Designers’ Diary by Arthur Deboni and Matheus Mascarello
Hello, reader!
We are Arthur Deboni and Matheus Mascarello, creators of Nevasca, a Brazilian card game developed by Glyptodon Studio and published by MeepleBR.
Before there was a box, artwork, dice, or events, there were just two friends on a trip spitballing ideas about what it would be like to create our own game.
What we never imagined was how far that conversation would go.
How it all began
During a trip, we started talking about what it would be like to design a card game. One idea led to another, and shortly after, we had our theme: survival in the middle of a massive blizzard.
Our goal from the very beginning was to create a fun, easy-to-learn game with incredible artwork and an affordable price.
We liked the concept so much that, in a matter of hours, the first prototype of Nevasca was born: printed sheets, cut-out cards, simple text, and virtually no art.
It was far from pretty, but at that moment, we only wanted to find out one thing:
Was Nevasca fun to play?
From paper to the table
We started playing among ourselves and then with friends, constantly changing cards, numbers, and rules. Over time, the foundations of Nevasca as it exists today took shape: different types of cards, dice checks, allies, food, defense and attack.
To this day, I remember staying up all night at the beach playing that first paper prototype with my friends and watching the sun rise without even noticing the time going by. Right then, I (Matheus) knew I had to make Nevasca a reality.
Nevasca evolved into a game that blends luck and strategy for 2 to 5 players, with games lasting approximately 30 minutes, in which you must make dice checks to equip cards and protect your cabin.
Strategy is important, but you also need to know how to adapt when the dice simply decide that today is not your day.
Finding Nevasca’s identity
After extensive playtesting, we realized we had something that could go beyond our own gaming tables. But one essential piece was still missing: giving that world an identity.
That was when we found the artist Daisy Haas.
With her, the characters, animals, and scenarios we envisioned finally came to life. Some cards literally started as rough sketches of ours before becoming the final illustrations.
The Guard Dog, for instance, was inspired by Atka, Matheus’s dog. The Builder Beaver, on the other hand, started as an extremely basic drawing and ended up becoming one of the most iconic characters in the game.
Beautiful, eye-catching artwork was always one of the core pillars of Nevasca, and Daisy was key to making that happen. Beyond the work itself, a great friendship blossomed that we still cherish today.
The arrival of MeepleBR
With the game fully structured and the artwork in development, another decisive moment arrived: getting in touch with MeepleBR and Glyptodon Studio.
The publisher and studio played a direct role in developing and polishing the gameplay mechanics, as well as providing the necessary infrastructure for manufacturing, marketing, and distribution.
There were countless meetings, design tweaks, and above all, playtests. The two of us logged over 100 hours each on Tabletop Simulator alone, on top of all the physical play sessions.
Nevasca was built this way: playing, failing, tweaking, and playing again.
From prototype to product
After this entire process, Nevasca entered its first production run, with copies manufactured in China, developed by Glyptodon Studio, and distributed by MeepleBR with the support of retail partners.
After years of prototypes, playtests, illustrations, and adjustments, we could finally hold a copy of Nevasca in our hands. Seeing the physical box for the first time was incredibly emotional. After so long imagining and creating, we could finally hold that dream in our hands.
The result was exactly what we had been aiming for from the beginning: a quick-to-learn game with striking artwork and, above all, a lot of fun, the kind of atmosphere that makes you want to start another game as soon as one ends.
Nevasca at Diversão Offline
One of the most special moments post-launch happened at Diversão Offline 2026, Brazil’s largest board gaming convention.
Over the two-day event, we were able to play with the community, talk to people who already knew the game, and sign several boxes. We also brought exclusive Builder Beaver and Guard Dog giveaways.
I (Matheus) overheard several people telling their friends that Nevasca was a really cool game when they saw it at the MeepleBR booth. Hearing those comments made me extremely proud and excited.
Watching children play and teach the rules to one another was incredibly special. Right there, I (Arthur) felt very proud to have created a card game. It was the greatest sense of accomplishment I could have experienced, and it made everything worthwhile.
It was amazing to see how many people already knew the game and to hear directly about their experiences. The result was also reflected in sales: more than 100 copies were sold during the event alone practically the entire available stock that moment.
More than promoting our creation, DOFF 2026 allowed us to see up close the community that had begun to form around it.
And Nevasca’s story continues
Perhaps the biggest surprise came after all of that.
Today (September 2026, just 5 months after its release), Nevasca has more than 120 ratings on Ludopedia and ranks among the 500 highest-rated games on the platform. Additionally, the title sold out in the publisher’s online store, MeepleBR, and a new edition is already on the way.
We knew we were creating a game with purpose, one we truly believed in, but we never expected a response with such magnitude.
From a conversation during a trip to thousands of boxes produced, events, and hundreds of players living their own stories around the table.
This is the story of Nevasca. And it is only getting started.