Next Stop: Werewolf Station!
The subway is a little hairy.
GREETINGS, ADVENTURER!
Today’s Quest: Walk through the turnstiles and into the jaws of a monster. After you’ve exited onto the platform, we’ll keep this train moving in Table Talk, and discuss the interesting results of IFComp. Tally ho!
#SponCon: This game is a paid collaboration with Meta Mage Studios to promote their TTRPG, The Midnight Codex, now on Kickstarter. The Midnight Codex is a unique, serialized tabletop roleplaying experience by Benjamin C. Bailey, a game designer and longtime Adventure Snack player.
TODAY’S QUEST:
You wake up to find yourself surrounded by werewolves on the subway. Guess you fell asleep on the X-train during a full moon, which you were warned about no less than eleven times at the office today.
When you awaken, you suddenly, accidentally kick a nearly empty bottle of urine across the car! Three werewolves in fedoras and trench coats – a terrible disguise that doesn't cover their super hairy chests and faces – look at you and growl. There's no one else on the train. As the werewolves get up to prowl across the train to your direction, you realize the next stop isn't for a few minutes. Uh-oh.
What would you like to do?
Do that thing where you open the backdoor to run to the next subway car.
Cast a magic self-defense spell. That’s right, you’re a damn wizard.
If you’re interested in collaborating with Adventure Snack on a game promotion, reach out via email at adventuresnack@substack.com.
First time here? Adventure Snack is a game series I email to subscribers. Play quests for free, twice a month, and turn your inbox into an adventure!
LET’S CHAT!
When your quest is complete, it’s time to debrief. Join your fellow adventurers at the virtual D&D table we call the comments section. And yes, you can bring your familiar to the table, as long as it doesn’t eat anybody.
Discuss one (or all) of today’s topics in the comments:
🎉 How was your subway ride? Was it fast and smooth or did it bite?
🐺 Who wins in a fight: a pack of werewolves or a flock of vampires?
🌕 If you could transform into any animal on a full moon, what would it be?
🎲 Want to learn more about The Midnight Codex? Designer Benjamin C. Bailey will be in the comments to talk about the game, the Kickstarter, and answer your questions. The game is divided into episodes that release periodically, which is super unique for a TTRPG. So I’m gonna ask him about his inspiration for that…
WE SET A RECORD AT IFCOMP!
This past weekend, the results of IFComp were finally revealed after the longest month and a half of waiting EVER. Use Your Psychic Powers at Applebee’s (UYPPA) had a strong showing, making the Top 20 at #16! That’s a really good ranking for a game 15 minutes or less in length. In fact, it was the highest ranking short game this year. (Since they started listing lengths a few years ago, no 15 minute game has ever made the top 10.)
But wait, there’s more. UYPPA was the most “popular” game in this year’s IFComp! At 122 votes, more people likely played UYPPA than any other game. Not only that, but UYPPA got the most votes of any IFComp game since 2016. Judges can leave anonymous feedback on the games they rate, and like UYPPA’s public reviews, they’re almost universally positive.
If you participated – whether as a beta tester or a judge – thank you for making UYPPA be the best game it can be and helping spread the word about Adventure Snack to new players in the interactive fiction community. As always, you’re the real hero.
Oh, and one more thing. Judges rate the game from 1 to 10. The highest ranked game got an 8.25, but UYPPA’s rating was way more badass.
We have unleashed the power of the dark lord Satan and he’s buying everyone an order of potato ranch chicken pot sticklers to celebrate!
PREPARE THYSELF: THE PLAYER SURVEY IS COMING!
The next email will be our annual player survey. I wouldn’t have entered IFComp this year if it wasn’t for the results of the survey, which sent me on a journey to learn a programming language and create a text adventure game. Where will next year take us? The power’s in your hands!
I’ll also share a post-mortem for UYPPA, where I’ll give you an inside-the-kitchen look at the game’s development process and how player feedback dramatically changed UYPPA’s design.
Good Question! I decided to use this method for several reasons, but the main one is so that the Game Master could join in on the fun of the game and it's story plot without worrying about giving away spoilers or keeping information from the players, because they honestly don't know what's going to happen next either! This allows them to engage with the game more like a player, and less like a referee.
Oi! Wolf pack tried to shiv me cause o' the full pearl. Ain't my lucky break of a day. Gave 'em a 'ittle chin music with the raz 'n the daz. Fur a split seemed all everyjig might sputter out but ain't backed out of a fight i couldn't run from yet. When they'd had enough, let'm walk. Ain't no use in a bunch o' fur coats if ya end up with a slit throat. Ya glean?