#Feminism Is A Collection of 34 "Nanogames" From Designers Around The World

Pelgrane Press, known for its narrative games like Hillfolk and its collection of story-games, Seven Wonders, is releasing an anthology of 34 mini-RPGs written by feminist authors from 11 different countries. These "nano-games", collected in the book #Feminism, are typically playable in under an hour, making them ideal for one-shots. Pelgrane has kindly sent along some previews of the book, which you can see below. With games like Mentioning the Unmentionables by Sweden's Kajsa Greger ("Three games about the anatomy of women: "Dances With Vulvas", "Dying for a Cup of Coffee", and "Just Put Some Salt on It"), Shoutdown to Launch by America's Jason Morningstar ("In this game about gendered interruption, a bunch of engineers need to fix a problem with a rocket engine in the dwindling time before launch. It won’t go well."), 6016 by Norway's Elin Nilsen ("In 6016 the only historical source of the 21st century is a collection of clips from the soap opera Love, Lust and Lack of Trust."), and First Joyful Mystery by Ireland's Cathriona Tobin ("Players examine the impact Ireland’s prohibitive abortion laws have on people who find themselves pregnant."), each game has an intensity rating from 1-5.

#Feminism is a 96-page softcover available for pre-order; those who do so get the PDF version immediately.

One of the anthology's writers, Emily Care Boss, spoke about her thoughts when writing Ma, Can I Help You With That?, which came out of her own process of aging and seeing others supporting their parents. The game investigated the was relationships become strained, and how men and women tend to interact with the process. Jason Morningstar, who wrote Shoutdown to Launch, talks about how his job in academia helped highlight some of the gender ratios and power dynamics, while quietly honouring engineers like Katherine Johnson and Galina Balashova.

With 34 different nano-games, a whole range of subjects are covered. Tour of Duty by Moyra Turkington looks at women in the US military; Her Last Tweet deals with a campus shooting event; and in President, the goal of the game is to draft the first female president of the Akhaian Empire's press statement. There's a full list of the games below the images below!

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First Date Katrin Førde
A game about a date gone wrong and a rant about the orgasm gap.

Flirt Agata Swistak
Flirt is an attempt to deconstruct the game almost everyone is playing — the game of hook-ups, crushes, and scoring!

Spin the Goddesses Karin Edman
A kissing game of lesbian witches.

Willful Disregard Anna Westerling
A love story.

Manic Pixie Dream Girl Commandos Lizzie Stark
A military unit undertakes its last whimsical mission before retiring to civilian life.

6016 Elin Nilsen
In 6016 the only historical source of the 21st century is a collection of clips from the soap opera Love, Lust and Lack of Trust.

Tropes vs. Women Ann Eriksen
Explore well-known movie clichés and tropes about women in a fun and not too serious way.

Lipstick Kaisa Kangas
Sofia hesitates about whether to wear lipstick to a TV debate on feminism.

You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby Julia Ellingboe
A game about gender, cultural, and ethnic representation in the movies.

Restrictions Frida Karlsson Lindgren and Sofia Stenler
A non-verbal game on how we are and aren’t allowed to move together, as two genders.

Mentioning the Unmentionables Kajsa Greger
Three games about the anatomy of women.

#Flesh Frederik Berg, Rebecka Eriksson, and Tobias Wrigstad
A physical game about the objectification of women or how women’s bodies are butchered into parts.

Selfie Kira Magrann
An intimate game about feelings in images.

So Mom I Made This Sex Tape Susanne Vejdemo
Different generations of feminists argue it out about sex, porn, and what the main point of feminism really is.

My Sister, Malala Elsa Helin
A game about freedom of thoughts and ideas for girls in Pakistan.

A Friend in Need Muriel Algayres
A nano-game about street harassment, victim-blaming and friendship. After a bad encounter on the street, can Ella get over victim-blaming with the help of her friends?

Driving to Reunion Laura Simpson
An intergenerational game about four Black women trying to understand each other, as they drive back for college reunion.

Catcalling Tora de Boer
Street harassment feels different depending on whether bystanders support the harasser or the victim.

How to Be Ava White Eva Wei
At a board meeting, parts of Ava White’s personality decide how to make her the perfect woman.

Shoutdown to Launch Jason Morningstar
In this game about gendered interruption, a bunch of engineers need to fix a problem with a rocket engine in the dwindling time before launch. It won’t go well.

“Something to Drink with That, Sir?” Evan Torner
A woman flight attendant performs emotional labor to serve three different male passengers.

“Ma, Can I Help You with That?” Emily Care Boss
A game about family, age and the gendered nature of care-giving.

Glitzy Nails Kat Jones
A freeform scenario about intersectional feminism, interactions between women, and nail salons.

Stripped Dominika Kovacova
A game about stripping off the stigma.

President Kaisa Kangas
The war-waging Akhaian empire has elected its first female president, a very successful lady general, and feminists with conflicting agendas are trying to draft a press statement together.

Curtain Call Sarah Bowman
A larp about the experiences of a woman in the music industry over the course of four decades.

The Grey Zone Siri Sandquist
A larp about the grey zone between rape and consensual sex in a relationship.

Family Planning Clinic Baptiste Cazes and Leïla Teteau-Surel with Laura Guedes
A game about women’s health where players will play short scenes from the daily life of a French family planning clinic inspired by real stories.

First Joyful Mystery Cathriona Tobin
Players examine the impact Ireland’s prohibitive abortion laws have on people who find themselves pregnant.

Girl: A Game for Boys Livia von Sucro
A small exercise about empathy, designed for cis gendered men to take a glimpse of what it feels like to be a victim of violence against women.

Her Last Tweet Rowan Cota
A microgame exploring being a potential victim of a campus shooting event.

Tour of Duty Moyra Turkington
A freeform nano-scenario about what it’s like to serve and defend as a woman in the US Military.

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[Hussar]

@771M, I wish I could posrep you more than once for excellent work reviewing this.

And, yeah, looking at the blurb of the book and what you've written, I can see your point. This is more geared for educators, councilors and activists. I could see this as being something of a draw at con's as well. And, I think that the fact that you're supposed to sit down and discuss things after play is rather the whole point of the games. [MENTION=6867728]ArchfiendBobbie[/MENTION]'s point about consent is very well taken. But, wouldn't that be the whole point of the exercise? To explore that point of view and discuss?

Years ago I ran an SF RPG (Sufficiently Advanced was the system) where I used these sort of hot button issues as springboards for the adventures. It worked very well. I had the right group for it. The different scenarios did drive a great deal of (for me and my players anyway) interesting conversation. So, a book full of these kinds of things might be interesting.

Not that I want to do this week after week, for years, mind you. I'm honest enough to realize that I LIKE killing imaginary orcs with my imaginary elf too much to give that up entirely. But, as a shift in gears once in a while? Why not? Placing these issues in the context of a game sometimes gives people enough space that they can discuss the issues without necessarily getting tied up into their own emotional responses. If that makes sense.

 

[Sunseeker]

Based off 77's brief reviews (thank you for that) I'd say about 25% of these succeed in their goal of being thought-provoking, creative and fun. Many are certainly non-standard "RPGs" which I think is fine and probably should be expected given the concept and the source. I think there's a couple I'd play given the right group of people, but I've had a formal education on a lot of this already so maybe I'm cheating.

 

[Darkness]

i think i'll be the one to decide my snark levels, thank you very much. if you can't handle it, third grade is about 12 years that way.

this is a gaming forum meant to discuss mechanics and time-wasting hobbies. this isn't a support group for highly sensitive children. no need to try and wring all humanity out of discussion in the name of echo-chambers.

Challenging moderation in public is against the rules. Don't post in this thread again, please.

 

[-Wing-Zero-]

Challenging moderation in public is against the rules. Don't post in this thread again, please.

sure thing boss.

 

[timbannock]

Final Breakdown
5
17
7
2

Thank you for the cost, time, and effort in reviewing these!

 

[mythago]

This is a legit criticism. The front-matter of the book emphasizes that "RPGs should be fun!" but let's be honest, most of these will not be fun at all. (A few will be hilarious and awesome, though.) However, playing them may still be rewarding.

The games themselves run a pretty broad spectrum from "introduction to empathizing with your fellow humans" to "play this game to call BS on your pseudo-intellectual friends," so in a sense, there's a game in there for everyone. But as a product, it's unclear to me who is going to be lining up for this.

My best guess is that this is aimed at educators, counsellors, and activists who are looking for alternative ways to consider feminism than just "sit around and discuss it." Of course a few of the games in there are sadly little more than "sit around and discuss it."

There are people who think that sitting around and using crunchy-rules books to run games about killing orcs is exactly as much fun as calculus homework. There are people who find dungeon-crawling or WoD to be utterly unrewarding.

And there are people who pick up new systems because they want to try them out, or play them as a one-shot (such as at a con) or occasionally - just as with any other kind of game. That a game may not lend itself to a years-long campaign or extended character arcs says nothing about whether gamers (who may or may not also be educators, activists, etc.) would want to play them.

That said, thanks for your reviewing all of these. I also picked up a copy, and had much the same reaction you did; some of them sound awesome, some of them are interesting to read about and not play (which is how I feel about a *lot* of RPGs, tbh) and some of them are just trying too hard. I mean, it's a collection of 34 minigames. They're not all going to be home runs.

But I doubt that we would have gotten the same "I haven't read it but it's awful" criticisms if the anthology had been called #ExperimentalNanoGames.

 

[MNblockhead]

Is bold yellow the normal font color for moderation posts? Ow, my eyes!

 

[Dualazi]

To answer your questions about specific games: "Lipstick" and "Riding to Reunion" are exactly what you think they are; but, ironically, these are two of the games that LEAST enforce a stance, as they present dilemmas for which there isn't an easy answer. "Shoutdown to Launch" is one of the funnest looking games and it's designed to make you experience a phenomenon that's already happening. The discussion afterwards asks you several things about it, but the game itself doesn't assert any particular position on the issue.

While I guess props to Lipstick for not being heavy handed, it still doesn’t really address the other complaint that I have made that these aren’t games. A game, largely by necessity, needs an objective or scoring metric to denote a winner, or at least a score to later attempt to beat in cooperative titles. Without ranking value judgements and in essence picking a ‘right’ answer, how are these games and not simply debate topics?

Also, I’m going to have to ask you to confirm whether or not “Shoutdown to Launch” deals with ‘mansplaining’, because if so, it’s already asserting that this is a thing that exists (it doesn’t). That’s what I mean about rejecting elements of modern feminist theory; it seems from the synopsis that this title predisposes the players to ask the questions of how to deal with this issue as opposed to if the issue exists at all, and there’s no shortage of contention on that front.

Obviously the authors of these games consider themselves feminists and are pushing an agenda, but rather than rejecting the games for pushing an agenda, I prefer to be grateful that they are open about the agenda they are pushing. You won't see "#RichWhiteMen, an anthology of 34 games that promote the status quo," but I'll bet if you trawled through the great body of work that is our industry, you would find at least 34 games that do exactly that but in a more subtle way.

Several points here, first, I think this hobby in particular dodges the issue somewhat by virtue of having a huge number of races and fictional cultures that don’t have direct analogues to modern causes, so finding those rich white men cultures might prove more challenging than anticipated. Second, inclusion of something is usually not an explicit denouncement or encouragement of the item in question. I’m sure you could find a society in FR that does have a ruling class of wealthy white humans, but since the setting has numerous cases where this isn’t true and also doesn’t try to claim it as being morally right, then it can’t be accused of pushing an agenda.

That’s the problem here for me. It’s not that they’re pushing a feminist agenda, it’s that they’re pushing an agenda at all, which by its nature necessitates dis-incentivizing counter viewpoints. Maybe not all of them are guilty of this, but enough of them will be, and it will always be a constant possibility of future works with similar premise.

This is a legit criticism. The front-matter of the book emphasizes that "RPGs should be fun!" but let's be honest, most of these will not be fun at all. (A few will be hilarious and awesome, though.) However, playing them may still be rewarding.

How so? Why, in your opinion, will playing these be rewarding? Because if my group and I play one and end up disagreeing with the premise or finding our views unchanged we’re simply going to be annoyed we wasted a night on a boring game.

The games themselves run a pretty broad spectrum from "introduction to empathizing with your fellow humans" to "play this game to call BS on your pseudo-intellectual friends," so in a sense, there's a game in there for everyone. But as a product, it's unclear to me who is going to be lining up for this.

I don’t mean to be rude here, but if you (general you, not you specifically 77IM) needed a niche TTRPG to empathize with people then I think you’re too far gone for these to be of much use. Plus, many creative works of all stripes going for empathy tend to try and go for appeals to emotion rather than a substantive and defensible position.

Also, “calling BS on your pseudo-intellectual friends” is a huge point in opposition to the product, because it supposes both that these games will show said friend to be ignorant on one of the topics, which they may well not be and simply hold a contrary opinion, but it also sounds like it’s going to cause group drama either way.

My best guess is that this is aimed at educators, counsellors, and activists who are looking for alternative ways to consider feminism than just "sit around and discuss it." Of course a few of the games in there are sadly little more than "sit around and discuss it."

You can probably cross off the first two. I am deeply suspect of the education value of this material and I can only assume councilors will have better and more focused role-playing therapy than playing inter-generational feminists.

But I doubt that we would have gotten the same "I haven't read it but it's awful" criticisms if the anthology had been called #ExperimentalNanoGames.

Yeah, no. It would have received this backlash regardless as long as it had espoused a designed political agenda to pursue. #progressiveNanoGames and #ConservativeNanoGames would have been just as rank to me as this offering, because I can’t think of any worse way to spend my game time than trying to induce political indoctrination to my group.

 

[gyor]

Okay, review time...

First Date- Orgasm gap? Seriously? Someone please tell me this is a joke. This seriously sounds like a MRA parody of the wage gap. Please tell me that this is a very, very late April Fools joke and someone just needs to buy a calendar.

Flirt- This is a party game. Adult party game. Inevitably, one that'll end up played by teenagers.

Spin The Goddesses- This entire description reads like an entry in the fantasy section of an adult story site. Or the description of a video on a porn site. Even as much as I back LGTB rights, the implications of the title combined with the description make me think this does women in general and lesbians in specific a massive disservice.

Willful Disregard- Okay, I'm curious.

Manic Pixie Dream Girl Commandos- This sounds awesome, actually.

6016- Is the description for it intended to make us want to play it, to warn us against playing it, to critique how bad the writing is, or just someone snarking about the author of it?

Tropes vs. Women- Okay, I'm leery. Does this include the positive tropes, the tropes that contradict other tropes, or what? I need more information. This could be good, or could be awful.

Lipstick- The description makes it sound like a short story, not a roleplaying game. If I want to be railroaded, I'll play Railroad Tycoon. At least then I can decide where the tracks go.

You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby- This is trollbait.

Restrictions- Considering how pitifully uneducated most people, including most self-proclaimed feminists, are about human psychology... This game is trollbait.

Mentioning the Unmentionables- I'll have to check these out. It's amazing how massively uneducated women are about their bodies, and I'm hopeful these at least serve to cover that.

#Flesh- This game is trollbait. Even feminists frequently fight over this topic.

Selfie- This game is trollbait. Humans are actually terrible at reading emotions through images. There's been a number of studies on this.

So Mom I Made This Sex Tape- This game is trollbait.

My Sister, Malala- This game made me facepalm. If you are so concerned about the freedom of girls in Pakistan, then why did you turn it into a &*%^ing game instead of trying to do something about it? It's almost like you're intentionally mocking women in Pakistan just because they happened to be born in the wrong country! (Note: The author is from Sweden.)

A Friend in Need- Could be interesting, could be trollbait. I'll have to check it out.

Driving to Reunion- This sounds like a good game, and it probably is. It's also unintentional trollbait, and a great way to destroy an interracial RPG group. Because, basically, unless the group is all African American, you'll have people doing the RPG equivalent of blackface. I would advise the author, the next time she makes a game like this, to stop and ask if she really wants to see what would result if it were played by a bunch of white people.

Catcalling- This game is trollbait.

How to Be Ava White- This game is possibly trollbait.

Shoutdown to Launch- This game is trollbait.

“Something to Drink with That, Sir?”- This game is trollbait.

“Ma, Can I Help You with That?”- If this is well-done, it would actually be a good game to play. If it's not, it'll be trollbait. Given the nature of the rest of the list so far and my growing pessimism that feminism had anything to do with these games? I'm going to go ahead and call this one trollbait.

Glitzy Nails- This game is trollbait. Trust me, if you've ever been in one of the intersectionality arguments, you'll understand why this is trollbait.

Stripped- This game could actually be good, depending on how it's made. I'm honestly curious enough to give this one a read.

President- This game is trollbait. Also, a great way to destroy friendships between feminists.

Curtain Call- LARP? A live-action roleplay? Seriously? Given how many of them were forcibly addicted to drugs or far, far worse... Does the author realize how offensive this game is? Do the people who put that selection of games together realize it? This is the kind of LARPing that should get people tossed in jail!

The Grey Zone- Okay, this makes the game where people will be LARPing rape for certain. Maybe, just maybe, the authors of this games could talk with some real feminists and find out why setting up a situation where people act out rape is a bad thing. Even GTA games draw the line at this, and those are intentionally offensive.

Family Planning Clinic- This sounds like it could be interesting. I'll have to check it out.

First Joyful Mystery- This game is trollbait. Both because of the abortion aspect, which is increasingly an argument within feminism itself, and because of the inevitable Irish stereotypes that'll crop up.

Girl: A Game for Boys- This game is trollbait. I've both tried this and been part of experiments where it's been tried. There are a surprising number of men, and even a number of women, who don't actually see what the big deal is about most of it. And a surprising number of men I've had try this who didn't see any difference between the game and stuff they encountered in their daily lives. Inevitably, the result is gender arguments and most people not learning anything at all.

Her Last Tweet- This game is offensive.

Tour of Duty- I would normally give this one a pass, but considering the ones where people will inevitably have to act out rape? Nope, sorry. This game is trollbait.

The games I marked as trollbait are the ones guaranteed to cause arguments, hurt feelings, and possibly even lost friendships. They will likely break most groups, even groups made of feminists.

Basically, feminism had nothing to do with these games being made. A number of the game authors don't seem to understand some of the basic tenants of feminism, or the idea that maybe feminist divisions go much deeper than simple differences of opinion. There is a reason why "feminist" is an umbrella term and not a singular movement. I would advise these developers to get out in the real world, learn about real feminism, and embrace that it's not something they can learn just by reading a couple of articles online.

LMFAO, you had to know the minute they attached the word feminism to the title it was going to be awful.

Don't get me wrong those rare feminists with talent like Erin M Evans don't have to call their stories/games/whatever feminist, their work stands on it's own feet.

Still on the up side I needed a good laugh and this delivered.

 

[ArchfiendBobbie]

But I doubt that we would have gotten the same "I haven't read it but it's awful" criticisms if the anthology had been called #ExperimentalNanoGames.

You're right. That's because #ExperimentalNanoGames wouldn't have been bringing politics into discussion to begin with.

The idea these games at all allow people to consider these ideas without being tied to their emotional responses? One good, hard look at this very thread proves that is wrong. Even some of us who agree with feminism, such as myself, reacted negatively to it because we don't like how the games portray feminism.

This very thread stands as a testament to why ENWorld's ban on politics is necessary. And as sad as it is for me to say this, I'm going to have to suggest that ban should extend to nanogames as well after this. It may mean we miss out on some news, but tell me if you honestly want to have this discussion again when the next set is about something like Black Lives Matter or Donald Trump.