Justin Nichol and I continue our discussion, or training, regarding game design. This session (in 5 videos) delves into the way we talk / the way we roll. The topic shifts quite logically from whether & when describing things colorfully works, to gaudy and painful consequences of moment-by-moment decision-making.
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Seminar
What is this table-top role-playing thing? How does it work, what does it do, what kind of designs do which things? I've got some ideas, and so do you. This is where we talk about it - like this!
Some of my posts here present a concept, game title, or a historical hobby event for discussion in the comments, so join in with a will. You'll also find interviews and conversations.
I'm also recording what I guess I call "labs," which are organized and prepared at the Patreon. I run them on Mondays using Discord, and anyone pledging there can participate when they feel like it.
Here's the second session with Justin Nichols as I test my current notions of a Design Curriculum upon him. Last time, we talked about the desireable "reward" cycle of excitement, engagement with the procedures, and inspiration. This time it's about a particular structural rubric you can find attached to this post.
I cannot as yet summarize or eulogize or otherwise "state" my response to Greg's death. It wasn't that much of a surprise, yet was as hard as they all have been. He was a grandmaster of this activity we do, and he was my friend.
This five-video discussion is more of a celebration of encountering his work, with a little bit of reminiscence occasionally. I don't have much to add except for these:
I've been working up a Design curriculum for role-playing for a long while, so when Justin Nichols approached me for a game design discussion that leaned toward mentoring, I accepted without reservation.
Hey! Alex cleverly informed Paul and me that he wanted to do an interview after we were trapped in the back seat on the way to Lucca from our apartment (in Viareggio? one of those coastal towns). I can now boast that I was able to unburden my soul to a geisha! Because cosplayers count.
Last October 31st, I went to the first conference of the Italian role-playing games authors, which has been held during the Lucca Comics & Games 2018 fair, and to which I partook with a small speech with the same title of this post, and with the following abstract:
Here’s one of the two workshops I presented at Lucca. It was prompted by two short videos I posted here in the past few months: The role of the roll and Emergent plot techniques, which have led me to a generally larger argument.
In his series of G+ posts based on reading/reflecting on games, Jason D'Angelo mentioned he'd be going through Dungeons & Dragons (1977), by J. Eric Holmes. Unable to resist, I asked him to chat me with about that, and so here we are.
Some of the points in there bear further deep-dives. If you agree, find one or two and say so.
Ron’s ideas for Actual Play Reports have started me thinking about the usefulness of his approach for an upcoming experience I’m going to try in my 9th grade English classes.
Usually I wait a week to post Monday Labs, partly to get enough time to edit properly, partly to keep at least something on a regular cycle at the site. But this time I couldn't help myself, it's been only two days and here you go.