It’s not typically {that a} profitable cellular title decides to vary the sport, however with card evolution in Conflict Royale, that’s precisely what Supercell has performed. Arriving greater than seven years after the unique launch of the card-based battling title; this new mechanic provides various layers to aggressive play, it primarily reinvents the meta.
So, to correctly get our heads round how card evolution works and the way it got here to cross, we acquired to spend a bit of time speaking with Pavel Volkov, a recreation designer with Supercell who’s been round because the early days of Conflict Royale. Whereas initially becoming a member of six years in the past as a knowledge scientist, Volkov is now a part of the event group implementing new concepts and characters into Conflict Royale, together with card evolution.
Figuring to start out firstly, I requested Volkov how the concept first got here round. “So, we had been eager about what makes Conflict Royale stand out from many different card video games and technique video games. And one of many issues we thought is fascinating was the cycles mechanics, or how the cardboard goes again to your hand finally. And we thought, what about simply doubling down on this uniqueness in our recreation? After which we thought, let’s add extra content material to the prevailing playing cards as a result of it’s a pleasant option to carry extra life and freshness to the acquainted and beloved characters.”
It’s clear that from the off, the group at Supercell wished the cardboard evolution mechanic to slot in the already well-developed world of Conflict Royale. We’ve seen standard video games make large modifications earlier than and the group resist, particularly with cellular titles like Pokemon Go. In Volkov’s personal phrases. “we wished gamers to sort of simply play the sport as they used to all these years however with an additional layer of technique.”
At this level, should you’re not a Conflict Royale common, you’re most likely questioning what card evolution is. Merely put, it’s a recent mechanic that permits you to summon a souped-up type of a particular card, with 4 presently within the recreation, to make the meta a bit extra complicated. It’s not new characters precisely, extra of a remix of what we already had. I requested Volvok if there have been any restrictions through the improvement of the cardboard evolution idea, or if they’d free reign to experiment a bit of.
“We can’t have sufficient freedom to play with. I’d say, as an individual who is concentrated on gameplay, I wished to maintain the readability as a lot as doable. To me, it’s essential. I feel that’s the principle pillar that makes Conflict Royale palatable to broad audiences. So yeah, that was most likely the one restriction I saved in thoughts.”
Whereas there doesn’t appear to be inside stress at Supercell, issues are very completely different within the digital Wild West of the web. To place it calmly, gaming communities aren’t at all times tremendous eager on in-game modifications. With this in thoughts, I requested Volkov if he felt any extra stress through the improvement of the cardboard evolution idea to ship one thing agreeable to the vocal Conflict Royale group.
“Conflict Royale is a seven-year-old recreation, and, to keep up this freshness and maintain the sport as a service, we have to maintain innovating with the intention to be related. So this is the reason we generally want so as to add extra strategically, which is card evolution in my thoughts. We have to, remind gamers what Conflict Royale is about and why they take pleasure in it. It’s about deploying playing cards through the battle on the proper second, on the proper place, and card evolution makes it much more of that factor that gamers need.”
What I’m getting, and hopefully you’re too, in regards to the card evolution idea is that it’s not right here to vary the sport, however elevate it. By way of his solutions, Volkov makes it clear that the group at Supercell isn’t making an attempt to reinvent the wheel, they’re simply including a go-faster stripe that permits that wheel to barrel down any highway with a bit of bit extra gusto. That’s what card evolution is: the icing on the cake.
For Volkov, card evolution additionally helps transfer what might be an often inflexible meta-game. “It provides one other strategic layer, pondering ‘Do I want to make use of my evolution now, or do I construct for an additional higher push?’ If I’m utilizing card evolution, how do others mess around it? How do they construct a deck round it? It provides a bit extra of this spice.”
In just a bit of my very own playtime, I can agree with Volkov that card evolution does carry the spice, like an enormous blob of scorching sauce on a sticky rooster wing. Whereas Conflict Royale already provides you sufficient to consider in easy methods to arrange your deck, or who to play and when, card evolution provides one other chaotic aspect in that you simply’re by no means certain should you’re dealing with down a plain outdated firecracker, or the developed firecracker. Admittedly, every is a frightening prospect, nevertheless it’s by no means been harder to organize.
One thing that struck me throughout my analysis for my chat with Volkov is simply how a lot of a balancing act – and I imply balancing – including a brand new mechanic to a reside service recreation is. From my expertise speaking to builders of different video games that make the most of card mechanics, I do know including only one new card can utterly shift the meta, often resulting in a gaming setting the place everybody performs the identical approach if not balanced appropriately. So, I requested the Supercell developer how the group managed to steadiness the brand new mechanic.
“It’s a good query as a result of strictly talking card evolution is an additional energy. So there are a number of angles we will have a look at the balancing. It’s not a coincidence that we launched 4 evolutions to start out with, as they sort of characterize completely different roles within the deck constructing and the Conflict Royale metagame. So like Royal Large is a wind situation that goes straight to buildings. Barbarians is a swarm and in addition represents an iconic character of Conflict Royale. Skeletons are an affordable unit, like a distraction or a cycle card. And Firecracker, she’s a ranged help unit.
“Additionally they sort of counter one another properly as a result of Barbarians are good towards Royal Large, Firecrackers counter towards the Barbarians, and so forth. So there was a number of eager about easy methods to launch this characteristic. Any more, we are going to see the person charges and the win charges and do tweaks in a while.”
Because it had been a few weeks because the arrival of card evolution in Conflict Royale, I then requested Volkov if there had been any suggestions from the group. “To start with, I want to take a possibility and say due to all of the gamers who give us suggestions on completely different platforms. We respect the suggestions, each optimistic and destructive suggestions. For me, indifference is what’s the worst. If there’s suggestions, it means gamers care, and with the assistance of group managers, we’re making an attempt. We attempt to distill the suggestions into some bullet factors. Some are actionable, some are extra indicative of sure issues, and we have to simply determine what to do with them.”
From that reply, and Volkov’s earlier ideas on stress, it’s refreshing to see a developer wholeheartedly embracing the group. Positive, that is nonetheless a cellular recreation with microtransactions and cheeky bundles that pop up whenever you most want them, however there’s a transparent engagement with the group coming by way of in my chat with Volkov. If card evolution actually does carry the spice, then Volkov is Man Fieri.
Lastly, for a little bit of enjoyable, I requested Volkov for his favourite a part of the entire card evolution introduction. “I personally like that it provides a number of selection. Ranging from deck constructing, the truth that some key interactions are simply not the identical anymore. Simply taking benefit and maintaining in thoughts these crucial interactions, you may perhaps flip spherical a shedding recreation.”
All in all, it feels like each the builders and the group are a lot excited in regards to the arrival of card evolution in Conflict Royale. As I’ve touched on all through this interview, it’s clear how passionate the group at Supercell is about not simply the sport, however the group, and the way receptive they’re to bringing concepts that improve the sport. That’s what card evolution is all about – enhancement – and proper now Conflict Royale feels higher than ever.
For extra behind-the-scenes chats with builders and studios, try our Danganronpa interview, Yoko Taro interview, and Monument Valley interview.