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I wanted to do a deck patterned after EKGs. I know a little about them and I've got a lot of elements of real EKGs in there (including an accurate heart rate for the specified leads). I thought it would be a neat idea for a deck and was looking for feedback.

I think less would be much better, they look too busy so maybe you could simplify them. I would have the grid in a subtle grey color and only one line of the EKG across the middle of the card

I think it's a good general direction I would make it more subtle like HOneybee said- but i would say lose the grid entirely - that line that spikes up and down is indicative enough that it's a ekg

EKG readout have a lot of information and are pretty busy by nature. I was trying to make the cards look as much like an actual EKG paper as I could. I'll fade fhe grid and the small text and see what that looks like.

Is the purpose to create a deck that shows people the best possible representation of an EKG in playing card form or to create a deck that evokes an EKG? My bias is towards simplicity so I agree with the above suggestion to probably drop the grid entirely. I would probably keep the four EKG lines and text.

I don't know. Hard to picture naming a deck EKG without it looking like it's on EKG paper.

Unless you're targeting people in the medical profession I’m betting most don’t know ekg paper is a thing or would care if the grid was there or not. But as the creator you can do whatever you want.

Thanks to those of you who suggested it. Looks far better this way. When placing the pips on the cards, I made them the same height, but looking at the cards makes me think I should consider shrinking the hearts pips down.



I've also made a series of cards for the card backs that is supposed to resemble an EKG monitor. As you flip through the cards, it looks like an EKG is registering on a monitor. I've made an animated gif. It takes 14 cards for a complete cycle, and I omit the last card on the 4th cycle to make it to 55 cards.

I think this deck has a really great concept! A few ideas came to mind while looking at it—feel free to ignore them if they don’t fit your vision.

The card back and face feel quite different in style; maybe matching their colors a bit more could create a more cohesive look? Or, if you’re open to it, a two-edition approach—one with a black background and another with a white background—could be interesting!

Also, the red outline on the face seems a bit unnecessary, and adjusting the pip placement to align better with the grid might enhance the design even more.

Just some thoughts! Excited to see how this project evolves

I see what you mean about the thick red lines. I believe they'll get trimmed off during the printing process. I can try to get the alignment tightened up, but I've struggled a lot to get all the pips within the printable space.

You are absolutely right about the difference between the front and back. What I was trying for was EKG paper as the basis for the front and an EKG monitor on the back. I'll play around with a different color scheme for the back.

I really appreciate the suggestions. Room One has made some great decks!

TorresOVER wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 11:13 pm The card back and face feel quite different in style; maybe matching their colors a bit more could create a more cohesive look? Or, if you’re open to it, a two-edition approach—one with a black background and another with a white background—could be interesting!

This is the tuck case I've come up with. Seeing the two styles in proximity this way, do they still feel as different? I started out with the idea of EKG paper on the front, EKG monitor on the back, but I don't want to be so wedded to the original concept that I pass on good ideas.

The tuck looks good
A cycle on the front = a marked deck. There goes most of your market!

Most have suggested getting rid of the EKG paper on the faces but you seem to be stubbornly resisting. I have to say that WE not YOU are your market. Maybe you should show/consider what a no paper background would look like

Torres might be onto something with the 2 editions idea

I think you have the makings of a good deck here - if you get it right

SRO wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2025 1:33 am

TorresOVER wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 11:13 pm The card back and face feel quite different in style; maybe matching their colors a bit more could create a more cohesive look? Or, if you’re open to it, a two-edition approach—one with a black background and another with a white background—could be interesting!

This is the tuck case I've come up with. Seeing the two styles in proximity this way, do they still feel as different? I started out with the idea of EKG paper on the front, EKG monitor on the back, but I don't want to be so wedded to the original concept that I pass on good ideas.

If the front of the tuck box is lenticular, that would be awesome! Imagine being able to see a complete animation, like an EKG monitor—how great would that be!

If you don't know what's lenticular, it's something like this:
https://www.instagram.com/anime.nation. ... S0ns2IQw7/

Honeybee wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2025 2:21 am The tuck looks good

Thank you - that was my first draft and generally after I finish the first draft, I have a "what was I thinking" moment and revise extensively.

Honeybee wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2025 2:21 amA cycle on the front = a marked deck. There goes most of your market!

Ugh. I didn't think of that. That makes me think I'm going to have to do a different front altogether and maybe I can solve the back/front contrast issue while I'm at it.

Honeybee wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2025 2:21 amMost have suggested getting rid of the EKG paper on the faces but you seem to be stubbornly resisting. I have to say that WE not YOU are your market. Maybe you should show/consider what a no paper background would look like

I wanted to target healthcare professionals with this as much as the general population, and it's literally impossible to have an EKG without the EKG paper, as the gridlines are used for calculating heartrate, etc. That's why I've wanted to hang on to the gridlines. As you said, though, I'm not the market, and it'd be a very easy solution to just offer versions with and without the gridlines.

Honeybee wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2025 2:21 amI think you have the makings of a good deck here - if you get it right

You're saying it's all dependent on my execution? That feels a little aggressive. LOL, sorry, I'm a fan of dad jokes.

TorresOVER wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2025 3:11 amIf the front of the tuck box is lenticular, that would be awesome! Imagine being able to see a complete animation, like an EKG monitor—how great would that be!

If you don't know what's lenticular, it's something like this:
https://www.instagram.com/anime.nation. ... S0ns2IQw7/

Thank you very much for the idea (and the definition)! That's an amazing idea! I'm sure that with holographic decks the way they are nowadays, that printing companies could do that well.

On edit: it just occurred to me that doing a lenticular card back could allow me to keep the feel of an EKG monitor but address Honeybee's very astute point about a marked deck.

I absolutely adore this deck design! I’m a huge anatomy&physiology nerd, general medical science nerd, and i would 1000% purchase this deck if it ever gets to print. This is seriously awesome, I’m a huge fan of it.

Honeybee wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2025 2:21 amMost have suggested getting rid of the EKG paper on the faces but you seem to be stubbornly resisting. I have to say that WE not YOU are your market. Maybe you should show/consider what a no paper background would look like

I wanted to target healthcare professionals with this as much as the general population, and it's literally impossible to have an EKG without the EKG paper, as the gridlines are used for calculating heartrate, etc. That's why I've wanted to hang on to the gridlines. As you said, though, I'm not the market, and it'd be a very easy solution to just offer versions with and without the gridlines.

Honeybee wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2025 2:21 amI think you have the makings of a good deck here - if you get it right

You're saying it's all dependent on my execution? That feels a little aggressive. LOL, sorry, I'm a fan of dad jokes.
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I’d like to politely bring up a very useful notion to regularly remind ourselves: “not everything is for me”
Honeybee, you’ve being very insistent and somewhat passive aggressive about the creator not changing their design exactly as you’d like it. No paper lines was a suggestion, but the poster took a different suggestion with an explanation for why keeping the paper lines was significant to them. Yes, card collectors are part of the market. But 1 - nothing appeals to everybody, and having a more specific market is perfectly fine. 2 - not everything CAN appeal to everybody, and there’s advantages to picking a target. And 3 - This deck isn’t JUST for card collectors: it’s for people interested in medical/science topics. This isn’t a huge wide-cast company pitch meant to get as many generic customers of as many types as possible, it’s a project with some passion behind it which will be extra special to the people it IS for. I’m a huge medical science nerd, I’m in a med field, and this deck wouldn’t appeal to me NEARLY as much if it didn’t have the EKG paper. The striving for accuracy makes this deck so special and unique. It’s little things like that—one particular point of extra care—that will make it stand out as Desirable to people of my occupational/interest demographic, instead of just passively Interesting. These cards aren’t EKG themed because they have a jumpy line going across them: they’re EKG themed because they have the extra little details, like the grid and the small text, that make it look like an EKG. Otherwise I’d just call them heartbeat themed.

Not everything will be For You, and not everything CAN be made for everyone. The customers this deck may lose by having a “busy” design element may very well be regained in customers who are pulled in specifically by the accuracy.

TLDR: SRO, I think you’ve come up with a beautiful deck concept, and your choice to keep the EKG paper is highly justified. As long as things make sense and are well-executed, don’t let go of valuable creativity and uniqueness for the sake of hypothetical sales predictions that suggest you cast the widest possible net. Cast too wide and you quickly create something Boring.

LOL I am being very insistent.
If you see me as passive aggressive, I am sorry - I didn't mean to be for I really do not care that much, I just thought I was helping. Maybe the designer can tell me to pee off although he did seem to be considering 2 versions

I may have been under the wrong impression that he/she may be seeking KS funding and would need general support
The designer has come onto a card forum "looking for feedback" but you seem to suggesting that the deck the deck may not be for me and therefore should not comment - I cannot see how that is much help

I consider myself suitably reprimanded

I think there's feedback and then there's being aggressive and insistent. In my opinion your feedback was good, but the tone could have been a bit better. Just my own observation. It's often the case that our intention inside our heads doesn't translate to the written word.

I appreciate that our intention does not always translate well to the written word but I have to say for forum posts I am not going to start overthinking things. Anybody that doesn't like my posts I suggest you block me

the concept is very original, and your cards are very cool! For a playing card deck inspired by electrocardiograms, I’d incorporate ECG waveforms into the design in a way that feels both dynamic and thematic. The numbered cards could each showcase different heart rhythms, from normal sinus to tachycardia or fibrillation, making the deck visually engaging and medically inspired. The face cards—King, Queen, and Jack—could either feature medical professionals like doctors and nurses or personified elements of the cardiovascular system, such as a heart-themed King or an electrical impulse Jack. Aces might stand out with a bold, singular heartbeat spike, reinforcing their significance in gameplay.

For the card backs, a continuous ECG pattern would create a cohesive look, possibly with a glowing effect to mimic hospital monitors. Jokers could introduce an element of unpredictability by featuring a defibrillator or even a flatline, adding to the theme’s depth. The color palette would lean toward cool medical tones like blues and greens to reflect hospital monitors, or a high-contrast black-and-red scheme for a more dramatic effect. As for the tuck box, I’d design it to resemble a heart monitor, possibly incorporating LED-style graphics or even a die-cut window shaped like a heartbeat.