PLAYING CARDS FROM ENFABLED

The word "Enfabled" isn't really a word in English. I know, because I checked several dictionaries to be sure. But I think it is a very stylish word, even if it is made up! It is a deliberate play on words, that is the result of smashing together the words "enable" and "fable". To "enfable", then, means to put something into a short story form or fable. So if something is "enfabled", it has been enabled into a fable! See, that makes total sense doesn't it? It could be a word. It should be a word. It isn't, of course, but it is the clever name of publisher whose new deck of playing cards I'm covering in this preview.

Enfabled is a tabletop gaming company that originally went under the label Undefined Knowledge, and more recently has been operating under the name Enfabled. They're not new to the world of gaming either, and have produced a few games under the last few years, including the rummy style card game Draw Blood: Remix (2016), and the gear-collecting card game Carry On: Gear Collecting Card Game (2016). They're currently working on a forthcoming deck-building card game with a dice-rolling battle system, entitled Goddess & Gorgon. The latter title, which is planned for launch in the Fall, has a mythical theme, so the "Enfabled" term nicely captures the idea of fantasy story-telling that this game will evoke.

But over the years, Enfabled has also produced a number of decks of playing cards, which can be used for playing traditional card games, magic, or even just for collecting. And it's their newest deck of playing cards that I'm covering today: a deck inspired by retro consoles and classic computer games which is now up for funding on Kickstarter Classic Console Playing Cards (2ndedition).




CLASSIC CONSOLE DECK

Following the success of the original edition, Enfabled decided to produce a revised edition of the Classic Console deck (2nd edition).



With a very low funding target of just $2000, this deck was inspired by retro consoles and classic video games. If you are the nostalgic type who enjoys iconic images from the previous age of technology and games, then this is a deck for you!

The intent wasn't to provide an accurate depiction of characters or properties, but rather to transform familiar and recognizable images into a meaningful and functional design, and that's already evident from the card-backs.



Just like with the NYC deck, the Aces have over-sized pips with iconography that is used for the pips throughout the deck. For this deck, the suits represent the following four retro consoles:
- Spades: Genesis
- Clubs: SNES
- Hearts: NES
- Diamonds: ATARI 2600



These pips are also a key feature of the customized number cards.



The court cards were inspired by the most popular games on each of these systems. For example, most people will be familiar with Tetris, which is featured on the Jack of Hearts. The other two games represented in the Hearts suit (NES) are Legend of Zelda (Queen) and Super Mario (King).



And here with the Diamonds are the Atari 2600's Donkey Kong (King) and Pac-Man (Queen), while the Jack (not pictured here) features the classic game Breakout.



Even though I grew up in the 1980s, I didn't play as many video games as most of my peers, so probably other people will do a better job of recognizing these games than me!

The Clubs (SNES) feature the games Link To The Past (King), Super Metroid (Queen), and Link To The Past (King), while the Spades (Genesis) feature Sonic (King), Striker (Queen), and Earthworm Jim (Jack).



What is striking is that each court card still has a shape and design that strongly reflects its suit, like the Spades and Clubs shown above.

People were very happy with the first edition of this deck, and there is good reason to expect a similar reception for this one.




CONCLUSIONS

Classic Console: The Classic Console deck will also have an appeal to a specific audience, but many of us will have fond memories of hours spent video gaming in our youth, and for those born in the 1970s and 1980s, this deck will evoke a lot of nostalgia. The success of the first edition indicates that there is enough of a demand for this deck of playing cards to merit a second edition, and from the images of seen of the first edition, this revised version is an improvement.

Inexpensive: The decks from Enfabled are among the cheapest you'll find in the custom playing card industry. Typically an average deck costs $15-20, but this is selling for $10 on Kickstarter, and their other decks are selling for only $10 on the Enfabled website, which makes them relatively inexpensive for a custom deck.

Short campaigns: One thing interesting about Enfabled is that they run short Kickstarter campaigns. Part of this is because their projects typically reach their funding goals quickly, and because of their philosophy for crowdfunding, which they explain as follows: "We are not trying to raise millions of dollars to build an army of robot kittens. We just want to make a deck of playing cards, and we usually find an audience of amazing backers fairly quickly. If people show up late to the party, we usually have a handful of extra decks for sale on our website. Also, the faster the campaign ends, the quicker things move into actual production. Then before you know it, there is a deck of cards in your mailbox!"

MPC produced: Another reason that enables them to do this successfully is because they print their decks with MPC, rather than with some of the usual candidates like USPCC or EPCC/LPCC. Unlike most other printers, MPC doesn't have a minimum order requirement. This means that Enfabled can more easily run a successful project, without needing a very large order size, and can also get the published deck into the hands of backers in a much shorter space of time, while also having enough copies remaining to sell over on their own website.

Card quality: Enfabled uses MPC's 310sgm casino quality card stock, with black core (to prevent light shining through the cards) and a linen finish. MPC actually offers two 310gsm linen finishes, the French casino finish and the German master finish, the latter having deeper air pockets, but it is only available for large orders, which is why the Enfabled decks have the French casino finish. But both options have an embossed surface that is similar to the concept of USPCC's Air Cushion finish. While the quality of the MPC cards does not quite match a USPCC produced decks, it is still a decent quality air cushion style finish that is more than satisfactory. They have a cleaner cut than a USPCC produced deck, but don't spread or fan quite as smoothly as a top drawer deck, despite the embossed finish, although the cards do packet nicely. If USPCC produced decks deserve an A grade, these would get around a B grade, which means that they are still very good, and far better than your average mass-produced cheap souvenir deck of cards; they still spread, fan, and shuffle quite nicely.

Experience with games: As well as producing several different decks of playing cards, Enfabled has also produced several games. Under their previous label "Undefined Knowledge", they produced the original edition of their Draw Blood rummy game, and their medieval card game Four Wizards. Under their new label "Enfabled" they have produced three more recent titles, Zen Squire, Draw Blood Remix, and Carry On.

Experience with playing cards: Enfabled is by no means a new kid on the Kickstarter block. Under their "Enfabled" label, they have successfully produced the second edition of their Stained Glass deck, while under their previous label "Undefined Knowledge", they have produced several decks of playing cards including their Cat deck (1st & 2nd edition), NYC deck, Classic Console deck (1st edition), Super Suits deck, and their Stained Glass deck (1st edition).



Where do you get them?

If you're interested in picking up some of these playing cards for yourself, head to the Kickstarter project here. For their other decks, check out the official Enfabled website.



What to learn more? Check out:

Enfabled: www.enfabled.com
Classic Console Playing Cards (2nd Edition): https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/enf......-edition

Pretty cool