We interview Josh Patton, Josh Wegner, and Theresa Wegner. The three friends created Animo, a card game currently on Kickstarter.

Animo was born out of a desire to create something beneficial for their kids. They were especially interested in trading cards (baseball, football, Pokemon, etc.) and even memorized many of the attributes. These parents wanted to turn this around to help their kids memorize useful information, particularly Bible verses, through play.

Josh Wegner first created a few cards for his children, who shared them with their friends and neighbors. More and more people started asking for cards, and they realized they needed to create something with substance.

There are three ways to use the Animo cards:

1 vs 1: “Sharpen Your Sword” battle game

Family style game: “Hide it in Your Heart” memory / card-swapping game

Parenting tool: Talk to your children about character traits and give them Bible verses that they can carry in their pockets.

The team debated whether to make Animo a collectible card game (randomized booster packs) or a living card game (expansion sets, playable right away). In the end, they decided that the goal was to get it into people’s hands rather than make a lot of money, so they went with the LCG concept.

The starter deck (54 cards) can be split into 2 balanced decks to allow both the 1v1 or the family game right away. The 2 expansion decks (also 54 cards each) allow adding on or customizing the decks for more variation in play.

 

We also talk about favorite card games!

Josh Patton (also his children’s favorites): Sushi Go, Best Treehouse Ever, Dominion, and Wing It (a storytelling game).

Josh Wegner: Ninja, Monsters Boom, and Star Realms.

Theresa Wegner: Golf (rules on Wikipedia).

Anitra picked games she wishes we would play more: Guillotine, Anomia, and Smash Up.

Andrew tried to pick games that wouldn’t be on other lists: Machi Koro, Duple, and Illuminati. Honorable mentions: Hanabi, Purrrlock Holmes (our review).

 

Find Animo online: facebook.com/AnimoCards

Twitter: @AnimoGames

www.animocards.com

 

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