Designer Matúš Kotry discusses development of his family-friendly deduction game, Little Alchemists

Matúš, it’s great to connect. To kick us off, what set you on the path to designing games?
I’ve always done it – I even designed games as a child to play with my cousins! I’m originally from Slovakia and moved to the Czech Republic to study. It was there I found a competition for game designers, so I took part…

Ah! Did you win?
No! The game I submitted wasn’t very good! It didn’t get released, but that process taught me a lot about designing games. From that process, I had the idea for Alchemists. I was playing Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, where you can practice alchemy, mixing resources… You don’t know what results you’ll get until you mix them. I thought: ‘Hey, a whole game centred around that could be fun.’

Yes, that was published – to much acclaim – by Czech Games Edition back in 2014. What is your role at the company?
I’ve been a Programmer there for 11 years. I’ve worked on all of the digital adaptations of their games.

Amazing. Did that play a part in why you brought Alchemists to them?
No, I knew Vlaada Chvátil from a local board game club.

And for anyone who may not know the name, Vlaada Chvátil is the designer of games like Codenames and Galaxy Trucker.
Yes! So I showed my game to him to see what he thought of it and he really liked it. He then connected me with the CEO of Czech Games Edition, who then decided to publish the game.

Amazing. So, 10 years after Alchemists landed, you’ve now revisited that world for your latest game, Little Alchemists. The original game is for players aged 14 plus, but Little Alchemists is pitched at those aged seven and above. It centres on mixing and matching potions, with the help of an app. Did you have to remove elements of the original game to make it work for younger players?
It was sort of the opposite! I kept the basics of the original game – scanning potions to mix them – but when I saw that my daughter was getting good at that, I added a few other things from the original game. She says it’s her favourite game now, which is great because when I first created Alchemists, I had no idea that it would lend itself to a more family-friendly version.

It’s worth noting the game comes with several boxes that you open as you progress and get better at the game. Even the rulebook is stickered shut at certain points to not spoil certain surprises. The choice to include these more complex elements for players to master as they go is an interesting one. Do you feel like games aimed at younger players shouldn’t shy away from complexity?
Some people have said Little Alchemists will be too difficult for kids and that games for children should be ‘easier’ because children don’t have good attention spans – but I disagree… I think it underestimates kids.

Alongside Alchemists and Little Alchemists, you’re also the designer of Czech Games Edition’s Deal with the Devil. What do you find helps you have ideas for games?
Anything and everything! But the biggest thing is playing other games. Playing them, analysing them, thinking what’s good or bad about them… How could I do something better? Asking those questions provokes ideas for new games.

We’re speaking at Spiel and I know you’re busy, so I just have one last question Matúš. For anyone that hasn’t been to the Czech Republic, what is the game design community like there?
The Czech Republic is a small country and there aren’t many ‘official’ design groups or communities here, but we have some board game conventions and that’s where this community usually gets together. It’s a close group and we all mostly know each other well.

Thanks again Matúš – and congrats on the launch of Little Alchemists.

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