Meandro (2024)
About
Meandro is a board game where the players are building a stream towards the ocean. The first player who reaches the ocean is the winner. The game can get turn around quickly if an other player takes your seat or puts obstacles on your path.
Project info
Teamsize: 4
Duration: 3 Weeks
Engine:
Role: Game Designer
Genre: Family / Kids
Platform: Board Game
Introduction
Our goal was to create a game that emphasizes social interaction, simplicity, and a touch of sabotage. In this game, players work to build a stream that guides their boat to the ocean, all while having the option to disrupt other players’ streams through action cards. The gameplay is straightforward and engaging, designed to foster interaction and friendly competition among players.
Rapid Prototyping & Iterative Design
On the second day of development, our team decided to test the game immediately to assess its functionality. We set up a basic board with a grid of squares and used sticky notes as tiles to form a path. While we quickly saw potential, we recognized the need for additional elements, like sabotage abilities, to keep gameplay engaging. Here’s why our rapid prototyping approach proved effective for us:
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The game’s short length allowed us to make small adjustments and quickly test each change.
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In the first week, we played 10-15 variations, taking brief notes after each round.
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A hands-on approach enabled us to make decisions based on gameplay rather than theory.
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This rapid evolution gave us more time for external playtesting and, eventually, to develop a finalized board.
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Much of our iteration focused on solving a core issue:
players were hoarding Rotate cards, making each game feel predictable. Ultimately, we settled on a mechanic where each player holds four cards that must be played before drawing a new set.
Prior to reaching this solution, we experimented with several approaches, including:
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Adding bridges to cross obstacles
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Allowing players to discard cards each turn to play the one on top
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Requiring players to discard one card each turn
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Moving the objective from the center to the edge of the board
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Introducing a new Action Card that lets players swap hands when used
First prototype with sticky notes and playing cards
Testing obstacles and misdirection tiles
Discussing how placing tiles should work
Full test with grid, sticky notes, and going to center
Testing mini boats and player interaction
Full test with direction arrows and ending at edge of board
Designing the cards, tiles and board
I led the design of the cards, tiles, and board with input from my team throughout the process.
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For the cards, I chose a clear, straightforward layout featuring a large central image with descriptive text below. To differentiate between card types—such as tile, obstacle, and rotate cards—I used distinct background colours for each type and labelled the card type at both the top and bottom. After finalizing the designs and receiving team approval, I moved on to creating the tiles.
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Initially, we considered using an arrow at the end of each tile to indicate player direction, but I opted to replace the arrow with a paper boat icon against a water backdrop. The team responded positively to this change, so I continued with this approach, creating player tiles in various colours and designing an obstacle tile to match. For additional obstacle tiles, I created logs and rocks in different sizes for clearer visual cues.
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With the cards and tiles complete, I began working on the board design. This stage required extensive testing to achieve a clean, uncluttered look. After experimenting with various textures and tiling options, we decided on a mix of ground materials, blending two textures to create smooth transitions between them.
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To add a bit of tactile interaction, I folded paper boats in player colours, which can be placed on top of the printed boat icons during gameplay.
What I learned
My main takeaways from this course are:
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Rapid prototyping is essential, particularly when a project can be quickly tested.
Defining strong foundational pillars early on makes subsequent design decisions much easier.
Open discussions and testing ideas facilitated quick resolution of challenges.
Playtesting with peers uncovered gameplay and rule issues we hadn’t initially noticed.
Regardless of a game’s quality, unclear rules can significantly diminish the player experience.
In the middle of a game
Folded paper boats
End result