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This is fascinating to me! Our lists are so different; D&D, investigative games (including CoC and GUMSHOE), and any superhero game (especially) top my "genres I like to run with zero prep" list. It may be down to system and genre familiarity, because other than Fiasco I don't think I could run...

Please come back and remind us when it goes live.

With a small game the goal is market penetration, word of mouth, and people being excited about your game - excited enough to buy, and hopefully excited enough to then play! Because if they aren't playing, they're less likely to then buy more. Initial cost is one barrier to entry, and open...

For example,: From Book 43, Chapter 19, Stanzas 19-26 the recorded utterances of Joachim the blessed and completely sane, High Prophet of our divine lady, honored be his memory for all time: "Get away from me with that thing! You can't turn ME into a goatherd, no you mayn't, not with your...

I'm pretty good at these. I need you to seed it, though, with a couple of prop elements you may or may not use. EDIT: also, the most important question: who is writing the prophecy? Is it an old crazed prophet? A young poet? A priestess? This matters a huge amount on the tone, at least for me.

An enthusiastic cheer for Hollowpoint. We played a slightly variant game where we were adult aurors tracking down deatheaters in the wizarding world, all while trying to stay below muggle notice. It was freakin' amazing. If you want a game that mirrors violent action movies and requires zilch...

You have my attention! My favorite game ever for RUNNING or playing supers was MnM 2; I found it incredibly fast, intuitive, and fun. Character creation was a real bear, though. I've hunted for something with a similar feel ever since, but I haven't quite landed on it.

I agree! I'll argue pretty convincingly that Ashen Stars is the least low-prep GUMSHOE game, at least in chargen. It's why I wrote the Warp Play rules that hack AS into a TimeWatch ability structure. I wanted a simpler system with more intuitive categories. I can run a solid Ashen Stars game...

Because I am apparently shameless, I'll mention the game I co-wrote for Pelgrane Press. Swords of the Serpentine is classic sword and sorcery using the GUMSHOE system, tuned for cinematic action and competent heroes. It's a little more about ruling kingdoms than it is dungeon crawling, but I...

I'm gaming more during the pandemic than I did previously! My plans include: Finally having my new game Swords of the Serpentine printed and for sale for realsies Remotely playing D&D once a week with my best friends from high school Remotely continuing my main SotS game (we're finishing the...

We've spent almost every Sunday of the pandemic playing casual and indie RPGs requiring little to no prep. A huge source of these has been Grant Howitt's one-page RPGs, such as Sexy Battle Wizards. While I'm not normally a huge PbtA fan, we've also had fantastic fun with games like Brindlewood...

Someone showed me In Search of the Unknown in 1979, long before I ever saw a rulebook. I was ENTRANCED. I still remember reading about the room of many magic pools, and feeling like someone opened up a door into a world I hadn't even known existed. It'd be another two years before I actually...

Right. Final complete PDF was made available to pre-orderers in December. It then immediately went out to the printers! So it's currently at the printers; last I heard we were estimating a February-March arrival into peoples' hands. I'm so happy with how it came out.

I'd say COVID delayed us by 9+ months. It is SO good to have it out this year (hardcover in Feb or so, PDF available now.) We had about 500+ playtesters, and feedback has made me really happy. I can't wait until more folks can see and play it. I'm really lucky. Some designers make a game to...

Hmm. I'm still writing and designing, but it would probably be novels if I weren't writing games. I might be doing canine agility along with my wife. I'd still be barbequing as much as I do now. And I'd still be watching an appalling quantity of crappy shark movies. I'm still gaming just as...

Legit. I was halfway through the game design before I realized how much of Camorr had influenced my thinking about what was fun. Tall ancient towers! Arcing bridges? Glass gardens! Ancient nobility! Heck, how Locke handles money even influenced the Wealth system. All these things make me...

Can't argue with that. Maybe drop the power boost that Sorcery gets and then remove Corruption entirely. No harm no foul. It's funny. Corruption in Dark Sun really bothered me; I hated killing all the plants around me. Dunno why I don't get the same association in SotS. (There's a fun...

There is extensive guidance on how to do so. I personally love them in a sword & sorcery setting. That's sure not universal, though, so there's a couple of other ways to handle it. I ramble about it a bit here.

Hey folks. My co-author Emily Dresner (@multiplexer) gets equal or greater credit on Swords of the Serpentine, including the glorious setting design. It's her baby as much as it is mine, and credits should acknowledge that. Thanks. - Kevin