19. Whoops, It’s a Dystopia
Why are our worlds turning out so horrible? We talk about how the framing for worldbuilding can exaggerate a society to cartoonish levels.
Why are our worlds turning out so horrible? We talk about how the framing for worldbuilding can exaggerate a society to cartoonish levels.
It’s Trans Awareness Week. A short bonus episode about trans allyship, education, and creating better gaming spaces.
We talk about acknowledging—and embracing—the inherent politics of game design.
Voting:
Intro music credits:
New Ages 1 from Little Big Dog Ears.
http://opsound.org/artist/littledogbigears/
http://opsound.org/info/license/
Design Doc Theme by Pat King.
In September we met for a mini Questlandia retreat. We talked about how our intentions for the game have shifted in the current political landscape and introduced an unfolding guidebook that will sit at the center of play.
How do you keep making things when life throws the unexpected your way? We’re learning what that looks like now.
A good GM can step up to manage social dynamics at the table. But in Questlandia 2, there is no GM, so the rules we write need to do some heavy hauling. How can we keep the excitement and ideas flowing without leaving quieter players out of the fun?
What happens if a player achieves their big character goal in the very first scene of the game? We found out.
With no GM, players in Questlandia 2 are responsible for framing their own scene types. As a result they animate objects, make holy voyages, and befriend a sentient wall.
Good games are often built on an avalanche of bad ideas. We talk about the worst ideas we’ve had so far, and how to turn them into something useful.
We talk about deadlines, and the whooshing noise they make as they go by.