Saturday, September 2, 2017

I'm very intrigued by this game, which I just discovered via a post back in 2013 on the Storygames forum from Todd Zircher. I'm not sure how solo friendly it could be just based on my first read through, but I think it could be do-able.

I'm very intrigued by this game, which I just discovered via a post back in 2013 on the Storygames forum from Todd Zircher. I'm not sure how solo friendly it could be just based on my first read through, but I think it could be do-able.

What really intrigues me about it is the mechanics: In a nutshell, you have a dice pool of 9 dice, representing your overall well being. You risk these to overcome challenges & earn bonus dice. Bonus dice are used to buy clues to answer the questions at the core of the mystery.

I find this compelling. The idea of a wager/press your luck mechanic to gain a tangible currency to purchase concrete narrative control somehow scratches in itch in my brain on how to handle solo mysteries in an emergent narrative environment.

The reason being is now there is a compel to drive the action forward: you have to make wagers & take risks by overcoming challenges & obstacles to gain in-game currency to buy concrete narrative control to proceed. Which also means that the clues/facts of the mystery can/will make sense, as you are the one to narrate/establish them. It should also free one from the feeling of "making it all up", "driving the narrative where you want it to go", or having to "tease" clues or answers out of the narrative, as you have EARNED these through in-game action, & they are a specific mechanic of the game itself.

It gives you something tangible & solid to DO, with a specific outcome or reward as a result, which drives the story forward at the same time.

Something tells me that this idea with something like "Movie Night" http://77studios.blogspot.com/2017/05/movie-night-resources.html (with its mechanical bonuses for allies, gear, & so on) or "Fright Night" http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/164760/Fright-Night (with it's built in pacing mechanism) could be interesting.

Time to let this percolate a bit.

#SoloHorrorRPG
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/63429/Ocean

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