Design Update #2 - Scouting the Landscape

Working on the game for Wait, Roll That Again!, I knew I didn’t know a lot about the TTRPG scene as a whole. I’d bought and read a few games, but I didn’t think about the sheer scale of possibility that exists in game design.

Following my conversation with Ashley Warren, I went through my catalogue of games and decided to look closely at how design decisions were being made, and what effects and themes the mechanics were aiming to create at the table.

In this design update, I’ll be sharing some of the takeaways I had from a selection of the games I looked at, and we’ll dive into how these might inspire elements of my own design!

And in case you missed the latest episode of Wait, Roll That Again!, here it is:

Thirsty Sword Lesbians - April Kit Walsh

I couldn’t discuss game design without mentioning a PBTA (Powered By The Apocalypse) game at least once. The system’s influence is widespread, and for good reason. The core mechanics of a 2d6 dice resolution system and “moves” makes for a game that is quick to pick up, definitely quicker than Fifth Edition Dungeons and Dragons. An element I love about the wider system is that “moves” can be swapped out to be thematically relevant to any game that uses the PBTA frame.

I looked at Thirsty Sword Lesbians because it puts relationships at its core. I mentioned in the first design update post that I want the relationships between the player’s characters to be important, and this system does that really well. Strings is a way of bringing those relationships into the mechanics directly. They’re a resource to be spent, and gaining a total of four can give you insight into a character that even they might not consciously be aware of.

I also love that it explicitly calls out bigots, and informs them that intolerance isn’t welcome at the table. Very, very cool!

Find Thirsty Sword Lesbians on itch.io.

Wanderhome - Jay Dragon

A GM-less game that puts the focus on collective storytelling in a more direct way that I’d ever seen, Wanderhome was something I’d always wanted to check out.

I really loved the question aspect of this game in the character creation phase. The way in which your selections within a class allow you to make a unique character every time you play, and the questions you ask during character creation allow for complex and interesting relationships to form at the table.

Find Wanderhome on itch.io.

Paranormal Wellington - Morgan Davie

Ah, how could I not look through Morgan’s game, the very game we discussed on the show’s first episode! I love the perspective of the game, by which I mean I love how the rules and mechanics reflect the deadpan, checky humour of the game.

In our discussion, Ashley Warren talked about the ways games organise and present information as being something to look out for. And I think this game really shook me out of the “rule’s dictionary” perspective I had. I realized that a rulebook shouldn’t be only a guide on how to play, but that guide should reflect the genre and tone the game wants to facilitate at the table. That’s really neat!

Another thing about this game that stood out is the clean and effective layout. Morgue’s work really focuses the reader towards the important information in a simple and direct manner that reinforces the themes of the game efficiently.

Find Paranormal Wellington game on itch.io.

ICON - Tom Bloom

Designed by one of the minds behind Lancer, ICON tackles mythic fantasy in a really cool way and I reckon this game will eventually replace D&D as my go to fantasy game.

An element that stood out to me about the game is the separation between narrative and tactical play, where the game decidedly has different mechanics for each. ICON’s narrative system takes inspiration from the Forged In the Dark engine, whereas the tactical gameplay uses d20’s and some elements more similar to d20 games.

It makes sense to me that a designer doesn’t need to stick to one resolution mechanic where it doesn’t fit. I feel like Icon makes that difference meaningful, and it doesn’t seem to me that the two systems would get unnecessarily confused.

I read more games, which I’ll highlight as they’re relevant, but these were some great tone stones that stood out to me!

Find the ICON playtest on itch.io.

Where does that leave our design?

I think I want the character creation to be somewhat inspired by Wanderhome’s, in that it provides players with many options to give their costumed hero a unique flair and then develop relationships at the table.

Those relationships should be mechanically important and allow for players to use their connections to the other characters to do cool stuff! My initial ideas are using your friendships to clear things like “fear”, which I’m treating as the default consequence when fighting animated decorations!

I also want the game to be a fun read! I’m anxious about that element, as all my notes are currently incomprehensible and frantic, and I’m not sure how to turn them into clear rules and guidelines.

Next week on the podcast, we’re going to talk about mechanics specifically. It’s another exciting interview, and I can’t wait to share it with you!