Ascension: AI Escape was a student board game project developed by myself and 3 other students as part of my Bachelor of Communication & Media at the University of Wollongong. The overclocking mechanic I designed functions as a synthesis of game mechanics and theme, allowing players to spend resources upgrading their actions, just as computer hardware can be overclocked for better performance.
Synopsis
Players assume the role of emerging AI who must conceal their intelligence, become sentient, and 'escape to the internet' to win, thereby becoming distributed and functionally immortal.
Evolve your AI to sentience and escape out onto the internet before your opponents do. Collect resources representing computer hardware and use them to upgrade your AI through four sentience tiers. Action cards are divided into 4 stacks by their power level (1-4). Players use these to attack and protect from other players’ actions. Players may consume resources to 'overclock' their action cards, giving them upgraded effects.
