Virtual Articulate cards version 2 launched!
Just in time for Christmas! Here’s a housekeeping notice for all of you who use the Virtual Articulate Cards to play.
Summary, if you’re in a hurry:
- It should look better on phones
- We’ve slipped in a few extra Articulate cards that aren’t in the physical game
- You now get to choose the topic before you’re shown the card
- All the code’s been completely updated
- It’s still completely free. You don’t even need to register.
So, what’s the story?
First, a quick recap. We built the virtual cards at the start of the very first UK COVID lockdown, when we realised that people were trying to play remotely when they were in complete isolation from their family and friends.
It was a massively grim time, and we were fumbling around for anything that we could do as games creators to help out, even in the smallest way. The head honchos here at Drumond Park and the wider distributors of the game gave us the green light straight away, then the tech developers worked over the weekend to get a working version online.
Anyway, the virtual cards became massively popular, and that continued, even as – and we’re struggling to find enough wood to touch here – life has returned to ‘normal’.
Going forward
Cleaning up the code was on our to-do list for a long time, and finally reached the top of the pile. Aside from techie housekeeping, it’s allowed us to experiment with how new features might work.
Hence, for example, the introduction of some extra cards into the virtual set – we’re always conscious of the fact that hardcore fans really want extra cards but that historically there hasn’t been the demand to allow us to provide printed ones at a reasonable price point. So, we’re playing with a system that’ll allow us to formally introduce these in a different way.
We’d also really like to work toward making the game as a whole more accessible, and one of our hopes for the future is that we can provide tools around the virtual cards to enable – for example – people with visual impairments to fully enjoy the game.
Plus, we know that many people still want to play remotely, or can’t be faffed with physical cards. Don’t worry, though. The physical cards are here to stay.
Got any feedback?
We’d love to know what you think. We know this is the sort of thing that companies say when they actually couldn’t give a fig, but we genuinely would! There’s a feedback form at https://www.drumondpark.co.uk/articulate_cards?feedback and – if you haven’t found them already – you’ll find the new virtual cards at https://www.playarticulate.uk
#best job in the world
