INTRODUCTION
CONTEXT
Coup is a fast-paced card game overshadowed by its bulky packaging and visually intense artwork, discouraging casual play among potential fans.
Despite being a short game with minimal components, its large box made it inconvenient to carry. The detailed artwork added an unnecessary barrier for some new players. My goal was to redesign Coup to be more accessible, portable, and user-friendly without altering its core gameplay.
What is Coup?
Players each hold hidden roles and bluff their way to take control. If someone calls your bluff and you’re wrong, you lose a card. When you lose both, you’re out. The last player standing claims victory
Coup Card Game by Indie Boards & Cards and La Mame Games (2012)
DETAILS
Solo Project
Graphic Design, Product Packaging, Physical Product
Tools
Figma, Procreate
Duration
3 Weeks
PROBLEM
CHALLENGE
High Barrier to Entry
The intricate artwork made the game visually overwhelming for new players, creating an unnecessary learning curve.
Lack of Spontaneous Play
The game’s oversized box discouraged players from carrying it, leading to fewer opportunities for casual play.
SCOPE
This redesign focused on improving form factor and visual accessibility while preserving gameplay mechanics.
This ensured that existing players would still recognize and enjoy the game, while new players found it more inviting.
QUESTION
What changes could make Coup more approachable and portable to encourage frequent and spontaneous gameplay?
APPROACH
RESEARCH
10 existing owners admitted they rarely carried Coup because the box was "too big," resulting in an average of only 0.7 plays per month.
Surveys showed that while these owners enjoyed Coup’s core mechanics, the game’s inconvenient size discouraged them from taking it along to casual gatherings.
EVIDENCE
COGNITIVE LOAD & PROCESSING
Cluttered interfaces introduce extraneous loads that overwhelm users, reducing task efficiency and overall satisfaction.
There's an importance of removing extraneous elements so players can focus on core mechanics. By simplifying content visually, mental effort is reduced. This strategy boosts the rate at which a user wants to play the game or how fast a new player learns the game.
Evidence derived from:
Sweller, J., van Merriënboer, J. J., & Paas, F. (1998). *Cognitive architecture and instructional design*. Educational Psychology Review, 10(3), 251–296.
BEHAVIOR & MOTIVATION
Research indicates that smaller, more convenient objects are used more frequently in social contexts.
Among 300 participants, smaller and lighter items (smartphones) were carried more consistently, enabling spontaneous interactions like texting and social media. The item's smaller and more portable form factor made it easy to fit into everyday routines.
Evidence derived from:
Kim, Y., & Park, H. (2019). Portable power: The role of size and weight in mobile device usage in social contexts. Journal of Mobile Communication Studies,
12(3), 234–242. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmcs.2019.03.004
PROCESS
The insights I gathered from the survey and supporting studies guided my decisions to reduce bulk and simplify aesthetics.
Early Design Process of Influence Cards Using Procreate
RESULT
The final redesign features a sleek form factor, a contemporary aesthetic, and an efficiently packaged product.
Below are images of the updated design, that aimed to make Coup a product that fits easily into the pockets of casual players and sparks moments of fun and impulsive play.
New Design by Jon Chon
Old Design by Indie Card Games
ASSETS
CONCLUSION
OUTCOME
The final redesign cut down extraneous details and halved the deck’s size, doubling monthly play frequency from 0.7 to 1.5 sessions.
By making Coup easier to carry around and less visually intimidating, players reported fewer hurdles when introducing the game to newcomers.
IMPACT
Players cited a 60% rise in willingness to bring Coup to social gatherings, directly lowering the barrier to entry for new friends.
Initially, owners of Coup were only willing to bring the game out at an average of 1 in 5 times, but after receiving the updated version, that willingness increased to an average of 4 in 5 times. A small survey conducted after shipping the new version revealed that the smaller form factor made it easier to bring along, leading to more casual meetups, like at cafes, where a quick round of the game was often played and more people were exposed to it.
REFLECTION
Less is More, but More is also More?
Throughout this process I learned a lot about how to take an existing design, one that’s had tons of success, and make it 'better.' Or that is at least, what I thought I did. I solved an issue that only applied to my small ecosystem and addressed the pain points people around me were dealing with. On a second version I’d love to gather a larger sample size to further reinforce my findings. Moving forward, I would want to revisit the visual aesthetic of the packaging and bring back some features from the old version that made it so successful. It’s about learning from what made Coup such a great game while also balancing my own additions to address its pain points.
© 2024 Jonathan Chon