The Python Party Drawing Game
Written by Pete Shinners.
Visit the
Artiste Website for more information.
Artiste is a simple game designed to be played
by a group of people in the same room. There are two
competing teams, and each team takes turn trying to
guess what their teammate is drawing. This document
will give you a bit of information on how the game
is meant to be played.
Setting Up
The game is designed to be played on a computer with
two displays. The main screen is used by the current
player drawing. The other screen is used by the rest
of the group, the best setup is a TV. Using a laptop
with TV out is an ideal situation. (a laptop with
an external mouse)
Basic Gameplay
Split the group into two teams. There is a Team Red
and a Team Blue. The game starts by picking one
of the teams to go first, and selecting how many points
the game should play to. One person from a team will take
a turn as the artist. The artist can choose an easy word,
or a more difficult word for more points. The game plays
around the "drawing screen", where the artist can create
simple drawings with a limited palette. The artist tries
to draw something that will get their team to say the
chosen word. This word is displayed on the topright
corner of the screen, in a small low contrast font. You
well need to ensure the group cannot see this word on the
secondary television display. If the chosen word is too
difficult for the artist, there is the option to Pass and
select a new word, but this will take time off the clock.
The artist cannot talk to
their team, but can use the hinting "Hot" and "Cold" buttons
to help direct the team. If the team does say the correct
word, the artist hits the "Got It" button. After that
the round ends and the other team chooses an artist to
draw for them. Turns alternate until one team has reached
the chosen final score.
The Judge
After the artist's turn has ended, (by running out of
time, or hitting the "Got It" button). The group has
the option of changing the result of that round with the
judge. The judge will decide if the playing team has lost
or won. There are many reasons why it might be necessary
for the judge to make a decision. The artist may have spoken
or drawn letters that give away the word. Perhaps someone
said the correct word, but the artist didn't press the
"Got It" button in time. In the end, I guess it is really
up to the current artist if the judge should intervene on
a turn, but it would be wise to go with the crowd.
Well, that's pretty much it. It's a simple game, but
has been tested as a real crowd pleaser. Most of all,
have fun with it. You can bend the rules in any way
you see fit, and if you really want to, it is pretty
simple to dig into the python source and really change
the way the game plays (or rig the judge). I'll try
to describe each of the game screens here, and what
the players can do at them.
Start Screen -
This is a simple startup screen. You can either start
the game or quit.
How Many Points -
Here you pick how many points you want the game to play
to. 9 is a pretty short game, and 21 will take a bit of
time.
Who Will Start -
The game will randomly pick which team goes first.
The spinning arrow will end up on the starting team.
(note, if you really tire of the dramatic arrow,
the S key can instantly stop it)
Start Round -
Here the playing team picks an artist. When they are
ready to begin they press the start button. (You can
optionally go to the referee screen from here, and
make any changes to the current state of the game)
Difficulty -
The artist decides if they want to play with an easy
word for 1 point, or a more difficult word for 2 points.
Actual Game Screen -
Finally, the actual game screen. The word the artist
is trying to draw is in the upper right corner of the
screen. The artist draws by simply dragging the mouse
on the big canvas area.
There are several buttons on the left side of the
screen. At the top is the big Got It button,
which the artist must press when someone from the
team has said the word. Underneath that is a Pass
button, which will choose a different word, and take
several seconds off the game clock. Next are two hint
buttons, Hot and Cold. The artist can press
these buttons to place temporary hints on the canvas.
At the bottom is a color palette, which allows the artist
to draw with different colors. And finally an erase button,
which will erase the entire canvas, and start the drawing
over. Play on this screen continues until the timer runs
out, or the artist presses the Got It button.
Finish Round -
When the artist is done, this screen is displayed.
There are only two options. Usually the artist will
just End Turn, if they won the round, they
will be awarded their points. After ending the game
will return to the Start Round screen and
switch teams. You can also go to the judge
from this screen.
Judge -
There is nothing to do here, but watch as the judge
decided yes or no. His thumb will waver, and after a
certain amount of time, the thumb will either fall or
raise.
Referee -
In the referee screen you can do a couple things.
First, you can change the score of either team by
using the +/- buttons. You can also change which
team is currently drawing. Finally, you can end
the game, which will take you straight to the
finish game screen.
Finish Game -
When a team has reached the final number of points,
the game goes to this finish screen. A proud set of
tophies and cheer await the winning team. You can
click the mouse at anytime to return to the game
starting title screen.
have fun!