Have you ever had to play with a person that just takes way too long with their turns? What if there were cards that used time as a mechanic? This would encourage faster play without someone having to be a jerk and ask others to get on with it.
I also think fast and concise play is the mark of a good player. This may get newer players into the mindset of only buying and playing what they need to win.
I can think of two ways of tracking time:
(1) With a Stopwatch app on a phone. Easy to use and very accessible.
(2) With a series of hourglasses that increase in time. Requires a lot of hourglasses, may not be as accurate at tracking time, may not even have hourglasses that track lower times like 10 and 20 seconds, allows for more complex time mechanics.
Here are some basic cards to highlight the concept (using hourglasses):
Factory: A Lost City or Village depending on how fast you are. Will always be a LC on first play so having just one in your deck is good.
Clocktower: A way to apply a little pressure on others to take fast turns. You basically gamble on how long you think they will take. I'm not sure what time denominations should be available, but I think 10, 20, and 30 seconds is a good place to start. So gambling 30 seconds will reward you with 3 cards, but will give them a lot of time to take their turn. If they finish their turn before the 30 seconds is out, you get no cards.
Any thoughts? I get that this is a wonky idea. It kind of started out as a joke, but now I think it has some potential.