Houkago Saikoro Club Episode 6: The joys of game design
Published on November 7, 2019
Surprisingly enough, this week's episode doesn't introduce the character that was hinted at last week. Instead, we get a refreshing shift to Midori rather than another episode about Miki. I have no way of knowing about board game culture in Japan, but I'm not the biggest fan of how hopeless the episode makes it look. Still, I think the episode is a strong moment for Midori, as she learns to rely on her friends some more.
Honestly, Midori's situation in this episode resonated a lot with me. I'm no board game designer, but many of these principles can be applied to anything creative. Midori's personality reminds me of myself when it comes to blogging. I've historically had a fear of showing an incomplete product when it comes to posts. It's often better just to foster the discussion, rather than putting together some perfect piece on your first try.
I do like how Midori's game is portrayed in the episode. When she brings out the playing cards, you can start to see where the game is becoming more complicated. The game elements start feeling like additional layers stacked on top of the main concept.
Personally, I would have liked to see a little bit more from this scene. I certainly know how Midori feels here, since it's often crazy how obvious the suggestions of others might seem. However, I've been in this situation as part of my job, and I think it's often too easy to say these things when you're not the one who has to implement them. I think there's a balance to be found when giving even solicited advice.
This is a nice line to have in the episode. As I mentioned before, these concepts can be applied to many different things, and this tends to be my view on blogging. It's easy to get defensive about something you spent time crafting, but reacting to criticism is often the easiest way to grow.