Press kit
The facts, two descriptions ready to use, the story so far, and pictures you are free to use in coverage of False Colors.
Fact sheet
- Game
- False Colors
- What it is
- A naval strategy game of hidden ranks and simultaneous orders
- Status
- In development. A free browser game against computer rival captains and a free print-and-play kit are available now; a digital beta for playing friends online runs by invitation.
- Players
- 2 to 6: two or four on the square chart, two on the duel chart, up to six on the hex chart, free-for-all or in alliances
- Playing time
- About 45 to 90 minutes at a table. Online, a round can take a minute or a day.
- Ages
- 8 and up
- Dice
- None
- Fleets
- Six navies, plus the Buccaneers for the Pirates! mode, each with 14 ships
- Ways to win
- Classic (most points after 24 rounds), last Admiral afloat, capture the flag, hold the Capital, and Pirates!
- Play
- In a browser on a computer or a phone, on paper, and on a TV in party mode with every captain on their own phone
- Physical editions
- Laser-engraved wood and printed acrylic, in development
- Kickstarter
- Planned for the engraved wood edition. No date is set yet.
- Price
- The browser game and the print-and-play kit are free. Prices for the physical editions come before anyone is asked to commit.
- Made by
- An independent game, made by a small crew
Descriptions
In 50 words
False Colors is a naval strategy game of hidden ranks and simultaneous orders for two to six captains. Every fleet carries the same 14 ships, every rating is hidden, and every captain moves at once. Bigger number wins, with three exceptions. Free to play in a browser and on paper.
In 150 words
False Colors is a naval strategy game of hidden ranks and simultaneous orders for two to six captains. Each captain commands 14 ships, rated 1 to 7 plus a Fireship and an Admiral, and nobody sees an enemy ship's rating until they fight her. Bigger number wins, with three exceptions: a Privateer that attacks sinks a First Rate, a Fireship burns any attacker but a Boarding Party, and an Admiral never attacks but is worth 8 points to whoever takes her. Every round, the captains seal their orders and the fleets sail at once. Points come from holding harbors and the Capital while a storm closes in on the chart, ring by ring, over 24 rounds. Four endings, a Pirates! mode and four rival captains from beginner to expert come built in. The browser game and the print-and-play kit are free now, and an engraved wooden edition is planned for Kickstarter.
Features
- Everyone moves at once. Captains seal up to 3 orders a round, 4 while their Admiral is afloat, and the fleets sail together. Nobody waits for a turn.
- Fog that stays foggy. A fight shows the two ships only to the two captains in it. Everyone else sees where it was and which ships were struck.
- Bigger number wins, with three exceptions. The Privateer, the Fireship and the Admiral. The rules fit on one card.
- Nobody is knocked out early. Games run 24 rounds, points come from holding harbors and the Capital, and a captain whose Admiral is taken keeps playing.
- Three charts. A square chart for two or four captains, a duel chart for two, and a hex chart for up to six, with alliances.
- Four endings and Pirates! Classic, last Admiral afloat, capture the flag and hold the Capital; and one pirate captain against an alliance of navies.
- Four rival captains. Played by the computer: Deckhand, Bosun, Navigator and Commodore, from learning the rules to a hard fight. They see only what a captain would see.
- Party mode. The board, the scores and each round's replay on a TV; every captain gives orders from their own phone.
- Play at your own pace. Online, every captain sends orders when they can, and the round resolves when the last one is in.
The story so far
False Colors keeps the oldest idea of the classic hidden-rank games: you know your own ranks and not your rival's. Nearly everything else is new. Every captain moves at once, games have a fixed length, points come from holding water rather than from sinking ships, and two to six can play.
The physical set matches the screen: laser-engraved wooden ships that stand in slotted bases, an engraved chart, and an illustrated box. The game is free to play now in a browser and on paper, and the wooden edition is bound for Kickstarter.
Images
Free to use in coverage of False Colors. The prints are illustrations; the screenshots are the game as it runs today.
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The banner, with sky
JPG, 1536 x 1024, 785 KB -
The battle print
JPG, 1448 x 1086, 535 KB -
The box
JPG, 1800 x 1300, 367 KB -
The wooden pieces
JPG, 1800 x 1200, 210 KB -
The Fireship
JPG, 800 x 800, 203 KB -
The Privateer
JPG, 800 x 800, 251 KB -
The Admiral
JPG, 800 x 800, 192 KB -
Screenshot: a game in the browser
JPG, 1800 x 1176, 216 KB -
Screenshot: setting up a game
JPG, 2000 x 1250, 290 KB -
The ship ladder: the nine kinds of ship
PNG with transparency, 2400 x 379, 257 KB
Logos
The flag is the logo. It works on light and dark grounds; please use it as drawn, without recolouring or cropping it.
Type
Pirata One for titles and ratings, EB Garamond for text, and IM Fell English for captions. All three are free under the SIL Open Font License, from Google Fonts.
Fleet colours
- Square-Riggers
#b02a2a - Lateens
#1f3f8a - Junks
#1e6b47 - Gaffs
#d79a2b - Carracks
#5b2a86 - Xebecs
#2a6b7c - Buccaneers
#1b1b1b
Contact
For interviews and press enquiries, write to the press desk: the press address.
Questions about the game: write to us.
A press address is not published yet. Join the captains' list and you will hear when it is, along with news of the beta and the Kickstarter.
This kit has no quotes, reviews or awards on it because the game has not been reviewed yet. When there are some, they will be here with their sources.