Drama is anticipation mingled with uncertainty.
― William Archer
A quote from a Turn of the Twentieth Century dramatist and theater critic I keep in mind when I want to create a sense of drama in my games. Anticipation and Uncertainty. It’s a mantra.
I’ve been hard at work, building prototypes to show at The Gathering next week.
This is an easy board to build. LXIX is a game I’ve been working on for a couple years, and I already had the primary layout complete in Adobe Illustrator. I updated the board layout to reflect the most recent rules (primarily by transcribing the various changes I had scrawled on the previous prototype with a Sharpie) and simply printed each section on an Avery full-sheet label. I stuck the printed board sections on inexpensive, white-surfaced chipboard and cut each out with a razor knife, using a metal straight edge when possible. The print quality isn’t as good as with glossy or textured cover stock, but usability, portability and ease of production are my primary considerations for this project.
Australian game designer Stefan Barton-Ross shows us that, historically, gaming, games and play are the norm.
This weekend I attended PAX, which was mindblowing in many ways. While there I attended several panels, one of which inspired me to write this. It’s something I’ve been aware of and thought about for some time, but never really had the space to talk about. Now I do. So here we go.
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This is something I heard at PAX a lot: ‘what will it take for gamers to get out of being a niche culture and be accepted into the mainstream socially and politically like, say, film or music are?’. It was the overarching question and theme on a panel hosted by various industry and journalist luminaries. To me it sounds odd.
On one level I identify with the sentiment deeply. I love videogames, tabletop games, card games, roleplay, pretty much anything ludic. Another common comment was on how gamers made being a minority part of their identity…
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Thought-provoking conversation with my pal Kory Heath over on Twitter today. I’m still not sure where exactly I fall.
What do you think?
A while back, I read this article about a hill-fort on the edge of a weakening Roman Empire in Britain; an important architectural find, emblematic of the turbulence of the era. In it, I came across a lovely phrase in their translation of a Latin inscription on the famous Vettweiss-Froitzheim Dice Tower.
PICTOS VICTOS – HOSTIS DELETA – LVDITE SECVRI, which they translate as, “The Picts defeated – the enemy wiped out – play without fear”
Lvdite Secvri – Play Without Fear. In the context of a dying empire harried by enemy invaders, it has a powerful implication.
Ludite Securi – Play Without Fear. It could be a motto for our Ludic Century, as well. It should resonate for all advocates of play. I know it resonates for me.
post adapted from earlier tweets
play without fear 