Alpine Ascent

From Special Topics in Entrepreneurship: Specialization Is For Insects
Professor Ethan Mollick, The Wharton School | Spring Term 2023

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A team project reimagining Sorry! as a mountaineering race to the summit. Two climbers per player instead of four, a "Death Zone" near the top where movement slows to a crawl, and event cards that let you sabotage the competition when they're most exposed. Developed with Emily Wang, Matt Romano, and Greg Muir over six prototypes, we started with paper, scotch tape, and gameplay which a playtester described as “the longest two hours of my life.” Our final product features a laser-cut board, custom pieces, its own deck of cards … and much more enjoyable and streamlined gameplay.

A game board titled 'Alpine Ascent' with numbered spaces, some marked with stars, and a mountain illustration labeled 'Summit'. There are tarot-style cards with adventure themes and various game pieces in blue, black, and green at the bottom right co
Close-up of green and blue 3D-printed chess pawns on a wooden surface, with shadowed circular patterns in the background.
A stack of illustrated cards with outdoor adventure themes on a brown surface. The top card shows a hiker climbing a mountain with a sun or moon in the background, and the word 'Movement.' Another card visible features a hiker stepping over rocks wit
Close-up of embossed lettering on a textured surface, reading "ALPINE ASCENT" with large, bold, engraved letters.
Close-up view of light brown paper tags with embossed and printed text, including 'C58' and 'Lowell'.
Close-up of a brown paper sheet featuring embossed coins and symbols, including a star, a mountain range, and the word 'summit'.
A hand-drawn map of a camping area featuring various campsites such as 'Summit', 'Camp 1', 'Base Camp', and 'Base Camp 2'. The map includes colored lines marking trails, with a small lake, trees, and mountains sketched on it. There are red stickers o