Hey everyone! My name is Scott and I am the creator of Combo, the game that is the perfect combination of strategy and luck. Combo began as an idea to help children have a fun way to practice math skills and has since expanded to be applicable to individuals of all ages. I am hoping to run a successful Kickstarter campaign in order to produce Combo and be able to sell it in order to help provide for my wife and daughter as I enter graduate school this fall and will not be able to work. I would just like to say thank you for taking the time to check out my campaign. Take a look at the video to see how Combo is played. If you could see yourself playing it, get started on that contribution of $30 to make sure you get a copy when it is produced! If you have friends or family that you know would enjoy it, take a look at the other reward levels in order to secure multiple copies.
The Story
Originally, Combo was called “Matchmatics” and was primarily aimed at helping children practice simple math skills in a fun and creative way, whether at home with their parents or in the classroom with their teachers. While this purpose is still a central selling point of the game, a few tweaks to the rules have now made it more applicable to the general public. If you were to ask me who the game is meant for, I would tell you that it is meant for EVERYONE, including parents trying to help their kids practice math at home and teachers looking for a fun math activity in the classroom.
Game Summary
Combo is quite simple! On each turn, you will roll a 12-sided die and a 10-sided die. You will then choose to add, subtract, multiply, or divide the two numbers and place a token on one of the corresponding answers on the board (for example, if you roll an 8 and a 2, you could choose to put a token on a 4, 6, 10, or 16). The first person to get five numbers in a row (known as a “Combo”), either up/down, across, or diagonal, is the winner! Pretty easy!
Gameplay and Rules
Instead of copying my rules pamphlet and making you read it, I have decided to show you in action how it is played. So take a look at my video to get a real sense for how the game is played and won! Below is some general information about how the board is arranged and why. Additionally, there might be some hints about how to win the game 🙂 Sooooo, you might want to check that out! Additionally, if you are looking to help your children practice math, take a look below to see the principles of math that Combo will help your children learn, practice, and apply.
However, I do want to explain the background of the game and how it is set up. As you can see, the board is essentially a grid with 100 squares. Each square contains a number that is a possible outcome when you roll the dice and choose whether to subtract, multiply, divide, or add the numbers you roll and you need to get five in a row to win. One thing to note is that numbers appear on the board proportionately to the probability of being rolled. For example, there are a lot of ways you can get 1 in the game. 4 divided by 4, 7-6, 4-3, etc. As such, you will see quite a few 1’s on the board. In contrast, there is only one way to get a 100. You must roll two 10’s and multiply them. As such, 100 only appears once on the board. Additionally, all possible sequences of 5 numbers on the board have an equal chance of being rolled (within 1%). For example, the first 5 numbers in the first row on the board have the same chance of being rolled as the last 5 numbers in the first row. Finally, numbers are grouped by color. Single digit numbers are red, teens are blue, 20’s are orange, 30’s are purple, 40’s are yellow, and 50+ are green.
Strategy
For adults who play this game, you will see where the strategy comes in. For example, if you roll a 9 and a 8 on your first roll, you should strongly consider choosing to multiply 9×8 to get 72 and placing your token on that space. Why? Because that is the only possible way to get a 72! Then you can play around that on numbers that are rolled more often. Additionally, if your opponent has 4 (only needing one more to win) and you want to remove one of their pieces, you would want to remove the chip from a high number because it will be harder for them to get a token back on that space because it has a low probability of being rolled. As you can see, there is a good deal of strategy involved!
Math Skills for Children
Combo teaches a wide variety of simple math principles that will give your children a fun way to practice them. Obviously, it will help them practice addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. The multiplication practice is especially useful as it does multiplication problems all the way from 1×1 to 10×10. Additionally, it teaches the principles of odd and even numbers and probability. One aspect that I really like about the game is that it helps children work backgrounds and critically think about a problem. For example, when you roll a 12 in the game, if becomes a wild. Say that the last number the child needs to get is a 32 and they have just rolled a 4 and a 12. This forces the child to work backwards and figure out what number they need to combine with 4 in order to get 32. This backwards thinking introduces them to very simple algebra. Many children learn multiplication with flashcards. So in this example, they might have a flashcard that says 4×8=? and they have to recite the answer. However, now they are trying to figure out 4 x _ = 32. As you can see, Combo really can help children practice these math skills that will help build a solid foundation for educational success.
Pulling it Off
In order to get Combo off the ground, I have done my very best to trim the costs at all levels in order to keep my target funding goal as low as possible. This includes taking a $5.50 cut in profit margin in order to make it cheaper for all of you who contribute to get this project underway.
I don’t expect anyone to contribute $30 if they could not see themselves playing the game. What is the point in that?! However, after watching the video, even if you feel you might not play the game yourself, if you feel like it has merit for the other target audiences, such as children practicing vital math skills, any contribution would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you again for taking a look at my campaign. If you liked what you saw, get going on deciding which reward you want and make your contribution. Please feel free to post this campaign on your social media accounts if you know you have friends or family that would enjoy having this game. Have a wonderful day!
