What I Am Working On
I’ve had a bit of a lull, if you can call it that, waiting for The Shab-Al-Hiri Roach to show up. I’ve got a bunch of neat ideas but they are all at the point where I need to step back and re-assess. As part of that process, I think I’ll just lay them out here.
Grey Ranks, which is about teen romance during the Warsaw Uprising, is probably 80% done and needs playtesting. It’s not a very playtest-friendly game, so that will take some thought. “Hey, do you want to devote 16 hours to playing my super tragic and dismal new game? As a bonus it may not even be playable!”
The Sin-Eaters, which is about the currency of disgrace and is currently set in a psuedo-Norse world with which I’m quite comfortable. I had thought to overlay a competitive board game element on this, but testing revealed that wouldn’t work as I’d envisioned it. Now I’m not sure how I’ll proceed, but I really like the idea.
Drowning and Falling, which is a silly but surprisingly playable and very fun fantasy heartbreaker (as if). It’s a charity project and, through Remi, I’ve got five really good indie comic artists to contribute. Ten bucks, lots of fun, save the eyes of some third world kid.
Bear Lake, which is sort of Polaris for shaky vets meets Wisconsin Death Trip. Just ideas at this point.
Open Boat, which I’m really looking forward to revisiting, now that I know more than I did when I wrote it the first time. Cannibalism and desperation on the high seas. Playing BANG! this weekend made me think of Open Boat.
War Dogs, political commentary disguised as totally boss uplifted combat dog stories. Some work done. Who knows where it will go.
The Governor’s Report on the Doomed Assault on the Fire Moon, which I should have playtested at Troublicon. Pretty solid in a fluffy way already.
And a couple of Roach add-ons and follow-ups in the works.
What captures your interest and attention, and why?
Comment by Joshua BishopRoby
Posted on February 28, 2006 at 8:05 pm
First, I’m looking forward to getting a copy of Roach in my hands.
Secondly, though, Sin-Eaters sounds intriguing! Playing around in Norse myth/history without necessarily playing vikings looting southerners! Yay!
Comment by Steve
Posted on February 28, 2006 at 8:46 pm
I’ll be sad if we don’t go forward with Open Boat at some point- I think there’s a lot to work with there, and it follows the genre and style of the Roach well. Plus, you get to eat people!
Comment by Jason
Posted on March 1, 2006 at 9:05 am
Oh no, Open Boat is going to happen for sure! I’m just really confident of it and happy to put it off until, say, Gen Con 2007 or something. People who like the Roach will like that, too, you’re right.
Comment by Jon Hastings
Posted on March 1, 2006 at 12:58 pm
I’m most interested in the color elements of War Dogs. Also, I’d like to see that or Grey Ranks get some attention, because I’d like to play a “longer form” game than the Roach.
Comment by Jason
Posted on March 1, 2006 at 1:11 pm
Jon, I’d be glad to send you what I’ve got re: War Dogs, which isn’t very well fleshed out but has lots of color. I’d love to get some feedback and a kick in the pants! Whisper me your email address over at Story-Games or PM me at the Forge or something!
Comment by Vincent
Posted on March 1, 2006 at 2:03 pm
I was talking to Clinton last night and sign me up as interested in Drowning and Falling.
Pingback by Fair Play » Blog Archive » What I am Working On II
Posted on April 5, 2006 at 10:59 am
[...] OK, the list of what I’m working on is getting irritatingly long. I suspect this is a common problem among game designers - more good, worthy ideas than time and energy. Anyway, add to that already too-long list: [...]