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Feedback requested on a podcast idea

A topic by silentferrets created Mar 21, 2019 Views: 425 Replies: 3

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I have been really enjoying the actual play podcasts I've been listening to with developing stories as well as the emergent story aspects of podcasts like All My Fantasy Children or Atlas of the Unknown World. I've also been wanting to try out more games than I can conceivably form a group for, plus I also enjoy playing solo rpgs.

I had an idea for a podcast that combines all of this into a solo actual play of various systems, including many small indie games and micro-games available here on itch, using GM Emulators or other random brainstorming things to help me play games that weren't intended to be done solo as needed, which also would form interconnected stories as I played more.

An example might be on a quarantined world in a Stars Without Number setting, magic is real and functions for unknown reasons so on that world I can play things like Monsterhearts or Urban Shadows, while in orbit around it or one star system over I can try out most of the #sadmechjam games. Then I can play something weird like one of the quiet journaling games about one of the characters just having dinner. Then I might play Microscope or A Quiet Year set in a related setting and gradually this would build up an ongoing storyline and recurring characters as well as allowing me to sample these games in a more direct way than simply reading the pdf would. Also my Monsterhearts vampire in one game might become the big bad in a Monster of the Week game then show up in a parody episode as I try out playing Toon.

I wonder if there would be any interest in such a thing. I also welcome any feedback, suggestions, games people might want to hear played, etc.

Games I'm currently looking at include Toon, Dying Earth, A Quiet Year, Spindlewheel, all of the Sad Mech Jam games, Left Coast, Monsterhearts, Space Wurm vs Moonicorn, Sprawl, The Veil, Interstial, You Have to Get Dressed, 3x3 Wizard Basketball, and honestly whatever else catches my fancy that I either haven't tried or have an idea for that I also haven't tried.

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softyell5 years ago(+2)

This sounds kind of delightful. Even though I've come across a few solo RPGs and solo larps, I don't think I know any solo actual plays?

And the idea of some kind of epistolary actual play where you leap through one game and another in a single interconnected story, that sounds fun if done well but over ambitious. Are you experienced in podcasting at all? Do you have good sound setup? Feel like bad sound setup could easily kill an idea like this. Sounds delightful but also overambitious.

The only thing that bothers me about your pitch is I feel like you're trying to justify why magic can happen in the scifi world? "a quarantined world in a Stars Without Number setting, magic is real and functions for unknown reasons so on that world I can play things like Monsterhearts or Urban Shadows,"
I suppose this might be just me but I feel like when you cross different things together, you don't really have to justify it. You just do it. I love Carmilla, the youtube series based on the novel. I love JP the library ghost AI. Until that point, there's no evidence to suggest that AIs exist in the world, let alone AIs made from library ghosts. There's no context internal or external to the fiction on which we can infer such an idea. But a few episodes into the show, after simple honest vampire horror and raunchy drama, boop! Robot! Carmilla kept doing stuff like that. Throwing in not vampire stuff into the vampire show. But it stayed a vampire show at its core. It just had all this other stuff revolving around it.

You don't have to explain magic's intrusion into a non-magical world. So long as magic's role in the story remains consistent and coherent and interesting, you don't have to explain anything. People will pick up what you're putting down, and the science fiction or whatever will still be there when you want to go back to it. Undisturbed by the magic.

Vampires in space doesn't have to be explained. Does that make sense? Am I making sense?

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silentferrets5 years ago(+2)

Actually I really appreciate the idea about the justification thing. I think I might just "play to find out" and if something seems to contradict "canon" then it'll be a mystery until maybe a future play reveals the truth. Why space wizards? Because... who knows? Find out later!

As for sound, I have podcast experience but I've been out of the game for several years. My set up will probably be pretty simple, trying to balance sound quality vs burnout potential. I'm currently thinking of using my zoom to record the audio, using a pretty decent mic with filter, then using slick audio magic noise reduction. Of course, I'm open to opinions/advice.

Carmilla sounds like something I need to check out. I mean vampires AND robots!? That's my jam.

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NotWriting5 years ago

This sounds like a neat idea and I would definitely check out a few episodes. I've just starting exploring the world of solo RPGs and I'm really enjoying them as a writing exercise, so I can see how this could create an interesting story with all sorts of twists and turns.

I'll echo the above concerns about quality. That's the first thing that kills my listening experience and makes it unlikely I'll bother with a podcast, even if the content is something I enjoy. But I also have no experience with producing a podcast so *shrug* can't offer insight there.

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