How We Made a Beautiful MtG Tabletop Utility
Download for free: nanotubesoftware.com/carbon
CARBON supports anywhere from one to four players.
Hello everyone, we’re Jon and Matt of Nanotube Software. We’re here to talk about our application, the newest and best tabletop utility for MTG, CARBON!
What We Believe
Magic is, at its core, a fun game, and introducing some application to use alongside it shouldn’t be stressful. We’re players too, and what was available to us so far just wasn’t what we were looking for. We know that a game of Magic starts out pretty simply: a couple of players and a bunch of life, but it can quickly get more complex. We believe it is important to reflect this progression and only show information if you need to see it or use it. We also support more than one player at a time – there shouldn’t be a need for everyone to track everything separately. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, we wanted something that was quick and easy. Minimal effort, maximum playtime. Because after all, we’re not here to fidget with our phones, we’re here to play Magic!
Okay, But How?
How we made it is simple: dedication. We’ve spent hundreds of hours designing every detail so that the end result presents everything clearly and concisely. No wasted space, no unnecessary clutter. We had to scrap our plans and redesign three times, but it was totally worth it. We began with the end in mind and worked backwards. We wanted good multiplayer support, all the features that made sense, and it needed to be perfectly easy to use.
Features
What does “good multiplayer support”mean? People want to scorekeep on the app, so that it doesn’t become one person’s job to do. Players can choose their color, to suit them and the deck they’re playing. All the screens orient themselves to the player who is using them. You can simply place the phone in the center and everyone can use it for themselves from wherever they’re sitting.
In terms of features, we wanted to keep track of everything that isn’t associated with a specific card or permanent. That came down to be poison, experience, energy counters, storm count, commander damage, commander tax, WUBRGC mana, game timer, and life total history over the course of the game. We tacked on a dice rolling widget and a finger chooser to round out the package. We did all of this for any number of players, without displaying any unnecessary information.
Each button is big and obvious without sacrificing aesthetics, and you can get from home screen to playing a game in 5 seconds, choosing how many players, starting life, and table layout along the way.
It Gets Better
CARBON is built by players, for players. Cheesy as that sounds, we couldn’t have made it this far without the invaluable feedback we’ve gotten from all the players that have been using it throughout development and even now. We want to know what you like about it and what you would improve, so let us know over at nanotubesoftware.com/feedback what you think! We take what you say seriously and would love the help!
Simply Put
CARBON is a tabletop utility for MTG that we’re proud to say is out on the iOS App Store now, and is coming out on the Android Play Store soon! We believe it’s the best of its kind, and what’s more? It is free to download! Get it today and enjoy!
Nanotube designs, develops, and markets advanced utility apps for gamers. The company was founded in 2016 under the basis that the best products come from taking feedback seriously.