by Michi Die

I am Michael and Cherry on Top is my first published game. The publisher is Piatnik – all very exciting! I thought people might be interested in the game itself and how it came to life. Aspiring game designers might also find the thought process behind it useful.

HOW IT WORKS
I think it makes sense to explain a bit about how the final game works before diving into its development. Otherwise, I fear it might be difficult to follow.
The game consists of 49 cards: seven different colors and seven different fruits, each featuring one unique combination of each color and fruit. The game is a ladder climber where you must play a larger group than the previous player or pass. Larger groups consist of connected cards of the same fruit or color. For example, if a player puts out two cherry cards, you need to build a group of three cards somehow. The first twist is that you can use cards already played by another player. In our example, I could simply add one cherry to the existing two to build a group of three cherries. The next player could then add a fourth cherry, or play four of something else—like melons or blue cards. The second twist is that you can cover up cards when playing to build a larger group. If a player puts down two cherries and you don’t have any cherries, you can cover those cherries with three cards of a different matching color or fruit. If you play a group and everyone else passes, you get to start a new group of any size. Whoever gets rid of all their cards first wins the game.

Example (with the prototype art*): Another person played two cherries. The next person must somehow get to a group of three and can make use of cards being played previously. He could for example simply add another cherry (A) or he could play two additional purple cards to get to three (B).

* fruits designed by Freepik – Magnificent.com
DESIGNING CHERRY ON TOP
The core concept of Cherry on Top is that players contribute to a shared display, and cards already played can be utilized by everyone else. Turning this into a ladder climber felt like a natural next step, as the genre inherently involves moving from smaller groups to larger or better ones. For example, if I play a group of two cards, the next player must either play a group of three or more cards, or a group of two cards that beats mine. I originally started with numbered cards across different colors. Since many card games start with a hand of about eight cards per person (and I wanted to support up to five players), using numbers 1 through 7 with seven different colors was a great starting point. It gave us exactly 49 cards to work with, a number that stuck around for the final game.

While the concept worked, numbered cards proved problematic because they conflicted with the color mechanics. Numbers inherently imply a specific value, prompting players to want to sort them—a 1 is usually seen as less valuable than a 4, for example. Furthermore, making the specific number matter created too many restrictions. That is why I ultimately chose fruits over numbers. At that point, the design was already 80-90% there. Players could build groups using either matching colors or matching fruits. Initially, groups had to be formed in a straight line or row. In the final game, this restriction was removed, and cards now just need to touch adjacently in some way. This opens up the game significantly, allowing groups to form in various shapes. It makes reading the board much more engaging because there are so many more opportunities to spot. For instance, you can form a group of five cards by adding just two cards to the display that bridge three cards that weren’t initially connected.

The final major addition was the ability to cover up cards already on the table. This was a crucial fix; without it, players could simply hoard “safe” cards and play them whenever they wanted. For example, if there were six red cards on the board and you held the seventh, you would have a guaranteed win for that round since seven cards is the maximum group size. Allowing players to stack cards on top of each other turns that hoard into a dangerous liability, especially against experienced players who will eagerly destroy any color or fruit group they don’t hold. The idea of covering cards actually came from the title itself. My wife suggested Cherry on Top would be a great name, and that instantly sparked the idea of stacking cards. In the end, the game is very simple, but it took a few vital, small adjustments to truly make it work. It has been a fascinating journey for me.

WHAT MAKES CHERRY ON TOP A DIFFERENT LADDER CLIMBER?
I love highly interactive games that share a common ecosystem, where one player’s action directly impacts everyone else. I also enjoy ladder climbers, but I dislike how much pure luck is usually involved in the opening deal—leaving you with either “good” or “bad” cards. Cherry on Top works differently. First, the board state is permanently shifting, which keeps every player engaged and the tension high. Second, there are no truly bad cards. Every single card gives you both a color and a fruit to work with. Plus, if you only hold a single cherry, it means the other cherries are out there in opponents’ hands, allowing you to piggyback on their plays later. There is also a nice dilemma that you want to get rid of your cards on the one hand but you also want to play them as late as possible because in general cards get more valuable over time because they will be part of a larger group (unless the group is destroyed by other players). So timing is a crucial part of this game.

WHO IS IT FOR
I think Cherry on Top works really nice as a family game. It has very simple rules and plays very fast, yet the rounds remain tense and engaging enough that people usually want to play several games in a row. It also appeals to seasoned hobby gamers who enjoy interaction and clever plays. While there are definitely ways to play skillfully, playing well doesn’t guarantee a win—so there is still a healthy dose of luck involved. The game rewards clever, tactical adaptations rather than long-term strategy, which I think is important to know.

I hope you found this interesting.

Best regards,
Michael