We still have a laugh every time we play Cards Against Humanity (CAH). The way this game manages to pull hilariously offensive ideas out of players is still completely unmatched. It seems like it really is a party game for horrible people (it even says so on the box!).
Which got us thinking when we started making Coupling. We were deciding about the main direction of the game and were looking at other party games and their main goals. It turns out that our goal is not so different to CAH’s, though it might also be the complete opposite. Cards Against Humanity unites people by bringing out the worst in them. We want to do the same by bringing out the best in everyone playing!
But, how do you go about achieving that?
First, we made sure that the game gets personal enough. This is so that when you play you get a chance to express yourself and connect with your co-players. But, we had to not overdo it. If it’s too personal, it can quickly become a serious deep-talk game instead of a fun party game. So, we added the contest minigames to balance things out, and kept a degree of fun in the personal questions, too!
And that’s where the three stages of the game really start to shine.
The first stage involves questions for sharing fun, personal stories with your co-players. This is so that you get to know something new about the people you’re playing with (even if you know them already!). In the second stage, the party game aspect comes to the front. It’s a fun team-building competition, involving many fun minigames. Then, in the third stage, you get a chance to put yourself into your final partner’s shoes and try to think as they would!
But, how does it feel to play it?
It’s a dynamic system that feels very natural. That’s because Coupling uses social mechanisms that we use in our everyday lives. With that, it gives you an incredibly fun, natural experience of a party game that will make you want to play it again and again and again!
