In collectible card games like Hearthstone, Legends of Runeterra, and Magic: The Gathering, the aesthetic of the cards is indubitably one of the greatest highlights for many, if not all players. Although the game loop is reliant on physically building and playing cards, there is an immense joy ingrained in simply observing the cards’ visual and audible flavor. This is because the flavor is more than just surface-level aesthetics. It’s a strategic and purposeful translation of mechanics and narrative.

在像《爐石傳說》，《符文傳說》和《魔法：聚會》等可收藏的紙牌游戲中，紙牌的美感無疑是許多人(即使不是所有玩家)最大的亮點之一。 盡管游戲循環依賴于實際構建和玩紙牌，但只要觀察紙牌的視覺和聽覺風格，就會產生巨大的快樂。 這是因為味道不僅限于表面層面的美觀。 這是力學和敘事的戰略性和有目的性的翻譯。

First, we need to understand what exactly is card art, or more specifically, the card aesthetic. The primary part of the card aesthetic is the illustration, comprising 50 to 100% of the card’s structure. Like how splash pages in comic books capture the attention of its readers, the card’s illustration attracts the player’s eye. This illustration is usually supplemented by additional aesthetics, including interface design (e.g., card border, card shape), voice lines, sound effects, visual effects, and other small animations.

首先，我們需要了解什么是卡片藝術，或更具體地說，是卡片美學。 卡片美學的主要部分是插圖，占卡片結構的50％至100％。 就像漫畫書中的醒目頁面如何吸引讀者的注意力一樣，卡片的插圖吸引了玩家的眼球。 該插圖通常以其他美學方式進行補充，包括界面設計(例如，卡邊框，卡形狀)，語音線，聲音效果，視覺效果和其他小動畫。

While this aesthetic sounds flawless, there are several things to consider. One element is limited space. In order to conserve space while enabling legibility, in-game card illustrations are always cropped, minimized versions of the original art. On the note of limited space, another potential issue is card art’s inability to push a “greater” aesthetic due to the traditional 2D nature of card games. Compared to other artistic assets in a game space (e.g., full-screen environments, 3D character turnarounds, original sized splash art, extended level soundtracks), the card aesthetic feels lacking, but this is not true whatsoever. In fact, it does the complete opposite, augmenting the player experience to new heights! The secret to its success lies within the cropped illustration itself.

盡管這種美感聽起來是完美無缺的，但有幾點要考慮。 一個因素是有限的空間。 為了節省空間并確保可讀性，游戲中的紙牌插圖總是經過裁剪，是原始藝術的最小版本。 在有限的空間上，另一個潛在的問題是紙牌藝術由于傳統的2D紙牌游戲性質而無法推動“更大”的美學。 與游戲空間中的其他藝術資產(例如，全屏環境，3D角色周轉，原始大小的啟動畫面，擴展級別的音軌)相比，卡的美感讓人感覺缺乏，但事實并非如此。 實際上，它完全相反，將玩家體驗提升到新的高度！ 成功的秘訣在于裁剪后的插圖本身。

Before diving into the secret, let’s understand another important element to card art. While card art strives to attract, it also works to convey the card’s function and personality. In short, aesthetic is heavily associated with definition because it embodies definition. It’s easy to make this visual-definition connection in the real-world as we grew up surrounded by them. For example, a child may read about what a “dog” is and how it behaves in a book, and when they encounter a “dog” in reality they can easily identify it through textbook association. We learn by repeating this process over and over.

在深入探討秘密之前，讓我們了解卡片藝術的另一個重要元素。 卡片藝術在努力吸引人們的同時，也傳達了卡片的功能和個性。 簡而言之，美學與定義密切相關，因為它體現了定義。 當我們在周圍環繞時，很容易在現實世界中建立這種視覺清晰度連接。 例如，孩子可能會讀到“狗”是什么以及它在書中的行為，當他們在現實中遇到“狗”時，他們可以通過教科書關聯輕松識別它。 我們通過一遍又一遍地重復此過程來學習。

Then how does this process fare in the game world in which all sorts of fantastical and sci-fi elements are being introduced to the player at once? To allow ourselves to play the game, we suspend our belief, but it’s fair to say that the visual-definition connection is a bit harder to make in the game space because it’s an uncommon and different world. Some elements are more common than others and hence, easier to visualize and define (e.g., a dragon vs a kobold), but when you play a card game that involves hundreds of brand new concepts of varying familiarity, how do you manage this visual-definition association? The secret is hidden in the card aesthetic. But how can a thumbnail of a painting create the same effect as the whole painting? More often than not, it wouldn’t be equal, but in the realm of a collectible card game, it is very possible. It all starts with the concept of the focal point, generously revealed to us through the crop.

那么，在將各種奇幻和科幻元素同時引入玩家的游戲世界中，這一過程又如何呢？ 為了讓我們自己玩游戲，我們暫停了信念，但是可以公平地說，視覺清晰度連接在游戲空間中很難建立，因為這是一個不常見且不同的世界。 有些元素比其他元素更常見，因此更易于可視化和定義(例如，龍與狗頭人)，但是當您玩涉及數百種不同熟悉程度的全新概念的紙牌游戲時，如何管理這種視覺效果，定義關聯？ 秘訣隱藏在卡片美學中。 但是，繪畫的縮略圖如何產生與整個繪畫相同的效果？ 通常不是相等的，但是在可收藏的紙牌游戲中，這是很有可能的。 一切始于焦點的概念，并通過莊稼向我們慷慨地揭示了焦點。

A focal point pivots on the center of interest or activity, and for limited space like cards this is an optimal move. By redirecting the energy of the flavor, the card art highlights the card’s definition, allowing the art to substitute for a written description. This translation becomes extremely useful in the long run as it saves the player time and energy when cycling through cards while showcasing personality and lore.

焦點以興趣或活動中心為中心，對于卡片等有限的空間，這是最佳選擇。 通過重新分配風味的能量，卡片藝術品可以突出卡片的定義，從而使藝術品可以代替書面說明。 從長遠來看，這種翻譯非常有用，因為它可以節省玩家的時間和精力，讓他們在翻牌時展示個性和知識。

Let’s break down a case example starring Cithria of Cloudfield from Legends of Runeterra:

讓我們來分解一個由Runeterra的傳說中Cloudfield的Cithria主演的案例：

This is the in-game version of the card. Although it doesn’t show much, we can understand from first glance that the card embodies a lone girl wandering with an amazed and curious expression on her face. This hook reels in the player and follow-up questions arise: Who is she? Where is she? Why is she here? What is she mesmerized by? Now the player’s eyes start to roam, arriving at the next important element —the text. Cithria is a basic follower 2/2 unit with a mana cost of 1. This makes a lot of sense given the thumbnail illustration depicting her with “novice” clothes and a wooden sword. There is no keyword (AKA special effect) on Cithria’s card, indicating a straightforward personality and battle style. The card is labeled as an Elite, which is a unit type originating from the region of Demacia. This information helps tell us who and where Cithria is. The next selling point in the aesthetic-definition translation is the supporting element of audio. When you summon her, she exclaims with a wavering yet determined voice: “New recruit, reporting in!”, “I’m… actually here!”, “I’ll write my own story!” Other voice lines of similar personality shine when you position her for an attack or block, when special characters are present, and when she dies. Now the player is able to understand why she is at Demacia, in awe of what new adventures Demacia has to offer.

這是該卡的游戲內版本。 盡管顯示的內容不多，但我們乍一看就可以理解，這張卡體現了一個孤獨的女孩，她的臉上帶著一種奇怪而又好奇的表情徘徊。 這勾住了玩家，隨之而來的問題是：她是誰？ 她在哪？ 她怎么在這里 她對什么著迷？ 現在，玩家的眼睛開始漫游，到達下一個重要元素-文字。 塞斯里亞(Cithria)是2/2基本追隨者，法力消耗為1。考慮到用“新手”衣服和一把木劍描繪她的縮略圖，這很有意義。 西瑟里亞的牌上沒有關鍵詞(又名特殊效果)，表明一種直截了當的個性和戰斗風格。 該卡被標記為Elite，這是一種來自Demacia地區的單位類型。 這些信息有助于告訴我們Cithria是誰，在哪里。 美學定義轉換的下一個賣點是音頻的支持元素。 當您召喚她時，她驚wave而堅定的聲音驚呼：“新兵，報到！”，“我……實際上在這里！”，“我會寫自己的故事！” 當您放置她進行攻擊或阻擋，出現特殊字符以及她去世時，其他具有相似個性的語音線也會發光。 現在，玩家可以對Demacia所提供的新冒險感到敬畏，從而了解自己為什么要去Demacia。

For players who are curious to grasp the card in its true glory, they zoom out to see the original card art — Cithria walking among a busy crowd of citizens and soldiers in Demacia, mesmerized by its white, elegant architecture and a bustling street market. It feels rewarding taking the next step to visualize the entire card, and we must remember that all of this information and flavor was cleverly packaged and delivered first through the in-game card aesthetic, starting with a small thumbnail focusing on the lone Cithria.

對于好奇地希望掌握這張牌真實榮耀的玩家，他們可以縮小視野以查看原始的卡片藝術-Cithria漫步在Demacia繁忙的市民和士兵人群中，其白色典雅的建筑和熙熙street的街道市場著迷。 下一步可視化整個卡牌感覺很有意義，我們必須記住，所有這些信息和風味都是通過游戲內卡牌美學巧妙地包裝和交付的，首先是側重于孤單Cithria的小縮略圖。

As players play the same cards over and over, this translation through card aesthetic becomes second nature. You know exactly what Cithria of Cloudstep is and what it does just by looking at the thumbnail or just by listening to a voice line. The power of the card aesthetic is so ingrained that it explains why it can be so off-putting when the package changes in some manner. For example, several cards in Hearthstone were edited in 2019 to dial back the sexual and graphic violence factor.

隨著玩家一遍又一遍地玩同一張紙牌，這種通過紙牌美學的轉換成為第二自然。 您只需查看縮略圖或通過收聽語音線路即可確切了解Cloudstep的Cithria是什么以及它的作用。 卡片美學的力量是如此根深蒂固，以至于它解釋了為什么當包裝以某種方式發生變化時，卡片如此令人反感。 例如，《 爐石傳說》中的幾張卡片在2019年進行了編輯，以回撥性暴力和圖形暴力因素。

The greatest change was a complete 180 of the original art (i.e., Succubus is changed into a Felstalker, less revealing demonic beast). Intermediate changes involved a change in perspective (i.e., Deadly Shot now focuses on the arrow first being shot compared to the original art illustrating a creature struck in the chest by the arrow). Minor changes mostly kept the original art and removed small details (i.e., Eviscerate removes the blood splatter from the knife attack). For those who are accustomed to the original art may need more time than others to adjust to the new defining aesthetic, but no matter the degree of change, the aesthetic should continue to uphold the core mechanic and lore of the card to avoid becoming unrecognizable and disrupting the player’s flow state.

最大的變化是完成了原始藝術的整整180個(即，魅魔被變成了邪魔纏身者，鮮為人知的惡魔野獸)。 中間的變化涉及到視角的變化(即，與說明生物被箭頭擊中胸部的原始藝術相比，“致命射擊”現在專注于首先被射擊的箭頭)。 較小的更改大部分保留了原始藝術品，并刪除了一些小細節(即剔骨消除了刀擊中的血跡)。 對于那些習慣于原始藝術的人來說，可能需要比其他人更多的時間來適應新的定義美感，但是無論變化程度如何，美感都應繼續秉承卡片的核心機制和知識，以避免變得面目全非。破壞玩家的流動狀態。

On the note of flow state, this “second nature” trait induced by the card aesthetic contributes to the important notion of familiarity and consistency in gameplay. A card game involves a multitude of characters and spells and all kinds of unique elements to keep track of, and in order to have enjoyable and confident games, the second nature must be capitalized. The more comfortable the player grows, the more fun the player will have, and the card aesthetic lives up to this expectation by endorsing a systematic pattern, effectively translating narrative and mechanics through art and streamlining the gameplay.

關于流動狀態，由紙牌美學感生的“第二自然”特征有助于形成重要的游戲熟悉性和一致性概念。 紙牌游戲涉及許多角色和咒語以及各種獨特的元素以進行跟蹤，并且為了擁有令人愉悅和自信的游戲，必須將第二性質大寫。 玩家變得越自在，就越會獲得樂趣，并且通過認可系統的模式，通過藝術有效地將敘事和技巧轉換并簡化游戲玩法，卡片美學才能達到預期。

This leads to the big picture: while the card aesthetic may function well for the individual card, how does it streamline the gameplay for hundreds of cards? This is attributed to another advantage in card art, specifically through its numbers. Through the power of thematic categorization (“flavor filtering”) across a multiplicity of cards, the visual-definition association is applied at a macro level and a unique stylistic freedom is created through the card aesthetic.

這導致了一個大局面：雖然紙牌美學可能對單個紙牌有效，但如何簡化數百張紙牌的游戲玩法？ 這歸因于卡片技術的另一個優勢，特別是通過其數量。 通過對多種卡片進行主題分類(“味道過濾”)的強大功能，可以在宏級別應用視覺定義關聯，并通過卡片美學創造獨特的風格自由。

One example is the regional organization in Legends of Runeterra. There are currently six regions, each with their own symbol, lore, and playstyle. In creating a deck of cards, the player is permitted up to two regions to draw cards from for synergy. This division of cards into regions allows for a smooth interpretation of cards aesthetically and mechanically. A player can easily distinguish Noxus cards from Demacia cards through various artistic elements (e.g., Noxus’s red and dark colors illustrating their ruthless conquest vs Demacia’s white, blue, silver, and gold colors illustrating their steadfast glory).

一個例子是《 Runeterra傳說》中的區域組織。 當前有六個地區，每個地區都有自己的符號，知識和游戲風格。 在創建一副紙牌時，允許玩家最多兩個區域從中抽出紙牌以產生協同作用。 卡的這種區域劃分允許從美學和機械上平滑地解釋卡。 玩家可以通過各種藝術元素輕松區分Noxus卡和Demacia卡(例如，Noxus的紅色和深色說明了他們的殘酷征服，而Demacia的白色，藍色，銀色和金色說明了他們的堅定榮耀)。

Another example on a smaller scale is the repetitive and sequential elements linked throughout various cards. Returning to Cithria in the Demacian region, players see her appearance in three different cards illustrating her rise in experience and ranks on the battlefield from the new recruit 2/2 Cithria of Cloudfield, to the 3/3 Vanguard Squire, and finally a full-fledged member of the Dauntless Vanguard 6/6 Cithria the Bold. Her text and battle style are steadily evolving along with her card art and voice lines as well.

另一個較小規模的示例是貫穿各個卡的重復和順序元素。 返回Demacian地區的Cithria，玩家會在三張不同的卡片中看到她的出現，這說明了她的經驗和在戰場上的排名，從新招募的2/2 Cithria of Cloudfield到3/3 Vanguard Squire，最后是完整的勇敢的先鋒隊成員6/6大膽的西斯里亞。 她的文字和戰斗風格以及卡片藝術和語音線也在穩步發展。

True beauty is beyond the surface and the card aesthetic of digital collectible card games lives up to this sentiment. By optimizing a limited amount of game space, utilizing supporting aesthetics, and taking advantage of its unique stylistic freedom across the board, the card aesthetic illustrates a thousand words with a single thumbnail.

真正的美麗已超越表面，數字可收藏紙牌游戲的紙牌美學符合這種情感。 通過優化有限的游戲空間，利用輔助美感，并充分利用其獨特的整體風格自由度，紙牌美感可以通過一個縮略圖顯示上千個單詞。