The discussion of the reward system didn’t so much clarify anything because I think I already have a pretty good grasp of it, but it was helpful in my own thinking and design. I’ve found myself adding reward systems to game systems because its worked out so well running one-shot games at the local game store. Especially handing out little ‘fiddly bits’ to reinforce the kind of behaviors I want to reinforce, and getting the players to do that for each other as well. It really worked well in a Call of Cthulhu game, for example, when it isn’t part of the actual system at all. My friend’s BESM game has a whole token system built onto the system that is also working out really well, encouraging everyone to make the game more fun and to have more buy-in.

I also really liked the two principles of player interaction – ‘I’ll be there for you’ and ‘Nobody gets hurt’. An almost poignant way to spell out the way we want to treat each other in a game, especially games dealing with difficult issues – which is a direction I like to go in games at least some of the time.

I’m glad you enjoyed it. If you remember what got clarified for you specifically?

It actually reminded me of Julia Ellingboe’s Steal Away Jordan, in that it is a game about something uncomfortable, created for the purpose of dealing with that very thing. Its a game about more than the game, which I think is potentially pretty powerful.

I also appreciated all of the discussion that occurred in the episode about games in general. It gave me a lot to think aboot as well as some ‘live’ examples of game theory that clarified some of it for me.

So yeah, anyway, I really enjoyed it.

I’m still making the post and can expand on that section. What do you think you missed?

James