Feedback on custom alien themed deck

[DanFeldmeier]

Hello all, I'm currently working on an alien themed deck of cards and was hoping for feedback on imagery, symbol designs, tuck box, etc. Not all the images are finished and I'm totally open to feedback on improving any aspect.

Here's the link:

http://imgur.com/a/9uz96


(inserted so you can see the codes:)

[Mike Ratledge]

Dan, go ahead and post some graphics here, as well. I understand that it makes it easier to use a central location or Dropbox, etc. (MonteCarlo)Joe did some pretty slick graphics routines that work with the {img} {/img} macro / tags. I'll link one of the graphics above so you can see the code, probably one of the tuck variants.

[DanFeldmeier]

As suggested, here's a few of the images from my upcoming deck. Feedback is very welcome, all I ask if you're gonna be brutal, at least give me something to work with so I can make improvements You can view the rest by visiting the link in the first comment, or if preferred, ask and I can post more of them in new comments.



King of Clubs


Queen of Hearts


Jack of Diamonds


Ace of Spades


Joker


Card back

[DanFeldmeier]

I received some feedback and decided to make some adjustments. The pips have been redesigned to be more quickly and easily identified and I've adjusted their location on the card to reduce them covering the images. I've also faded out the image on the numbered cards to make them less distracting and have also created a version without the background image.

Queen of Clubs


10s without ghosted image


10s with ghosted image


King of Spades - it appears there's a minor bit of overlap on the wing of the King of Spades, is this something that can be problematic or is it minimal enough that it wouldn't effect functionality of the cards?

[flashcards]

I received some feedback and decided to make some adjustments. The pips have been redesigned to be more quickly and easily identified and I've adjusted their location on the card to reduce them covering the images. I've also faded out the image on the numbered cards to make them less distracting and have also created a version without the background image.

Queen of Clubs


Excellent. Big Improvement!

10s without ghosted image


10s with ghosted image


I personally like them without the ghosted image. It's to faint as it is. Maybe bring it up a notch. Otherwise, it's fine without.

King of Spades - it appears there's a minor bit of overlap on the wing of the King of Spades, is this something that can be problematic or is it minimal enough that it wouldn't effect functionality of the cards?

Overlap is good! I'm sure some of the others will encourage you to go even farther out with it.

This is really shaping up to be a cool deck. Keep up the good work.

[DanFeldmeier]

Thanks flashcards for the feedback, it's super appreciative!

I'm on the fence about the ghosting, I like it but it does seem a bit more sleek without it; guess I'll have to keep thinking about it, maybe by tweaking it I'll come to a decision

I have made additional changes though the biggest changes I've made have been more of a personal design choice regarding the imagery itself. I've been thinking about how I could make the two halves of most of the cards appear to be more intertwined but haven't come up with anything that wouldn't require me to pretty much do the entirety of the image, at least none that don't look forced. I'll definitely have to keep it in mind though as I'd like to have all the artwork done within the next month or two.

On that note, below are some of the additional changes.

The tuck box (I got a template from Bicycle so the shape is different. I made the hexagonal pattern a little more prominent without overwhelming the image.


Hearts


Diamonds


Spades


Back of the card; added a bit to the negative space while hoping it doesn't end up looking too busy

[DanFeldmeier]

A few additional updates including the Clubs and Aces.

Clubs


Aces

[flashcards]

Dan, I'd like to see you break the inner boundry a little more, like you have with the Ace of Diamonds and Ace of hearts. Even those two could stretch out a little more. The others seem too constricted. Those inner boxes are just guidelines. Don't be afraid to stretch out a little bit.

[DanFeldmeier]

Good call on breaking the borders a little more, I hadn't actually considered going much further outside them. I'm working on adjustments and will hopefully post some updated pics in a day or two.

[DanFeldmeier]

A quick little update, here's the Joker cards.

[DanFeldmeier]

So I've realigned the indices with the pips on all the cards. Below are the number cards (except the 10's as there hasn't been any change to those other than a minute realignment).

[flashcards]

Nice, I like what you have done with the pips.

[jsantafe]

Nine of hearts seems weird. The pips on the left should face up and the left ones, facing down, right? More consistent with 6, 7 and 8s.

[Räpylätassu]

This looks quite nice, although I'm not a big fan of alien decks.

My only problem is that there is way too much white on the courts. Maybe if you could make the alien courts to reach almost to the edge of the cards? With all that color, this deck would really pop!

[DanFeldmeier]

Nine of hearts seems weird. The pips on the left should face up and the left ones, facing down, right? More consistent with 6, 7 and 8s.

You know, I'll be honest, the thought didn't even occur to me to do that. The 4 and 5 follow similar suit, would it be wise to rotate the pips on those as well to maintain consistency throughout the entirety of the deck?

This looks quite nice, although I'm not a big fan of alien decks.

My only problem is that there is way too much white on the courts. Maybe if you could make the alien courts to reach almost to the edge of the cards? With all that color, this deck would really pop!

That's something I may have to play around with; the biggest concern I have with that is ensuring the pips and indices don't get lost in the background but yeah, definitely something I may have to look into.

[DanFeldmeier]

So I took a moment to make a few adjustments to the design of the background. Not sure what everyone else's thoughts are, but I'm kinda digging this look. Funny enough, the prints I was going to make would have the full page background, which is something I really liked but hadn't considered doing with the cards.



An example of one of the prints

[flashcards]

I like it! Just make sure that the new elements on the K, Q, and J are mirrored so that the courts are two-way. They way they are now the face of the card is one-way even though the alien figure is mirrored. It doesn't matter with the aces since those are usually one-way anyway. Also, don't forget to include a large suit indicator on the courts. I like how the heads of the K and Q resemble spades. Maybe you could extend this to the J and then the other suits (e.g. Clubs aliens have heads or whatever resembling clubs, etc.). Not really necessary but could be fun if done right. In any case, I really like where this is headed.

[DanFeldmeier]

I tweeked the format of the court cards so they are mirrored and also added a larger suit. As for the Jack of Spades and a few of the other cards, I decided I didn't want all the cards to be overtly representative of their suits so some are more subtle than others. The Jack for example would actually make a spade symbol if the two halves touched.

Here's the new look for the king cards.

[flashcards]

Dan, outstanding work; I'm loving it.

Here is a defintion of a suit indicator provided by our own "Sprouts" :

A suit indicator is the big pip that traditionally is put on court cards, which is separate from the indices. The indices are in the corner and have the value and a pip, while the suit indicator is a separate bigger pip usually located on either side of the court's head. Its function is to make the suit more distinguishable from a distance."

It's changed. A suit indicator is a big pip that is traditionally put on the court cards which is separate from the indices. The indices are in the top corner of the card and have the rank and suit of the card. Typically, it is the same size as the pip. It's function is to make the suit of the card more distinguishable from a distance.

Keep up the good work. It's looking awesome.

[DanFeldmeier]

I decided to take a little step back from the cards to make sure I was still happy with the design of the cards. I know there are concerns with complete symmetry of the court cards but I think the design of the background, while not symmetrical, lends itself to not needing to be symmetrical. Below is what the King cards look like when held both "right side up" and "upside down". While there is a difference I don't believe there'd be a desire or need for a player to flip their card over to make sure it was facing the correct way. Though I will admit I may be way off and biased as I personally like the design better; it feels less cluttered and the Kings appears to be more easily readable. What are y'all's thoughts on this seeing them side by side?

[MagikFingerz]

I have to agree with you, Dan. Your backgrounds do "work" both ways without looking awkward. Thanks for taking the time to post them side-by-side for comparison.

Though the only thing my (self-diagnosed) OCD reacts to is the diamond background; surely that could (should?) be symmetrical? Like it is on the King of Diamonds in your second to last post.

[RichK]

Any chance you can do red diamond/heart instead of black? I know it will be very hard to see on reddish background but having both red and black hearts/diamonds looks confusing to me.

[DanFeldmeier]

Here are what I believe are going to be the final designs of the cards/layouts. I may still tweak the artwork itself; if I do though they will be minor and just done to improve the images.

I have to agree with you, Dan. Your backgrounds do "work" both ways without looking awkward. Thanks for taking the time to post them side-by-side for comparison.

Though the only thing my (self-diagnosed) OCD reacts to is the diamond background; surely that could (should?) be symmetrical? Like it is on the King of Diamonds in your second to last post.

I had the diamond off center since it was technically off center on the other backgrounds but I think you're right, it'd be better if it was centered.

Any chance you can do red diamond/heart instead of black? I know it will be very hard to see on reddish background but having both red and black hearts/diamonds looks confusing to me.

I have made the hearts/diamonds more red and actually made the clubs/spades a hint more blue to really separate the pips.

[flashcards]

Dan, excellent job. This looks great. I stand corrected: the court cards don't have to completely mirrored. I really like the different background elements and will hold my tongue from now on if I'm not completely sure about something. Best of luck with the project.

[DanFeldmeier]

Dan, excellent job. This looks great. I stand corrected: the court cards don't have to completely mirrored. I really like the different background elements and will hold my tongue from now on if I'm not completely sure about something. Best of luck with the project.

Thanks, glad you agree they look good not completely mirrored And for the record, there's no need to hold your tongue if you have a suggestion, even though the complete mirroring isn't necessary, it gave me a chance to try a different design I hadn't previously thought of.

[RichK]

I have made the hearts/diamonds more red and actually made the clubs/spades a hint more blue to really separate the pips.

Pip change looks great. Well done!

[DanFeldmeier]

I have made the hearts/diamonds more red and actually made the clubs/spades a hint more blue to really separate the pips.

Pip change looks great. Well done!

Thanks!

[JuFiN]

Not gunna lie, I didnt like this deck very much when you first posted, but ive been following along and its shaping into a really nice deck!

My contribution to the feedback would be to say that the front of the tuck doesnt have to be double sided, and infact really shouldnt be. Also not sure why the E is backwards.

As for the card back I really like the border running around the outside with the mouth and eye ball! Not as big a fan of the light background faces in the corner (whats up with his nose?) and I cant really decide about the big face in the middle with the giant mouth. I love the arms holding itself up. But its kinda... creepy? not sure, something about it is a bit off putting. But that might be a good thing! I cant decide how I feel about it, the more I look at it the more I like it but my gut instinct is negative. The little translucent faces in the corners gotta go though in my opinion.

Anyway just figured I would give my two cents seeing as not much has been said about the card backs or tuck box.

[DanFeldmeier]

First off I'd like to thank everyone for their feedback. While I may have not implemented all suggestions I feel confident in saying I've reached a decision with my cards and am satisfied with their designs and their artwork. Feel free to still give feedback if something seems off and I missed it.

Anyway, here's the court cards.









Here are the number cards.

[flashcards]

Dan,

You've done great job. I like these a lot! Have you decided on a printer yet? I would strongly urge you to go with one of the "big 3" (USPCC, EPCC, LPCC). Yes, they have fairly high minimum print runs but you should have the confidence that the cards will sell. I believe they will. Also, larger print runs will allow you to sell the decks at a lower price point; perhaps even one that I can afford I would also suggest that you post a link to your campaign page before it launches so that your UC friends can proof it for any mistakes that might have been made. These guys have lots of experience with KS campaigns and can help make sure that yours goes smoothly. Again, great job and best of luck.