JADE TOWER STUDIO
game design & publishing
Cartoon Car Crash Course
Cartoon Car Crash Course (C4) is an excuse for adults to play with some of the amazing toy cartoon vehicles available at toy & department stores, garage sales, flea markets, & inside “children’s” fast food meals (thank goodness for drive throughs!). We provide rules for six kinds of cartoon vehicles: Conventional, Wacky, Spooky, Futuristic, Superhero, & Supervillain. You choose a vehicle type & a theme that fits your vehicle. Next you pay points to purchase Add-Ons (cartoon weapons, special abilities, hazards, tricks, & so on) that fit your theme. A wide variety of possibilities are included so you can create (or recreate) almost any cartoon vehicle; the points system keeps them balanced.
From 2 to 6 players race their toy cartoon cars using a simple simultaneous movement system; attacks are also simultaneous. Collisions & attacks are resolved quickly. If a car loses all of its damage points, it Blows Up, loses some Cheers (which you collect to be able to win the race), moves back 2d6”, then keeps on going. All of this means lots of action & very little down time for players.
C4 plays quickly & is suitable for both younger players & older players with short attention spans (like most gaming groups, in our experience). It plays faster than most other car combat games & can get pretty hilarious at times.
With 6 vehicle types, 6 cartoon themes, 15 customizable weapon types & more than 40 customizable add-ons to choose from, you’ll be able to create or recreate just about any ‘toon vehicle imaginable – as long as you have a toy vehicle that can represent it. The points system keeps them balanced, so a Wacky baby bird in a jalopy or a beagle sitting on a doghouse with imaginary machine guns can cause just as much mayhem as a Superhero in a specially designed ubermobile.
Color Commentary on the Cover (Illustration by James Olley)
“As they approach the finish line, it looks like Gargoyle-Man has a slight lead over Space Dude, although The Dude seems awfully calm at this point in the race.”
“Is that a beer he’s drinking?”
“Maybe it’s one of those future drinks that helps his coordination. He’s lucky he’s got that robot with him!”
“Yeah, but It looks like a dog! The Dude is continuing to pepper Gargoyle-Man with radioactive donuts, which are taking their toll. Meanwhile, Racer VIII is creeping up on the outside, and it looks like he has some turbo charges left . . .”
“Whoa! The Love Dino just belted out its love song at the Minionator, and it was too much for the poor crew! The Minionator just skyrocketed off the track with minions flying everywhere!
“Sufferin’ succotash! I didn’t see that one coming! Luckily, the booth protects us from that (bleep)ing dinosaur’s song!”
“Well, hopefully the censors caught that one! Now back to the race. It looks like one of the Dino’s crew is launching a big chunk of stinky cheese at the Transylvania Tooner just coming over the last hill, but they’re both far enough behind that they aren’t gonna win this race unless something crazier than usual happens.”
“Meanwhile the Garmobile and Space Dude are still neck & neck, and now Racer VIII is almost even with them! This looks like a photo finish, folks! Okay, who’s got a camera? No, a real camera!"
Some Recommended Toy Vehicles for Racers: