Tabletop Quest - web-based VTT (preview)

[joelesko]

Hi folks,

I've been working on a 100% web-based VTT for the past few months, and wanted to share a preview video of it for some early feedback.

YouTube - Tabletop Quest - Preview


The Jist

Unlike other VTTs, which are used to play published tabletop games, TQ uses a single built-in ruleset that encourages freeform, cinematic-style play. If you're a fan of Risus, Fate, or WEG D6, you will probably like what's here.

The idea is to keep it simple so that it's easy to start and join games any time, with little to no prep or extra learning curve. It also leads to quicker games that can fit into busy schedules.

Anyway, the site is still in closed Beta, but will be available soon! You can sign up at the main site here:

Sign Up at TabletopQuest.com


All feedback will be appreciated.

Thanks,
Joe

 

[Zulithe]

You have obviously put a lot of work into this. Great job. I have some concerns though:

1. I'm sorry but to be blunt, nobody is going to use your custom ruleset. People want a VTT where they can play the games they want to play, not a single (and enforced) system, no matter what merits it may have. Other VTTs offer a lot of flexibility in this regard, with the exception of WotC's VTT which is (from what I've seen) only useable for D&D 4E rules only. WotC can get away with this because they actually have a ruleset people want to use.

2. Isometric perspective for the map is an interesting and unique choice for an RPG VTT. I am concerned that it will look too confusing when there are a lot of figures on the screen. I also think this POV would work nicely with a strategy-type tabletop game, like warhammer and such.

3. The map is a bit small; is the size fixed? i also feel that, considering that the focus should be on the tabletop most of all, the tabletop itself is given surprisingly little screen real estate.

4. Clicking on the GM screen to open the GM options seems a little awkwardly placed and does not follow any GUI conventions I've yet to see. Just one example of polish that you'll hopefully work out down the line.

All-in-all, I think people would love a web-passed VTT that can work with multiple systems. It would also be a lot of work. Good luck and I hope you continue to improve it!

 

[Kzach]

1. I'm sorry but to be blunt, nobody is going to use your custom ruleset. People want a VTT where they can play the games they want to play, not a single (and enforced) system, no matter what merits it may have. Other VTTs offer a lot of flexibility in this regard, with the exception of WotC's VTT which is (from what I've seen) only useable for D&D 4E rules only. WotC can get away with this because they actually have a ruleset people want to use.

I have to echo this.

Why go to all the effort to make something cool like this only to then limit it to one system? And worse, to a system nobody is familiar with? People aren't going to drop their favourite system just to use this which is a shame because it looks like it could be really good.

 

[joelesko]

Why go to all the effort to make something cool like this only to then limit it to one system?

The main answer is that there are no published systems that are specifically designed for online play. No matter how hard we try to push the tabletop metaphor, computers and live play are very different beasts. So instead of being a "utility for moving your live game online", it's more of an "online game designed for roleplaying".

And when I say roleplaying here, I mean the narrative side of things. There are already 1000's of computer games that cover the kill-and-take-stuff approach, but little if any that make it easy to create characters and settings on the fly.

Anyway, I realize that for some people, their favorite RPG system is the only way they want to play, and that's fine -- then TQ probably is not for them. But for anyone who enjoys the kind of systems that I mentioned above, and want super-convenient way to do that online, I hope they give it a try.

 

[OnlineDM]

Other VTTs offer a lot of flexibility in this regard, with the exception of WotC's VTT which is (from what I've seen) only useable for D&D 4E rules only.

While I haven't played with the WotC Virtual Table all that much, I can say that it's not exclusively tied to 4e. It has some tools that make it very useful for 4e play - automated import of PCs and monsters from their online tools - but the one time I used it was before that support existed, and it was pretty system-neutral. You draw a map, create tokens, create dice roll macros tied to those tokens, move them around, etc.

I believe there might be some pre-built token states that are 4e-specific (like Bloodied) but it's pretty system neutral for the most part.

All that said, I personally use MapTool which is totally system neutral.

 

[joelesko]

3. The map is a bit small; is the size fixed?

The size of the viewport is fixed, but the battlemat can be increased by about 30%. Rather than have a huge scrolling map, it's more of a scene-based approach, like you would use with limited table space in real life.

i also feel that, considering that the focus should be on the tabletop most of all, the tabletop itself is given surprisingly little screen real estate.

Despite having "tabletop" in the name, it was actually designed so that the chat window is the most important part of the page, since that's where all the roleplaying happens. The minis are there as a general reference, not as a tactical minigame. In some ways, it's more like an IRC game on steroids.

Regarding isometric view, I tried every approach before this one. The isometric design just managed to solve all the problems I was going for, and in practice works really well.

Thanks for your feedback!

 

[BriarMonkey]

So... If I am reading this right, it almost sounds like you are writing a web based RPG.

I wish you much luck with your endevour, but for my needs and interests this doesn't fit the bill.