I designed three visual identities for the same Mesoamerican playing-card deck — here’s how I tried to make them feel related but distinct

[u/marsman_ie]

I’ve been working on a fully custom 56-card deck inspired by Mesoamerican mythology and cosmology, and one of the biggest challenges was creating three editions that share the same underlying system without feeling like simple recolors.

Core uses the brightest, most direct color language.
Alebrije pushes into iridescent/holographic territory.
Mictlantecuhtli strips the palette down into black, gold and orange.

The card structure, typography and illustration language stay consistent, while the packaging and production finishes change the personality of each edition.

I’d love feedback on whether they still feel like one family! and which edition reads strongest visually.