''Infinite Armies'' is a customizable

card game A card game is any game that uses playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, whether the cards are of a traditional design or specifically created for the game (proprietary). Countless card games exist, including famil ...

for two players. It was created by Greg Porter, and published in

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

Blacksburg Tactical Research Center Blacksburg Tactical Research Center (BTRC) is an American game publishing company best known for the '' TimeLords'', '' Macho Women with Guns'', and ''EABA'' role-playing games. They have produced a variety of role-playing games, card games, and b ...

. It follows on the success of the

collectible card game A collectible card game (CCG), also called a trading card game (TCG) among other names, is a type of card game that mixes strategy game, strategic deck building elements with features of trading cards. The genre was introduced with ''Magic: The G ...

genre, but establishes its own niche by allowing players to fully design, customize, and print their own cards. Whether this is a viable business concept is still being tested, as most card games rely heavily on sales of cards and the continued publication of new cards. The heart of the game is a

PDF Portable document format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe Inc., Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, computer hardware, ...

file called ''iArmy Builder'', which uses the functions of the

Adobe Acrobat Adobe Acrobat is a family of application software and web services developed by Adobe Inc. to view, create, manipulate, print and manage Portable Document Format (PDF) files. The family comprises Acrobat Reader (formerly Reader), Acrobat (former ...

program to allow players to create and print their own cards using any graphics files they like. The first versions focused on traditional modern armies, with

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

airpower Airpower or air power consists of the application of military aviation, military strategy and strategic theory to the realm of aerial warfare and close air support. Airpower began in the advent of powered flight early in the 20th century. A ...

, etc. But in theory, a player may base their cards on any idea they like, such as

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle that is designed spaceflight, to fly and operate in outer space. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including Telecommunications, communications, Earth observation satellite, Earth observation, Weather s ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

, cartoon characters, or even photos of friends and family.

Reception

The game won the 2005 Origins Vanguard Award for new gaming concept. It is the first PDF-only game to win an Origins award.

References

External links

''Infinite Armies''
at Blacksburg Tactical Research Center website

Blacksburg Tactical Research Center games Card games introduced in 2005 Dedicated deck card games Origins Award winners {{card-game-stub