It's an intersting game, simple and effective, with an interesting point of view : "anti cosmic horror", a horror game with hope, etc. I don't know if I will have time to play it, but it's an interesting take on the Monster Hunter trope and, especially, WoD - Hunter !
Hi! First of all, I'd like to say that reading through this was a near indescribable experience. So often I fear that the world is helpless. Consumed by Worms. Works like yours remind me that it is still worth it to keep on fighting. Even if it doesn't fix everything. Even if we fail.
Your prose is truly beautiful. I don't know if I'll ever have the heart to play this game, but reading this meant a lot. It's works like this one that make me love horror and it's potential as a genre.
I am a translator. I've been working on my portfolio, and I would love it if you let me translate this piece into Brazilian Portuguese. I know you technically already allowed it on the Licensing section, but I wanted to ask you directly any way, because if you're willing to, I would like to discuss some of the translation with you, as this reads almost like poetry at times, and I would love to get your opinion on how to deal with some of the more subjective parts of your text.
Finally, I wanted to point out that there is likely a mistake on page 54 where the text abruptly gets cut and/or seems to have been mixed up with some of the drafts for the example of play. You mentioned the game is still in development, so I'll definitely be watching for updates!
Wow... I really can't express how meaningful that is to hear. That's really all I wanted to do with this game. So it's deeply gratifying to hear that it reached someone in the way I hoped it might. Truly made my day, thank you so much.
And yes, absolutely! I'd be honored, and would be happy to talk with you about the translation, however works best for you.
And I appreciate the typo catch! I'm actually about to run a playtest and will do a few edits based on that and some other notes, then will upload an update soon, and will fix the error you noticed as well!
Once again, thank you so much for the kind words. It really means the world to me.
I'm so glad to hear this! I couldn't find any contact info to reach you, so I'll share mine instead and we can talk either through e-mail or discord (whichever you prefer). My e-mail is coelhotraduz[at]gmail[dot]com, and my discord tag is microondas123. I probably won't be able to start the translation process before mid January, but I can tell you some of my questions so I can turn some ideas in my head in the mean time.
You have a high level conceptual meta description of the game, without informing the reader what they will be playing. What is the premise of this game? What time period does it take place in? What kind of setting does it take place in? Who are the players portraying?
Thank you so much for your feedback! I've edited the page to include a more direct description of the game, and will include something similar in an updated version of the text itself. I really appreciate you taking the time to engage, and would love to hear any other critiques or advice you may have.
I've read through the 48 page PDF. The premise is intense. It gives me Hunter the Reckoning vibes with a healthy heaping of the Wyrm, Pentex, and Banes/Fomori from White Wolf publishing's old/classic World of Darkness.
The game has a big narrative focus. Mechanics are simple, draw cards. High card wins. The only way to get an edge in opposed challenges is to put a relationship you have with an NPC in danger, or put them in literal danger. I like how you work that in narratively. I can see that risk to relationships is a big part of the game. There is no way to undo that damage to a NPC. That is big. How fast are you trying to have characters self destruct? Do you intend for Before the Worms to be a short or long form game? I would also want some way for my character’s own abilities to play a role in addition to the drama that, optionally, can come into play by drawing on a relationship with an NPC. Otherwise there is no difference between between backgrounds and skillsets.
There is a structured gameplay loop, and you did a good job outlining it in a simple, straight forward manner. The Breathe step is a good idea. A pause period, for an emotionally intense game, where you can think about your next steps and decompress a bit at the same time. There is some solid guidance and a play example that are informaive without dragging on,
The tight gameplay loop, coupled with the light and quick to learn system may make it good for solo play. I might try a solo session out. If I do, I'll let you know how it goes.
While reading I noticed a couple things you may want to edit:
About the dying light of your your (game description)
Thank you so much for this feedback! It's incredibly helpful.
Responding to your questions / observations:
Hunter (specifically Hunter: the Vigil) is definitely an inspiration! As was the Wyrm / Pentex / the Fomori. I should maybe add the latter to the list of Touchstones, actually. The needle I'm trying to thread here is between describing a very bleak and uncompromising setting to serve as a stark backdrop for the ethics and decisions of the characters, but not making it so dreary and unrelentingly depressing that nobody wants to play it! I'm glad it seems intriguing enough to not be an instant turn-off, at least.
Because it's such an intense game, I think a long-term campaign would be difficult to sustain on a purely emotional level. I imagine that games would be single "episodes" of 1-3 sessions or relatively short "arcs" of maybe 7-10. Which means that I do expect characters to burn out relatively fast. But at the same time, I don't want it to be so lethal that the players don't have time to get to know them (and thus feel the impact). I did think about giving a way to "heal" relationships, but decided against it. I'll need to playtest the death spiral to see how fast it tightens though, and how that feels.
The point about the character's own abilities is a good one. In my current thinking, the idea was essentially that your relationships *are* your abilities, in that if you, say, know how to shoot, one of your Tethers taught you that. But I see that it's not really explained in the text. Plus, I think it might be a bit muddled. Separating those out may work better, though I'm not sure how to distinguish them mechanically without adding unnecessary complexity.
Anyway, once again, I really can't thank you enough for taking the time to engage with this. If you end up doing a solo playthrough, I would love to hear how it went and any notes you may have. Honestly, just the idea that someone might actually play the weird little game I made absolutely makes my day!
Heya! I just wanted to let you know that I've published another update to the system which, among other things, adds some tools that I think will help a lot with solo play!
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It's an intersting game, simple and effective, with an interesting point of view : "anti cosmic horror", a horror game with hope, etc.
I don't know if I will have time to play it, but it's an interesting take on the Monster Hunter trope and, especially, WoD - Hunter !
Hi! First of all, I'd like to say that reading through this was a near indescribable experience. So often I fear that the world is helpless. Consumed by Worms. Works like yours remind me that it is still worth it to keep on fighting. Even if it doesn't fix everything. Even if we fail.
Your prose is truly beautiful. I don't know if I'll ever have the heart to play this game, but reading this meant a lot. It's works like this one that make me love horror and it's potential as a genre.
I am a translator. I've been working on my portfolio, and I would love it if you let me translate this piece into Brazilian Portuguese. I know you technically already allowed it on the Licensing section, but I wanted to ask you directly any way, because if you're willing to, I would like to discuss some of the translation with you, as this reads almost like poetry at times, and I would love to get your opinion on how to deal with some of the more subjective parts of your text.
Finally, I wanted to point out that there is likely a mistake on page 54 where the text abruptly gets cut and/or seems to have been mixed up with some of the drafts for the example of play. You mentioned the game is still in development, so I'll definitely be watching for updates!
Wow... I really can't express how meaningful that is to hear. That's really all I wanted to do with this game. So it's deeply gratifying to hear that it reached someone in the way I hoped it might. Truly made my day, thank you so much.
And yes, absolutely! I'd be honored, and would be happy to talk with you about the translation, however works best for you.
And I appreciate the typo catch! I'm actually about to run a playtest and will do a few edits based on that and some other notes, then will upload an update soon, and will fix the error you noticed as well!
Once again, thank you so much for the kind words. It really means the world to me.
I'm so glad to hear this! I couldn't find any contact info to reach you, so I'll share mine instead and we can talk either through e-mail or discord (whichever you prefer). My e-mail is coelhotraduz[at]gmail[dot]com, and my discord tag is microondas123. I probably won't be able to start the translation process before mid January, but I can tell you some of my questions so I can turn some ideas in my head in the mean time.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Thank you! You as well! I just sent a friend request on Discord, and I'll reach out over email as well.
You have a high level conceptual meta description of the game, without informing the reader what they will be playing. What is the premise of this game? What time period does it take place in? What kind of setting does it take place in? Who are the players portraying?
Thank you so much for your feedback! I've edited the page to include a more direct description of the game, and will include something similar in an updated version of the text itself. I really appreciate you taking the time to engage, and would love to hear any other critiques or advice you may have.
I just added an introduction to the game text, reproducing the text on this page. Thanks again!
Heya! I just wanted to let you know that I've posted another revision, which I hope makes some of the answers to these questions clearer.
I've read through the 48 page PDF. The premise is intense. It gives me Hunter the Reckoning vibes with a healthy heaping of the Wyrm, Pentex, and Banes/Fomori from White Wolf publishing's old/classic World of Darkness.
The game has a big narrative focus. Mechanics are simple, draw cards. High card wins. The only way to get an edge in opposed challenges is to put a relationship you have with an NPC in danger, or put them in literal danger. I like how you work that in narratively. I can see that risk to relationships is a big part of the game. There is no way to undo that damage to a NPC. That is big. How fast are you trying to have characters self destruct? Do you intend for Before the Worms to be a short or long form game? I would also want some way for my character’s own abilities to play a role in addition to the drama that, optionally, can come into play by drawing on a relationship with an NPC. Otherwise there is no difference between between backgrounds and skillsets.
There is a structured gameplay loop, and you did a good job outlining it in a simple, straight forward manner. The Breathe step is a good idea. A pause period, for an emotionally intense game, where you can think about your next steps and decompress a bit at the same time. There is some solid guidance and a play example that are informaive without dragging on,
The tight gameplay loop, coupled with the light and quick to learn system may make it good for solo play. I might try a solo session out. If I do, I'll let you know how it goes.
While reading I noticed a couple things you may want to edit:
About the dying light of your your (game description)
The person may dead ( pg. 31)
Thank you so much for this feedback! It's incredibly helpful.
Responding to your questions / observations:
Anyway, once again, I really can't thank you enough for taking the time to engage with this. If you end up doing a solo playthrough, I would love to hear how it went and any notes you may have. Honestly, just the idea that someone might actually play the weird little game I made absolutely makes my day!
Heya! I just wanted to let you know that I've published another update to the system which, among other things, adds some tools that I think will help a lot with solo play!