Giant Food Games

Home grown games for people who love to play! Games are tagged as #giantfoodgames

[giantfoodgames]

Howdy! Got a few minutes and a handful of coins? You have all it takes to play Scraps, the penny powered RPG. Two-to-five Players and a storyteller toss coins to decide the fates of our world-weary heroes in the grim fantasy setting of Aurix. Get the PDF for free and see more games on the Giant Food Games itch page:

Scraps by Giant Food Games

The Penny Powered RPG

The flames must always burn- oh tender

[giantfoodgames]

From SHITTY IS PRETTY: ANATOMY OF A HEAVY FUNK 45 by Gabriel Roth

"The first thing to understand is that if you are trying toto make a Heavy Funk 45', you are NOT trying to make a "professional" record by today's standards. Funk 45's are rough because they were made rough. They were made in basements or garages or lo-fi studios by bands that played barbecues on Saturday afternoons. Many people come at Funk with this bullshit acid-jazz, smooth R&B method. Everything comes out all clean and happy and nice. They call it professionalism. I call it bullshit. If your going to try to record Funk, you got to have enough balls to make it rough. Fuck what the radio station says. Fuck how smart you are and how fancy your ideas are. If you're gonna come rough, COME ROUGH!"

[giantfoodgames]

This is one of the biggest pieces of inspiration I go back to for any creative practice!

[giantfoodgames]

From SHITTY IS PRETTY: ANATOMY OF A HEAVY FUNK 45 by Gabriel Roth

"The first thing to understand is that if you are trying toto make a Heavy Funk 45', you are NOT trying to make a "professional" record by today's standards. Funk 45's are rough because they were made rough. They were made in basements or garages or lo-fi studios by bands that played barbecues on Saturday afternoons. Many people come at Funk with this bullshit acid-jazz, smooth R&B method. Everything comes out all clean and happy and nice. They call it professionalism. I call it bullshit. If your going to try to record Funk, you got to have enough balls to make it rough. Fuck what the radio station says. Fuck how smart you are and how fancy your ideas are. If you're gonna come rough, COME ROUGH!"

[junkfoodgames]

Y'all working on any games out there?

I wanna hear about them!

[dungeonofthedragon]

Working on a Forged in the Dark game called Voidwalkers! It's about teams of brave souls who make daring excursions into mysterious pocket dimensions.

In tonight's playtest the team stole a bloodthirsty orange sapling, blew up a gummy bear tree, and got matching purple scars (nice!)

[theresattrpgforthat]

I'm also working on a Forged in the Dark game! It's called Protect the Child and it's about Monster Babysitters, inspired by Monsters Inc, the Mandalorian, and Ice Age.

Right now the playtest group is trying to figure out how to revive a local coven of hags, while also keeping little ol' Clementine safe from the Fae courts.

[takataapui]

very very baby ttrpg designer here (as in made a single playbook for a single game) but am in the beginning stages of a Belonging Outside Belonging game set in Māori communities! Hoping to do some form of both a pre/during the beginning of colonisation setting and a modern one!

[giantfoodgames]

Also a very new game designer here. I am currently procrastinating on my pocket sized RPG about magical creatures guided by their beloved shticks, The Zurphs! I have been so stuck evaluating my writing and artistic abilities that I kinda set the project aside. Seeing so many other exciting games in progress was exactly the fresh air I needed. A big thank you to Chris at Junk Food Games for starting a great conversation.

[avalynramsaygames]

Inspired by recent discussions of an Actual Play.

[fefairys]

sometimes you need to give up committing to the bit when someone genuinely can’t tell if it’s a bit or not and is getting distressed about it :/ sorry

[fefairys]

sometimes all u need to do is take one second to say "(yeah this is a bit)" if someone is genuinely asking because they genuinely can't tell, and then you can continue with the bit. i just feel like refusing to acknowledge someone saying "i cant tell if youre joking or not" and you just continue, or even say, "im not joking" then you're not being very funny, you're just being kind of mean, i think.

[fefairys]

obviously there is nuance to this and if you know someone really well sometimes going in harder on the bit will make them get that it's a bit and that's fine if you know them. but just be mindful, yknow? not everyone can pick up on stuff like that, and pushing harder on a bit by saying "im serious" when someone asks if you're joking or not can be harmful in some situations.

[giantfoodgames]

This skill is important around an RPG table too. Sometimes you just need to break character to say:

"This is something this character thinks because I want to explore this idea as a group," or

"My character is disagreeing with your character because I think it help us tell a good story- we are all good".

[theinstagrahame]

🌀, 🌤️?

For the Brief Respite Game Jam, I'm working on a series of Forged in the Dark-style downtime actions that fit into any RPG in any genre. Working title is "Restful Actions" and they're aimed at giving the GM a bit of a break while the players take a break between actions.

One of the mechanics, one of the mini games, is aimed at dealing with resolving tension between characters after an argument or some other uncomfortable revelation. And it's just questions.

But it's the person initiating the conversation asking questions, while the other player decides how long it would take them to answer, and whether they'd lie about it. Which should allow the players to release that tension without their characters necessarily having to.

I also wrote a shopping minigame that should allow two players to solve all of the party's shopping in one scene, instead of dragging it on for several hours while people forget things.

[theinstagrahame]

So, uh, Update on this!

I'm putting the finishing touches on it, and planning to release it to Itch. When it's up, it'll include the following minigames:

Make Camp

Take a Shopping Trip

Rest and Recuperate

Work on Projects

Earn a Wage

Take A Night on the Town

Search for Information

Scout a Landmark

Make Natural Observations

Find A Quiet Place to Talk

I have also spun the Shopping Trip minigame into a demo file, so it'll also be available then. But because I'm proud of it, here's my exclusive sneak peek for Tumblr:

The goal of this game was to shrink the "we spent four hours shopping" genre of play session into a 5-10 minute minigame. Everyone gets the stuff they need, some people are freed up to do other stuff, and the GM doesn't have to create their 64th throwaway shopkeeper NPC of the game.

Got all of the art for this book from Freepik, Pixabay, and Itch. There are no AI images.

Some of the ideas from this game are inspired by the myriad amazing RPGs and supplements that I enjoy, and I've done my best to provide a full ludography (i.e. list of games I drew inspiration from) at the end as well!

[temporalhiccup]

✨

✨ A game I wish more people were talking about.

Okay SO I seriously SERIOUSLY don't know why people aren't talking about or playing GODSEND. I crash into people's conversations all the time with HELLO HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT GODSEND ITS GREAT WHAT YOURE TALKING ABOUT IS IN GODSEND LETS PLAY IT.

Godsend is cool for SO SO many reasons but here are a few bullet points:

The premise of the game is that the world is coming to an end: there are only so many ages of divinity and humanity left before the apocalypse. So as gods and avatars, you must do what you can to make things go your way, and there is nothing left to lose.

Everyone plays two characters! You play a god, but you also play the human avatar of another god PC of another player. I have seen AMAZING moments when players have acted AGAINST THEIR OWN OTHER CHARACTER because of the DRAMA and it was AMAZING EACH TIME.

But why two characters? You play as one God that sees through all the ages and will be there at the end of days. But with each new age, you play a different human avatar, one who carries out the will of another god. So TECHNICALLY YOU GET MORE THAN TWO CHARACTERS EVEN HOW AMAZING IS THAT.

In general, why aren't there more ttrpgs where you get to play more than one character? Why does the GM get all the fun, huh?

This is a PbtA game but it is DICELESS. DICELESS PBTA. DO YOU HEAR ME. The vibes are impeccable, the execution breathtaking. Basically as gods and avatars, it is not a question of if you are able to do it: you do it! You perform miracles! You defy destiny! You see the threads of destiny! But at what great and terrible and EPIC cost?

Here are examples!

A couple of BASIC moves you can do as a God:

A couple of BASIC moves you can do as an Avatar:

So your stats as an Avatar are how many narrative bonuses or penalties you get when you make a move. DO YOU SEE WHAT I MEAN. WHY AREN'T THERE MORE GAMES DOING THIS. I AM LOSING MY MIND.

Anyway every time I have read/played this game I have turned completely feral, and I don't know why we're not talking about Godsend. Please go check it out, you may already have it if you bought the Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality three years ago.

[temporalhiccup]

Rae pls indulge and go into AK breakdowns I would SO love to read it!!!

Ok! Here we go! Breakdown Time!

The Betrayed is a playbook I'm working on that's inspired by Ghost Rider, the Spectre, and Doctor Fate. Specifically you wrestle with an entity within you that demands vengeance, as it wears down what remains of your humanity.

For this breakdown I'm going over two Moves. These Moves may change by the time the final version of the Betrayed rolls around (all the playbooks are currently in the final refinement stage). But anyway today we're looking at I Am Vengeance. In the next part I'll go over The Weakness Of My Heart.

Let's get into it!

The following is my personal and general approach to writing a Move for the Powered by the Apocalypse engine. This refers to the Moves were you need to roll dice or make an important decision.

Moves should be relatively easy to trigger. If a set up is required, it shouldn't be too much work to justify the narrative circumstances or fictional requirements. I like seeing moves used!

A Move is a moment for the character to step into the spotlight. Normally in the conversation of a game (player describes what their character says or does, other players and GM responds, back and forth, back and forth) a Move doesn't have to be triggered most of the time. When it's time for a Move (the circumstances warrant it, things seem uncertain or dire, the player has set things up to trigger a specific move, etc) then time stops at the table, right? Everyone slows down and goes through the mechanics and structure of the Move. To me, I want to justify this slowdown as a way to spotlight the character, to make this moment meaningful. I write Moves so that everyone at the table gets used to the idea and thinks, "Oh heck yes, let's slow down and enjoy this. What are they going to do? What awesomeness are we going to bear witness to?"

The end of a Move should significantly shift the fiction, circumstances, narrative positioning, or emotional state. I write Moves so there's a distinct before and after state. Sometimes if I'm feeling particularly bold, there's a quick inciting thing that happens when the move is triggered, to give this burst that better sets up the after. If the narrative positioning or fiction trajectory remain roughly the same after a Move is done, what was the point of slowing down the game for it? I also want players to feel like they have significant narrative pull in the story being told at the table. My favorite moments as a GM is when my players shock and surprise me, it inspires me and revs me up!!!

There are some specific things I keep in mind when designing a Move for Apocalypse Keys (compared to my other Powered by the Apocalypse games), but mostly it's along the lines of: CAN I MAKE THIS AS BIG AND EXCITING AND EMOTIONAL AND SUPERNATURAL AS POSSIBLE LET'S GO WHOOOOOO YEAAAAAAAH or something similar.

Okay, the Starting Move for the Betrayed is:

I Am Vengeance

The entity within you can always sense those nearby who bear the scars of trespass and the burden of regret. When you merge with the entity and deepen your senses to see the full weight of a soul, describe what you find there. Spend Darkness Tokens and roll.

On an 8-10 the entity within you tempers justice with mercy, choose two:

Their greatest trespass is revealed by the darkness, create a Power of Darkness that you have access to, for now.

Declare how they must make amends to appease justice, gain one Bond with them.

Your souls burn and resonate together, inflict two Conditions on them, but take one in return.

The soul you peer into cannot hide the truth from you. Ask the Keeper any question, they will answer it honestly and with great detail.

On an 11+ the entity within you demands retribution and horror, choose one:

The vengeance you deliver eclipses the trespass. Describe how you go too far and the suffering you cause. The Keeper will tell you what supernatural beings of power take notice and their response.

The entity within you would claim a new soul to strengthen itself. Gain a new Power of Darkness that reflects the screaming soul within you, trapped for eternity.

On a 7- the entity reshapes another part of your soul and replaces it with what may better serve horrific vengeance. The Keeper will tell you what happens next.

So for I Am Vengeance, I needed a Starting Move that embodied who the Betrayed is. I knew I had to make a version of Ghost Rider's penance stare ability, since it's such an iconic aspect of the character. In the instances when I have a specific character and/or their super power in mind when I make a Move, I try to deconstruct it along the following questions:

What narrative permissions are granted to this character or through this ability?

How can I break this down in a way that it's open to different creative interpretations and character concepts?

How can I connect the thematic concept to the mechanical, narrative, and emotional components of this moment and the game in general?

This Move comes with a built in ability that is constant, and doesn't need to be triggered. The Betrayed will always be able to sense those nearby who bear the scars of trespass and the burden of regret. This is part of that deconstruction, this is not a ability that's present in the inspiring characters. But from a TTRPG approach, I wanted to give the player a unique and interesting perspective. It also communicates an important thematic element of the playbook: this is a character who can see the worst in others, their regrets, how does his affect the character? How do they treat their own trespasses and regrets in response?

The trigger here is: When you merge with the entity and deepen your senses to see the full weight of a soul, describe what you find there.

Okay, so! A huge amount of TTRPG design is just...obsessing over word choice, hah. Here I wanted to ensure a few things: this Starting Move starts off with the idea that you merge with the entity. In other Moves for the Betrayed I experiment with other ideas (like in another move it's "when you become vengeance incarnate," which communicates a different action entirely!) I wanted a soft set up here: what does it mean when a character merges with the entity within them? I also wanted to give players an opportunity to change what that merging could look like each time they triggered this move.

in addition, it's easy to trigger this Move. The character just needs to decide to merge with the entity. As for narrative set up, the player decides when they want to risk looking deep into someone's soul, because...we'll, shit could definitely go down and get out of hand.

I also used "deepen your senses" to further support the idea that the player can just always sense the trespass and regret around them. This move is then a moment when things come into sharp focus. Having a player decide what that means for their character is cool and fun!

So remember earlier when I said there's a before and after state? The before state here is "the Betrayed can always sense something others cannot". The after is "the Betrayed and the entity of vengeance within them will act on a specific character's trespass". Ah, but I also mentioned that sometimes I have a quick inciting thing. This Move has it, in the "describe what you find there".

This is an exciting moment for the player. They get to narrate and decide what they see, when they take the full measure of someone's soul. What kind of trespass or regret are we talking about here? How deplorable or evil a person is the NPC? Or were they once a good person who made a terrible mistake? The player gets to decide!

This felt great in playtesting, I really enjoyed the pressure, the freedom and responsibility that came with declaring such a thing. As a Starting Move it also primes the player to be creative, spontaneous, and intuitive. Many mechanics and the general flow of the game really flourish when a player hones these aspects of their play.

So, now we roll the dice and see what happens. In case you're not aware, Apocalypse Keys doesn't use stats. Instead, as inspired by Libreté, you roleplay to gather tokens. Each token adds +1 to the roll. So you're aiming to roll to hit that perfect hit: 8-10, you're still in control. On an 11+, it's a disastrous success, you've gone too far and the monster within you is unleashed.

I experimented with what a perfect hit and a disastrous success looks like across the Moves and playbooks. In I Am Vengeance there's a distinct difference between the 8-10 result and the 11+, there is no overlap. For this Move, I wanted it the perfect hit and disastrous success to feel distinct from each other, to show the extremes available to the character.

In the 8-10 result I'm still finalizing whether or not the player gets to choose two options or just the one. Two choices feels great in play and meta-wise it supports the ides that the character is more "in control". But it can also slow down the moment further. I'm still weighing this, I have to roughly feel out how often a player can use this move (the less often, the more likely I'll stick to two options). If I do switch to the one choice, I'll probably shift things slightly and beef up the options a bit.

In Apocalypse Keys, a Move always pushes the narrative forward in significant ways. In many Moves, there's a blending of the narrative and the mechanical. I could have just stuck in the mechanical options (or just the narrative!), but you can feel how distinct it feels that I merged the two here, right?

So for example, one of the options is: Your souls burn and resonate together, inflict two Conditions on them, but take one in return. This is easily the combat-focused RAR I'M HERE TO BEAT UP PEOPLE option. This can easily force an antagonist to stand down, or soften him up significantly for someone else to take the final blow. If I had just stuck with the mechanical option, it would communicate "wow the entity of vengeance is violent and strong". Which is cool!

But! I wanted to add the narrative implication, where does this violence and strength come from? I decided it comes from the fact that the souls resonate with each other. A player or Keeper can decide to express specifically what that means, but even if they don't, it leaves this implication hanging in the air. How are the Betrayed and the target of their wrath similar to each other? What does it mean when souls resonate? Every option in the 8-10 result offers an implication in the blending of the mechanical and the narrative. It makes the choice feel that much more significant!

Any combination of the 8-10 result can easily map to what it looks like when Ghost Rider performs a Penance Stare, but it's still open enough to interpretation that any type of character can express themselves well.

Now let's look at the 11+ result. In this one I decided to go with one of the regular treatments of a disastrous success: limiting the options, but feeling more powerful. This reflects how the character has less control over the situation. They go too far, and they can only reign it in so much! But also, the options are more powerful than a perfect hit! What a double edged blade this is.

In this Move I really wanted the disastrous success to feel like "You know, my dude, there is like...an entity of vengeance inside of you, and it is absolutely not human."

The first option, has the player "Describe how you go too far and the suffering you cause" I wanted this to reflect those moments where Ghost Rider, The Spectre, and Doctor Fate would go all out, and punish the wicked without mercy. This is an excuse for the character to go all out, to not hold back! Then the Keeper gets to describe the "supernatural beings" and their response. This is reminiscent of the forces that push and pull at these iconic characters that inspired this playbook.

The second option has to be my favorite though. It's also the one I chose the first time I playtested the move! "Gain a new Power of Darkness that reflects the screaming soul within you, trapped for eternity."

It was honestly a really hilarious moment, I had just declared that the oil conglomerate Executive had helped the fae perform a wretched and murderous ritual to ensure the smooth purchase of mines. I didn't want to have supernatural beings notice what I was up to, but it also meant I had to have this slimey soul of a human next to my soul for all eternity. "Oh my god, why did I write this?!" I asked out loud while the other players laughed. (That, to me, is a good sign that I wrote the disastrous success options well, hah!)

"What does it look like when you take his soul?" Lowell asked me, as the GM. So a second before I was lamenting what I was forced to do, and now here I was, throwing myself into it. "You see me pull out his soul through his mouth, my skull wreathed in flames. His soul looks like a gargantuan slug, wailing and writhing, and I swallow it whole as his screams echo through the mines."

It was also fun coming up with a Power of Darkness that reflected this horrible human and what he is now. (I went with Emotional Manipulation, to reflect the greasy corpo scum he was)

Finally, we have the miss, what happens on a roll of 7 or lower. Not every PbtA game has moves with specific misses, it's usually just an open invitation for the GM to do something. (Which is actually my personal preference, I often find the misses are too uninteresting for my tastes, even in some of my favorite games!)

With Apocalypse Keys, it was a long conversation with Sean Nittner (project manager and development editor) over why it felt necessary for Apocalypse Keys to always have a specific miss. The long and short of it is: Apocalypse Keys is a game that happens on a huge scale, and the monstrous PCs don't fail in as much as things go horribly wrong because they are monsters. So I try to write a miss that supports that truth.

In this case, I wanted to highlight how the Betrayed is at the mercy of the entity within them. Their soul will be reshaped to better serve vengeance. This can be a harrowing and quiet moment, or it can create explosive consequences, or something in between. What does it mean to reshape a soul? I can't wait to hear the stories about this!

Phew, that's our first Apocalypse Keys breakdown! I hope this was useful to you!

Powered by the Apocalypse is a system I love, and I feel like we're still exploring what the system is capable of and where it can go next. The structure of PbtA is an opportunity for designers to structure a game to reflect their design goals and play philosophy in very big and bold ways.

I worked on Apocalypse Keys for years, and with the help of a lot of people, made a game that reflects what I love about TTRPGs 😤❤️🔥✨

We'll be looking at The Weakness Of My Heart next time, which offers an intimate (and potentially tragic!) narrative opportunity for the Betrayed 👀

[giantfoodgames]

Hello folks! If you like paper-dolls or just experimental little games, give our new release Grundy a try this week. Help my friend navigate life in a week and look good while doing it.

Grundy by Giant Food Games

Life-in-a-Week Paper-doll Game

[giantfoodgames]

Greetings brave warrior! Come hone your skill with a one-page game that can be played single-player or with a group: you only need a six-sided die and enough space to stretch out. Defend your sanctuary from spectral invaders while gaining confidence in new poses!

Find more games for people who love to play on our Itch Page

Way of the Warrior Pose by Giant Food Games

A One-Page RPG to Hone your Daily Practice

[secretsnowclub]

Snow's TTRPG Class: Lesson #1, a reading list of experimental rpgs

"Go ahead, put anything here," Tumblr says. Well don't you worry, Tumblr. I will put anything here. Just wait and see.

I wrote this article: https://nerves.games/2023/07/26/snows-ttrpg-class-reading-list/

It's got some words in there. Go check it out. OR, just look this list of games and read them. It's your first assignment. These are all games that I think have pushed on the boundaries of TTRPGs and most of them I would consider experimental. They are in alphabetical order.

Adventure RPG (in Need of Translation), Mameli – https://better-legends.itch.io/adventure-rpg-in-need-of-translation 

Apollo 47 Technical Manual, Hutchings – https://thousandyearoldvampire.com/products/apollo-47-technical-manual-an-rpg 

Care for Hecuba, Libre – https://bigstuffedcat.itch.io/care-for-hecuba 

Clay Creatures, Sinclair – https://s-jared.itch.io/clay-creatures 

Disk Horse, Geist – https://fm-geist.itch.io/disk-horse-1-off-to-the-races 

Don’t Lose Your Mind, Baugh – https://evilhat.com/product/don-t-lose-your-mind 

Everyone is John, Sullivan – https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/271276/Everyone-is-John 

Feedback, Slattery – https://adira.itch.io/feedback 

Flying Games, Dragon – https://possumcreekgames.itch.io/flying-games 

Freebase, Thron & Shaughnessy – https://i.4pcdn.org/tg/1411822901179.pdf 

I EAT MANTRAS FOR BREAKFAST, Mison – https://mariabumby.itch.io/i-eat-mantras-for-breakfast 

kill puppies for satan, Baker – https://img.4plebs.org/boards/tg/image/1370/08/1370081361036.pdf 

Lady Blackbird, Harper – https://johnharper.itch.io/lady-blackbird 

Paranoia, Costikyan, Gelber, and Goldberg – https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/224392/Paranoia–First-Edition 

Plot Armor, Black – https://oriondblack.itch.io/plot-armor 

Print Weaver, Morrison – https://nlmorrison.itch.io/print-weaver 

Teen Witch, Adler – https://buriedwithoutceremony.com/variations-on-your-body 

Ten Candles, Dewey – https://cavalrygames.com/shop/ten-candles-pdf 

This Discord Has Ghosts in it, Jobst & Vass – https://willjobst.itch.io/ghosts 

Unusual Esoterica, Unpleasant – https://axesorcs.itch.io/unusual-esoterica-series-1 

We Are But Worms, LaBresh – https://riverhousegames.itch.io/we-are-but-worms-a-one-word-rpg 

Wisher, Theurgist, Fatalist, Moran – https://afarandasunlessland.files.wordpress.com/2018/09/wtf.pdf

If you didn't read the article: this is not a list of best rpgs, or a list of great starter rpgs, or a list of my favorite games! It's simply a list of experimental games that I think pushed the bounds. I think if you're in my internet house (which you are while you read this, welcome in, get comfy, we've got fresh-squeezed water) you should read these and have opinions on them, even if your opinion is "lol, lmao, this is trash." But this is school so you have to put it in a complete sentence of you get an F. Minus.

Bye,

Snow

[junkfoodgames]

New game out now!

Death Cap Sauté is a GM-less TTRPG and dice game about a deadly cooking competition in the weird post-apocalypse!

It is for 2-5 players and players in about 1-2 hours.

It is formatted as a 32-page 5.5''x8.5'' zine!

Make weird dishes with your friends and try not to die in the process!

Find it here:

Death Cap Sauté by Junk Food Games

A GM-less TTRPG and dice game about a deadly cooking competition in the weird post-apocalypse

[wildwoodsgames]

one-page wonders

​when I first began to write games, I started with the single page. short and sharp, pushing the limits of how much historical detail or genre trappings could be packed within that form factor.

these games are dense, and rough around the edges, and clumsily laid-out, but they’re charming and they’re strongly voiced and they know exactly what they want to be. 

i’m proud of them, still. so—50% off, and a bundle of all 5 for $15. ​

it’s good to remember I once made short games quickly, as I coax a half-dozen projects destined for print someday through the development process, and see my first big publication crowdfund looming on the horizon.

The Vigil tells the story of one night’s terrible work for a crew of exorcists in Dark Ages England. It is a historical horror RPG about how communities are haunted by their pasts, and their sins.

I was tired of knowable ghosts when I wrote this game, and wondering what it means to be a community under siege by your whole bloody history—not just one restless soul. The haunting tables are the highlight, of course.

Shipwreckers tells the story of one night in the lives of a crew of daring folks working the Cornish coast as shipwreckers in the late 1700s. It is a historical RPG oneshot about bravery, poverty, superstition, and a little-known moment in history.

My second ever game, and my first one-pager. The clearest and tightest call to action (and stopping point) of all of them.

The Burn tells the story of a band of charcoal burners tending their fragile fire, and the visitors they face in the unfriendly shadow of the forest. It is a GMless historical RPG about ritual, sacrifice, and vigilance that is played with cards, dice, candles, and matches.

I wrote this game waiting for a plane in January 2020, as Australia burned. I needed to remember that fire could also be creative and protective, and it helped. It’s possibly the quickest game I’ve ever written.

Uneven Orbits tells the story of a ship, its crew, and the uncertain journey which brings them close. It is a GMless sci-fi RPG about how we negotiate relationships, seek out intimacy, and learn to live with one another.

If you’re a fan of A Long Way to A Small Angry Planet, but also the crew-becomes-family tropes of Firefly and Star Wars, this game may speak to you.

Wayfaring Strangers tell the story of a group of travelers brought together by wild weather, and the tales they tell until dawn. It is a GMless Tarot-based RPG about companionship and storytelling.

I loved Where the Water Tastes Like Wine, and the World’s End arc of Sandman. I also just love tall tales, ghost stories, and the like. And so this game: a thin pretext to justify swapping yarns with your friends and dreaming up stories on the spot.

[giantfoodgames]

Hello Folks! I hope everyone is scrolling while enjoying an enormous sandwich, but if you need something to help digest, may I present:

Meddling Teens by Giant Food Games

A Groovy GM-less One-Shot

Meddling Teens the one-page GM-less RPG for 2 - 5 Detectives with a Deck of Cards and 20 - 50 Minutes. Hunt for clues with your friends while bumbling one step ahead of a masked villain! We released this game back in March, but I am still bringing the whole library over to tumblr. Find the pdf download an more on our itch store!

[pandiongames]

Available Now!

Giant hamsters have appeared in Willowdale!

Their flowing, shining coats tell of pampered creatures on a rich diet full of keratin. However, the townspeople are terrified and have no clue where these creatures came from or why they are here. 

Children ride them like ponies as they devour all the flowers, and uproot Ol’ Harold’s pristine lawn he has manicured to perfection over seventy years. The roads through town are impassable as they bask in the streets. Poor Edna was even trampled by their dainty paws while shooing a group off her porch with a washrag and is still in the hospital.

That's when you, the president of the local book club, and self proclaimed gumshoe, knew exactly who to call for help.

Three himbos with courage as big as their muscles.

Big Thighs, Big Arms, and Big Heart may not be the brightest bulbs in the box, but they sure know how to make things happen. Paired with your deductive reasoning and strong sense of plot cliches, the four of you embark on the investigation of a lifetime across Willowdale to uncover clues and discover the truth behind the giant hamsters.

Hamsters and Himbos by Pandion Games

A small town mystery of unmatched thiccness

A Hints and Hijinx mystery!

[milda-matilda]

Short rpg that I made a while ago after possibly playing too much Dark Souls, all while grasping at the feeling of discovering both a new world and a new a new game, and no matter how many times I play it or its sequels I can never regain that first playthrough.