About
cHTeMeLe the first HTML5 certified boardgame, the nearly collaborative and nearly educational game about HTML language
The aim of this new board game is fairly easy: create THE HTML page with the cards you have to hand... the game is played from 2 to 5 players, each player endorses a web browser (Firefox, Safari, Chrome, Opera, IE). Lay out your tag cards, and respect the web standards and rules and accumulate points. Play the "events" cards to step in each others browser's way (crash, bug, etc.) or help you in the race for building the web page.
The game
The game contains:
- 112 playing cards
- 5 playing "browser" boards (one for each player)
- score marking stuff
- rules of the game (or ReadMe)
all of it is placed in a goergous box, designed by Pascal Mabille.
A fun and interactive game...
The principle of the game is simple, but fun, the integrated syntax highlighting makes the game playable for everyone, even if you've never developed a website or touched a keyboard, you just have to follow the simple standard web rules, as explained in the ReadMe_en. The handling of the boardgame is immediate and very intuitive. The different interactive cards (attack, boost, defense) allow multiple actions: take some cards from other players, delete a line, get other browsers to "bug"... plenty to make the game more fun and dynamic.
Community - Collaboration
The game will be available on Creative Commons Licence (Paternity / No commercial use - available around 20th september 2012) to download for free for everyone (rules, cards, boards) to everyone who wants to print at home (and cut the 112 cards). This way players can test the game with friends, and maybe give us feedback on stuff to add, modify, new cards, ideas, etc.
What are the funds for?
The money raised will allow us to edit and physically produce the game itself by a french manufacturer (it's very important to us to make the game in a local factory. Many game editors try to cut costs by exporting this production to foreign countries, we don't). For that we need a minimum amount of orders. This also will lower the price for the early adopters for 14€ (and a few surprises...) instead of the standard 19€ price (the game will then be available for that price on the dedicated website).
We give great attention to conception, to the mechanics of the game itself, to helping players (with symbols on the cards to guide the players), the illustration, and of course the quality of the final product.
Even if the money is not raised, the game will be available for free download on a Creative Commons Licence (CC BY NC)
If more money is raised, it will be used to take more time on different aspects of the project, such as the website so that the community can improve the game (submit cards ideas, vote for them, etc.), organise cHTeMeLe playing nights in different cities, send game boxes to different schools orinstitutions, in order to encourage people play and to try and promote HTML language and web developement in general.
As a contributor, your name (if you want to) or nickname will be on the game website, and for the premium contributors, on the changelog of the ReadMe (the rules of the game), available on every shipped game.
If the money raised passes certain "levels" we will add some new elements to thank the amazing contributors
- 12 000€| we will add two or three cards, these would be available only for contributors, never re-printed, never sold anywhere else.
- 17 000€| we add for every pre-order some unique stickers which won't be sold else where, so that you can stick your HTML pride everywhere.
- 25 000€| we will add a embroided patch, a limited edition to put on your bag, sweater, jeans, jacket...
- more? |We didn't really thought about it, but we will definitely add some more stuff, when the time comes.
About the project owner
Olivier Chambon - Web Developper
Web Developper for 15 years, and truly passionnate who tries to bring together two things that are so far and yet so close: boardgames and web developement.
A few years ago he launched a community blog named TravailleursDuWeb, which talks about those who work for, by and on the web (1200 posts in the past 5 years)
He also launched a breakthrough video podcast named LaGrotteDuBarbu about DIY, casula hacking and making (about hundred videos so far) and an audio news podcast named BarbuCast.
He is always trying to share with others his work and passion..
Pascal Mabille - Illustrator
Art director, illustrator, creator of the "Instagraff" podcast, where he draws with his pen Bob (@boblefeutre) on top of a random music background. He masters the graphical side of the project, with the clever addition of human-mecanical interface....with great results.
A big thanks for their help to:
Krillin, Sabrina, Pym, Cécile, Marie and to all the kind testers of the game...
News
The Jan. 18, 2013, 10 a.m.
Last chance to confirm your postal adress / tshirts nearly thereThe Dec. 30, 2012, 7 p.m.
cHTeMeLe MeetUp in Paris january 4th, from 7 PMThe Dec. 26, 2012, 11:57 a.m.
Games have arrived / confirm your delivery adressFAQ
First of all, the aim of this project is to be able to fabricate the game by a french manufacture (I insist on the local manufacturer side), which means a minimum number of orders. It's kind of a way to pre-order the game.
If the money raised is more than expected, we will dedicate some time to make the project bigger and more interesting, with other activities, like a better website, events, going to board game festivals, giving games to schools, etc.
The box (185x114x43 mm) contains the following:
- 5 browser boards of 178x108 mm printed on one side
- 112 playing cards 63x42mm (with a 3mm rounded edges) printed on both sides.
- pawns to mark scores (3x5 a color for each browser)
- a cardboard inner stuff to block the playing cards
- ReadMe - the rules of the game
We give a great deal about quality, especially illustration, clarity, and fabrication. Playing cards dimensions have been heavily tested to ensure the most playability and the better use of the table space.
Yes, you could say that, but after multiple tests with non-gamers, and non-developpers players we have gathered that:
- no matter the "domain" of the game, if it's clear and fun, people will play it.
- standard web rules, are like playing rules, if you follow them, you can learn how to build a web page in no time (and people are usually amazed on how simple the principle is)
Even if it might look weird, people enjoy playing it, and learn without knowing it the basic rules of web programming.
If you ever put your hands on a IDE (Integrated Developper Environnement, some kind of super text editor for developpers) one of the main feature is the "integrated syntax highlighting" system, which assigns different colors for different part or code.
To enhance lisibility od the game, we integrated this feature into our boardgame. An opening tag, a closing tag, text or attributes have all a specify color, which gives you in the blink of an eye an overview of the line or the page.
It's also kind of a joke to the whole web developers community.
The aim of the game is to build an HTML page, and for that you will need the ether players (or at least the cards they have in their hands) so it makes the game "collaborative".
The "almost" comes from the fact that you have "event cards" which allows you to barge into browsers. For example, you can steal cards, make the browsers crash, bug, or maybe even help them...
The game might have some educative values, because if you play it you learn things about HTML and the bass rules of programming.
But the aim of the game is not to be "educative", it's first to be played, to be fun and enjoyed by everyone. You can eventually learn something but it's a plus... not the ultimate goal.
I'm a web developper for 15 years now, and a board game player. Like many crazy projects, this one took shape around a joke, on a party with friends. We were playing a boardgame and I was trying to debug something at the same time (I know it's not polite to debug during a game).
"You should design an HTML board game, so that you don't have to leave every 2 minutes..."
The idea was there and is today a reality
My answer is yes and no.
We have a lot of ideas about how to extend the life of the game, add some difficulties, cards, etc... but we prefer to focus on the game itself instead of being lost in some hypothetical extensions.
We mainly awaits feedback from players about things to improve. We are eager to hear from them, and implement some great new features in the next versions of the game.
Not at first. The game will be available here un pre-order and then on the website. We don't reject the idea for the game to be available in regular stores, but the logistic of it is just out of our league.
Maybe something to think about, if the game is a success.
Fabrication time takes from 7 to 9 weeks, after we make the order (so that they could print, glue, bend, cut, etc...) For France add a week to that to be able to get your game on your postbox.
Ayway you will receive regular news and emails about the whole process and personal email when your order is ready to be shipped.
We use the regular french postal services, and we don't control the shipping price.
For France it's 6,18€, for international shipping it varies from 11,50 to 24,10€ (I know it's a lot) we're working on finding a way to ship the game for cheaper...
For now we concentrate on the french version of the game (mainly because we are french), but cards and everything else in the game is international and can be used in any language available (because it's mainly code or english computer nerd expressions)
When time is available we will release the ReadMe (the rules of the game) in different languages, as soon as possible.
Of course, we have tested the game on all kind of people to make sure everyone can play it... From my 7 years old daughter (no she's not from Estonia so she didn't learn programming at school) to my parents and neighbors, everyone has played and enjoyed the game without any special computer knowledge, simply by following the game's rules (which strange enough are similar to the web standard rules for developers ^^)
Contribute, Receive
This fundraising is finished
8
For $7 or more
Your name appears on the contributor's page on the dedicated website. You are part of the cHTeMeLe project and its release in Creative Commons!
324
For $19 or more
You will receive one cHTeMeLe boardgame for the lower price of 14€ (instead of 19€), a numbered box (add shipping costs)
+ Previous rewards
35
For $36 or more
Double pack of cHTeMeLe: You will receive two cHTeMeLe game boards
13
For $52 or more
Triple pack of cHTeMeLe: you will receive three cHTeMeLe boardgames
56 / 100
For $65 or more
You will receive one cHTeMeLe board game, and an exclusive limited edition t-shirt (100 to be printed - free shipping) + previous rewards
Limited reward
11 / 10
For $130 or more
As a premium contributor, you will also receive one cHTeMeLe boardgame, and your name will be in the rules of the game sent to everyone + previous rewards
Limited reward
1 / 10
For $325 or more
You will receive one numbered box of the cHTeMeLe boardgame signed and numbered by the two designers of the project... plus a screen-printed Artwork of the project numbered and signed by Pascal Mabille
Limited reward
1 / 5
For $650 or more
You will receive a numbered and signed box of the cHTeMeLe boardgame by the designers, plus you get an original signed Artwork by Pascal Mabille
Limited reward
0
For $1,299 or more
Enterprise pack: 5 boxes of the cHTeMeLe game as well as five exclusive t-shirts allowing you access to the enterprise....
and half a day of animation in YOUR company with one of the creators of the game.
1 / 1
For $1,949 or more
Your very own personalised event card, integrated into the game! You will have the possiblity to create (with us) one of the 112 cHTeMeLe playing cards which will be sent to all subscribers and available to download.
You will also of course receive a boxed version of the cHTeMeLe board game (1 availbe, free shipping)
+ the previous rewards
Limited reward
Creator
Early Birds
- Someone from Issy les Moulineaux, FR
Official Users ♥ it !