itch.io

Certainly! I just submitted your refund request to itch.io. I'm sorry this black & white zine version wasn't what you were expecting. Jonathan's game design at the start of our process originally included a rules booklet, and the entirety of the game's design is indeed included here. The rules-as-cards format in the deck was something we adapted during the development process to make production more affordable. Not realizing there would be such a strong preference for that aspect of the print deck is a genuine oversight on my part. I know your feedback comes from a place of excitement, though, and I plan on working on creating a 6th sheet mirroring the rules in a trimmable card format for anyone with similar preferences when I'm able (it takes more than just a copy/paste). I also can't guarantee any kind of definite time frame, though, as a one-man, full-time operation trying to keep up with a sudden influx of demand in addition to other continuing development on other projects.

Another comment recently proposed the same thing! I don't have any experience with that style of mini-zines (I know exactly the kind you're talking about and they're definitely cool) but I have some friends who do. I'll poke around for a template/guidance when I have the time and see what I can do

Thanks for all this! These are some great ideas, and I think there are some settings you can tweak to print the cards at the size you want to. It also sounds like you're putting a lot of personal time/labor (and frustration!) into trying to recreate the deck version of the game on your own, though! This discounted PDF edition's goal is to serve as an accessible alternative to the deck version, not 1-to-1 visual verisimilitude. If you're disappointed by variations in size & format compared to the deck showcased on Quinns Quest, the easiest solution could just be to pay the extra $10 for version of the product featured in the video (I'd even refund this digital purchase to make it easier)! Rest assured, though, that the creative content is all exactly the same.

Re: Card Sizing — The cards should actually be much closer in bicycle size than you're describing! The crop lines are formatted to 3.755" tall and 2.4257" wide to fit all 40 cards across 5 standard, letter-sized pages, so they're actually a little taller than standard 3.5x2.5 cards to accommodate extra quality-of-life elements added to this edition (the suits/numbers  mentioned that make mapping to a home deck easier)! If yours are printing notably less wide and slightly less tall, it sounds like your PDF viewer might be "shrinking to fit" before you print and trim. Try printing at an "actual size" setting or similar to prevent downscaling!

Re: Rules Formatting — My intention was that people would print the zine to play with a standard bicycle deck—IE: Draw a 5 of spades, briefly look at the zine to see which prompt the 5 of spades coordinates to, and resume play. The print-and-trim sheets were a bonus for folks looking to go above and beyond, not the other way around! If you're looking to recreate the print deck, though, I can see how you'd want something that fits inside a spare tuck-box of your own. I'll add it to my to-do list as something to circle back to once I'm caught up on other things (I'm a one man business!) but in the meantime, if you're struggling with zine assembly, try printing at the "booklet" setting in Adobe Acrobat or a similar program! It'll auto-arrange the pages to print double-sided, fold, and staple at a standard zine's half-letter sizing (not pocket, but still very portable).

Re: Card Formatting — I hear you on the suit fill and left/right preferences! For the fill, I intentionally opted for outlines over solid back suits to help folks avoid wasting home printer ink. It should be a quick tweak with a paint bucket tool in an image editing program, though, if you're already homebrewing a custom deck of your own. As far as the suit/number arrangement, that's informed by the formatting of the text! Because prompts and their titles are left justified, left-justifying the top suit/number as well overcrowded some of the wordier cards (IE: the Holotype or Wanderings cards).

I hope all this makes sense, and thanks again for the thought and energy you put into your feedback! I'm thrilled you like the game enough not only to want to travel with it, but to craft a deck of your own. It means a lot, and I'll keep trying to do everything I can with the time and resources at my own disposal! - Tyler

Definitely! The PDF version maps prompts to a standard deck of cards, so it'd just be a matter of both having the PDF open and your own deck of cards on either side of the screen. And yes! Anyone who buys any of our titles in print can always send me an email and I'll furnish a free download code. - T

Via our newsletter! https://www.possibleworldsgames.com/about

Not yet, but hopefully soon!

That's on me! I didn't realize the "Email owners when the game is updated with new files" box was checked behind the scenes (it's a per-listing thing, not account wide like I'd thought) so had been making hotfixes whenever they came up. Sorry for anyone who's been spammed UPDATES AVAILABLE emails without context, but rest assured 1) things have settled down and 2) anything that's changed has only been quality of life improvements and clarifications, not new content! This is an Ashcan, not early access or beta, and for us a big reason why we chose that designation is because it won't be Expanding. This is a stand-alone edition, not a downpayment on a future product or something that will be changing over time. The next edition might have some tweaks based on feedback (and will certainly have a LOT more content) but it'll be its own thing. As far as when/what that next edition will be, well, keep your eyes open ; )

Great catch! Corrected in both the screenshot and the PDF. - Tyler

Yes please! You can do so here or email them to me at https://www.possibleworldsgames.com/contact

Thanks so much! Corrections made, and glad you're enjoying it!

I'll take a look! It's likely an oversight, but could also be a fix for fitting everything onto a single column or spread for layout purposes. Could you let me know what page you're seeing it on

Honestly I'm just thrilled people are reading the text this closely. You are correct, and I just pushed this and other light corrections live. Thanks! - Tyler

Great catches! I just made those fixes on my end and will be pushing them live shortly. Much appreciated!

Fixed! Those two are on me, and I appreciate your pointing them out! - Tyler

Great catch! I made the fix and immediately re-uploaded the file immediately. Future (re)downloads will just have the second one. Thanks! - Tyler

Great catch! I just made the fix and reuploaded, so any future (re)downloads won't have the typo. A game this size & complexity is bound to have a few, so we appreciate your flagging them! Feel free to comment with any your find or you can always reach out to me directly via https://www.possibleworldsgames.com/contact - Tyler

Yes! I'm always happy to provide free PDFs with proof of purchase. Reach out via https://www.possibleworldsgames.com/contact and I'll hook you up!

Yes! I'm always happy to provide free download codes to anyone who buys a book in print. Just get a hold of me at https://www.possibleworldsgames.com/contact

This is so cool!! And yes, your split crediting works just fine. So glad it was a useful framework for your game, and I'm excited to visit Patchy Pumpking's Phantom Park soon!

I'm so glad you enjoyed it! Hoping to come back to this game sometime soon, maybe with a physical edition or expansion. It was so fun to make and play

There is not a GM, and all you need is two or more players! Personally I've played it with as many as 8!

I LOVE this!!!

Thank you so much! Jonathan did a PHENOMENAL job, and we tried to offer a wide spread of styles, and arrangements!

Yes! That mode of play will be part of the Claw Atlas expansion releasing soon!

Possibly! If finances are ever an issue for someone, though, I'd always prefer they reach out to me directly so we can work something out!

There are enough community roles that you could play 10 with no repeats, and folks can always invent their own factions too—it's more just a matter of how long you want to play! Like, with a standard deck of 52 cards, 10 players could take 5 turns each without having to fetch a new deck, but 50 turns could take a long time depending on how detailed people want to be in their descriptions. 

It's plenty fun with low player counts, but I most often play in the 3-6 range! That way you can get a full rotation in, clock how long it takes, and then play as many full rounds as you have time/energy for without worrying about running out of cards or any one round being TOO long. Especially since the math works best if everyone plays an equal number of turns.

Hope this helps!

This is so unbelievably kind! Your comments really are everything I was going for—from game design to visual design—and it's so great to hear the intent is coming through. Thanks so much, and glad you're enjoying it!

I come from a theatre and improv background myself! I didn't want to just include conventional theaters in the list, so I included a number of improv troupes as well. They're ALL real, and I LOVE it whenever someone recognizes one. Earlier this month someone from Woolly Mammoth saw their company in the list and brought the game in to show coworkers, haha.

Those are EXACTLY the kinds of moments I'd hoped for, and I'm so glad you all enjoyed yourselves! Bravo on pulling off both the heist and your play in the end, and thank you so much for your support!

I love Woolly! I trained under John Baker for a hot second while he was still there, and I LOVED your productions of The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity and Botticelli in the Fire! It's been a minute, but keep up the great work!

That’s fantastic!! Which one? I was a professional dramaturg for about a decade before starting my career in games!

Niiiiiiiice. You're playing it exactly right! It's hard to break the Dots & Boxes habit of making lot of small rooms, but in reality even just a few big room REALLY rack up the points! Small rooms work much better as a way to BLOCK folks from making larger shapes. It's been fun watching the game teach people how to take advantage of the scoring system in real time, and it almost always leads to dungeons that start as a lot of small passages before opening up into larger rooms deeper in (which makes sense from a layout perspective!)

I'm glad you dig it! If you haven't yet, check out Beak, Feather, & Bone! It's also a (lightly) competitive worldbuilder, and there are a number of community hacks and supplements you can use to make it more so!

Thank you Aunt Sherry! Hopefully we'll all be able to celebrate together again soon!

I'm so glad! Please report back if you do—I'd love to hear more about it!

I'm so glad you're enjoying it, and I hope it's been a relaxing & creatively satisfying part of your routine!

Thank you so much for the kind words! I'm so glad you gave it a shot, and I hope you take those characters on some adventures soon!

Thank you so much!! I'm SO glad you're enjoying it, and I'd love to hear about the fun powers/worlds you've created sometime!

Shoot me a message at possibleworldsgames.com and we'll work something out!

As far as I'm concerned that's the highest praise a designer can receive! I'm SO glad it's got your own designer wheels turning, and I can't wait to see how you and others take the ideas here and run with them!