital simulations, we transformed the initial concept into a fully developed, highly polished prototype.

Pre-Production: Game Design & Development

Game Design Document (GDD)

Before development began, I authored and maintained the Game Design Document (GDD), which served as the foundation for mechanics, roles, and player interaction. The document outlined:

• Core Gameplay Mechanics – Player roles, movement, turn structure, and win conditions.

• Factions & Balancing – Asymmetrical abilities of the dog and wolf teams, ensuring strategic counterplay.

• Game Board & Card Design – Map structure, clue distribution, and resource management.

• Scalability & Replayability – Design principles for expansions and alternative rule sets.

The GDD evolved through multiple iterations, reflecting playtesting insights and mechanical refinements, ensuring smooth gameplay flow and engaging strategic depth.

Visual Design & Art Bible

In parallel, we developed the Art Bible, which defined the game’s visual identity, accessibility, and thematic consistency. This document covered:

• Character & Environment Design – Expressive dog and wolf personalities, seasonal map aesthetics.

• Color Theory & Accessibility – A vibrant yet clear palette ensuring readability for all players.

• Game Board & UI Components – Visual clarity in representing movement, card actions, and events.

The Art Bible ensured consistency across all assets, from character illustrations to board layouts, creating an immersive and user-friendly experience.

Gameplay & Mechanics

Doggy Rescue Team offers two distinct yet interconnected playstyles, requiring players to balance team coordination, deception, and calculated risks.

Game Objective

• Dog Team 🐶: Rescue trapped animals by matching clue cards, navigating obstacles, and reaching safe zones.

• Wolf Team 🐺: Sabotage the mission by disrupting clues, misleading opponents, and setting up traps.

Core Mechanics

• Dice-Based Movement 🎲 – Determines player mobility, influenced by character abilities.

• Clue Matching & Rescue 🔍 – Dogs must uncover and match clues to complete rescues.

• Combat & Sabotage ⚔️ – Wolves can detain clue cards, forcing the dog team to recover them through challenges.

• Hidden Information & Bluffing 🎭 – Wolves draw secret mission cards that impact their strategy.

• Seasonal Events & Terrain Effects 🍂 – The environment dynamically affects player movement and visibility.

Physical Version Production

Functional Excellence Dice

We implemented color-changing resin molding for the dice, offering:

• Gemstone-like Transparency 💎 – Enhancing the premium feel of the game.

• Optimized Readability 👀 – The D12 dice are designed for easy result viewing.

• Thematic Consistency 🎨 – Custom engraved paw prints and silhouettes reinforce the rescue theme.

Safe & Durable Character Miniatures

For player miniatures, we opted for wood carving, ensuring:

• Enhanced Safety 🛡️ – Wood is safer than plastic, reducing injury risks.

• Tactile & Aesthetic Appeal 🌿 – A handcrafted, premium feel.

• Eco-Friendly Material 🌍 – Sustainable production aligned with modern board game trends.

Playtest

Playtest Methodology

To collect meaningful insights, we designed a multi-phase playtest framework, consisting of:

1️⃣ Internal Playtesting – Early development phase, where our team tested core mechanics, turn structure, and initial balance.
2️⃣ Small Group Sessions (2-4 players) – Focused on cooperative interactions, hidden role effectiveness, and decision-making clarity.
3️⃣ Larger Playtest Groups (5-9 players) – Evaluated team coordination, sabotage effectiveness, and pacing.
4️⃣ Digital Playtests on Steam (Tabletop Simulator) – Allowed us to reach a wider audience and gather remote feedback from diverse player groups.
5️⃣ Final Blind Playtests – Conducted with players unfamiliar with the game, testing rule clarity and accessibility.

Community Engagement

To expand our audience, we launched Doggy Rescue Team on Steam’s Tabletop Simulator, gathering live player feedback.

📊 Steam Playtest Metrics:

• 67 Unique Visitors – Initial outreach.

• 85 Subscribers – Active players who engaged with the game.

• 154 Collections – Users who saved the game to their library.

This data confirmed early interest in the game, informing balancing adjustments and future expansion plans.

Key Playtest Insights & Adjustments

Balance Adjustments

• Dog Team was initially overpowered, as clue discovery was too straightforward.
  → Adjusted clue card mechanics to introduce more strategic decision-making.

• Wolf Team had limited influence in early rounds, leading to passive gameplay.
  → Introduced Wolf Mission Cards to allow early sabotage.

Rulebook Redesign

Playtesting revealed issues with clarity and accessibility in the rulebook, leading to multiple iterations. Based on feedback, we restructured sections, added visual aids, and refined instructions to ensure seamless onboarding and smooth gameplay. The final version is intuitive, easy to reference, and optimized for all player levels.

Pacing & Engagement Optimization

• Some sessions dragged too long, reducing engagement.
  → Refined turn structure to streamline decision-making.

• Dice readability issues impacted gameplay flow.
  → Implemented engraved color-changing dice for better visibility.

  

Production Pipeline & Project Management

By using WBS methodology, we maintained efficient collaboration, clear priorities, and structured development cycles, ensuring that Doggy Rescue Team was successfully delivered as a polished, engaging, and scalable board game experience.

I used Notion to centralize:

• Task delegation and progress tracking, ensuring streamlined development.

• Documentation of mechanics and design requirements, facilitating smooth communication.

• Direct coordination with artists, including structured briefs for card illustrations and board assets.

This pipeline allowed us to efficiently produce hundreds of unique game cards, maintaining both mechanical consistency and artistic coherence.

Final Delivery

Doggy Rescue Team culminates in a high-fidelity, fully playable board game.

Through collaborative development, iterative playtesting, and structured project management, we created a scalable, adaptable, and deeply engaging board game experience. While the current version remains a prototype, it sets a strong foundation for potential expansion, digital integration, and future commercialization.