itch.io

I think there are some bigger reasons why they are not giving full information about what is happening. I think that if they tell the truth about how things really are, it will cause enormous and painful damage to the platform. That is why they are trying to avoid it or delay it as long as possible.

This is clearly not working, as more and more people are getting restless. I’m already considering moving my stuff away from this platform (where to is still an open question, but as a web dev I can, at worst, self-host something), I’ve seen people do the same and I’ve already come across three different groups of people talking about starting a competitor. Itch is burning through its community’s goodwill reserve at an alarming speed and this isn’t a resource you can easily replenish.

It doesn’t matter how bad the situation is, most people are pretty good at assuming worse if given the possibility, and this doesn’t consider the people who lost money and saw their games delisted because of obscure rule updates who are justifiably angry and probably talking with lawyers right now.

(Other author chiming in) This is a good discussion and I’m happy it’s happening right upfront in the game page because you’re raising something which appears completely different in the rules and in play. Seriously, thank you.

Yes, it’s actually odd to have NPCs which only have enemies or allies with very little in between, but the oddness is wanted because it interacts with two other key elements of the game:

1. The map shows what’s publicly known. An NPC might appear as a well-loved member of community, but actually be secretly resented by the NPCs further from them in the map (or vice versa). Hidden enemies and allies lurk in the shadows like wandering monsters or traps in a dungeon and the PCs might get caught on those (or maybe they can discover this information and use it for their gains)
2. At the start of the game, the PCs are very low on the social ladder, basically on the ground. They’ll have to use the information they gather (from the map and during play) to better their situation. This system is skewed to produce two topologies (more often than not combined in the same map - but we had a couple of outliers and they were fun to play as well) which are more usable to this end: a tightly-knit group of friends and an infighting mess.

In the end, the aim of the whole setup is to create an unstable situation the PCs can exploit in some way, not a stable situation someone can comfortably (un)live in. During the game the map will change (NPCs get killed, outed as traitors to their friends, enter new alliances and such), possibly leading to a more stable state (although not always, I’ve seen groups which aimed at creating further mess in order to profit out of it).

It has the same feeling as putting up some heavy metal CD in the stereo as loud as I could and then loading up Doom or Painkiller on the familty PC as a teenager. Lots of fun.

You can find it here (there’s also an Italian version, but since I didn’t translate the module it’s just the notes I used to run the game).

Is it possible to write a conversion for another system (Maze Rats)? I’ve converted it last week for a convention and I’d like to publish the stats.

Perfetto da giocare con capo e colleghi!

There’s really a lot stuff for only two pamphlets. The starting situation (and the possible evolutions) is detailed with care and skill and the illustrations are really good.

Can’t wait to play it!

Mi faccio avanti io per farti proofreading.

È il momento che Abandoned Malls & Cultists si rifaccia un po’ la veste, perché sono il primo a trovarlo francamente illeggibile:

https://thekernelinyellow.itch.io/abandoned-malls-cultists

https://thekernelinyellow.itch.io/marshmallows-and-monsters