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BACKSTORY — Games & Hobbies
BACKSTORY

BACKSTORY is an ongoing series of interviews with game designers and other notable members of the role-playing community, hosted by Alex Roberts. This show is all about the person behind the work: how did they get into gaming? Why did they start designing? What are they most excited about for the future? Alex loves getting to know people, and you’ll love coming along for the ride.

Latest Episodes:

33. Caitlynn Belle Mar 30, 2017

Show notes

Designer Caitlynn Belle joins Alex to talk about creating, refining, mentoring and problem solving. But more importantly: dying in space and bug sex.

WISCON
Caitlynn's website
Caitlynn's Patreon
Caitlynn's Games
Fiasco
Indie Groundbreaker Awards
Singularity

32. Emily Care Boss Mar 17, 2017

Show notes

Designer and theorist Emily Care Boss joins us this episode to talk Living Games, loving games, and being vulnerable in play. Can role-playing be therapeutic? How do we unite disparate gaming communities? What larp-adjacent practices can we learn from? What's physi-ing??? You'll have to tune in to find out!

31. Josh Jordan Mar 02, 2017

Show notes

Gather 'round as designer and educator Josh Jordan tells us about about the unstoppable force of creativity, candy as cultural exchange, and collaboration as the cure for impostor syndrome. Should larpwrights be keeping an eye on reality TV? Well, probably not, I guess...

Josh's Website
Living Games
Tyrkisk Peber
Sarah Lynne-Bowman on Backstory
Evan Torner's "Literary and Performatice Imaginaries - Where Characters Come From"
Sons of Kryos
Teacher Has Personalized Handshakes With Every Single One of His Students
Parsley Games
Doll
Heroine
Vast & Starlit
Dangers Untold
Banana Chan's "They're Onto Me"
Caitlynn Belle's Patreon
Jackson Tegu's Patreon
The Upgrade!
A Short Film
Versed
Kimmy Walters' "Uptalk"
Jordan Stewart's "When We Were Young" is out of print
The Impostors will be on Kickstarter Soon!

30. Maury Brown Feb 17, 2017

Show notes

Researcher, educator, writer, and President of LearnLarp LLC, Maury Brown joins Alex to talk safety, empowerment, and empathy in live-action play. If you've been curious about New World Magischola, come hear Maury describe the larp that's not about being a wizard, but "becoming the kind of wizard you want to be."

Learn Larp
New World Magischola
Maury's Living Games Keynote: "People-Centered Design"
New World Magischola's Safety and Calibration Techniques
College of Wizardry
Dystopia Rising
Edgeworld

29. J Li Feb 03, 2017

Show notes

Larpwright J Li joins Alex to talk emotional immersion, user-centric game design, and engaging in a fictional dialogue with the space around you. Curious about pervasive games, and one-player games? This one's for you.

J's website
J's Keynote at Living Games
Argentin
Twain
Magician
Mermaid
Big Bad Con
What is a "Secrets and Powers" Larp? with Susan Weiner
A Pattern Language for Larp
Ars Amandi Videos
The Golden Cobra Challenge
Teen Witch, by Avery Alder
J's Blog

28. Rachel Kahn Jan 19, 2017

Show notes

Artist and GM Rachel Khan joins us to talk about running an RPG campaign based on Persian mythology at the Aga Khan museum in Toronto. Isn't that the coolest thing ever? We also discuss illustrating for games and the magic of dice bowls. Warning: major spoilers for a thousand-year-old poem!

Weald Comics
Rachel on Patreon
The Aga Khan Museum
Shahnameh
Gumshoe
The Drama System
Dungeon World
Pathfinder
Swords Without Master
Glorantha
Call of Cthulhu
Sword & Backpack
The Royal Ontario Museum
Opeth

27. D. Vincent and Meguey Baker Jan 05, 2017

Show notes

To celebrate one year of Backstory, Alex brings on indie legends and Apocalypse World co-creators Meguey and D. Vincent Baker. Topics range from sex education to censorship to masonic initiation ceremonies and quilt preservation - and yes, it's all related to game design.

Lumpley Games
Vincent on G+
Meg on G+
Apocalypse World
Urban Shadows
Monsterhearts
Monster of the Week
The King is Dead
The Princes' Kingdom
Shadowrun
Cyberpunk 2020
Ars Magica
Our Whole Lives
The Vengeful Demon of the Ring
"Games as Folk Art" on Indie+
Dogs in the Vineyard
Shock: Social Science Fiction
Beloved
MASHED
Dialect
The Play Generated Map & Document Archive

26. Ole Peder Giæver Dec 22, 2016

Show notes

Game designer Ole Peder Giæver, co-creator of Itras By (with Martin Bull Gudmundsen) and Old Friends (with Jason Morningstar) joins Alex for a dreamy chat about magic, masks, and Norwegian folklore. Also: an exciting announcement.

Ole Peder's G+
Condensed Chaos, by Phil Hine
Old Friends
Impro, by Keith Johnstone
Archipelago Cards
Whimsy Cards
Interview with Ole Peder on Analog Game Studies
The X-Card
Fighting Fantasy Books
Knutepunkt
Itras By
RESISTOR
Lovecraftesque
They're Onto Me Trailer
Lady Blackbird
Draug II
Let The Right One In
Ship it Like FedeXXX

25. Mo Turkington Dec 08, 2016

Show notes

Larpwright and publisher Mo Turkington on larping theatrically, embodiment and immersion, and "the unbearable weight of representation."

Unruly Designs
Mo's Keynote at Living Games
The Climb, by Jason Morningstar
Big Dicks, by The Countess Dillymore
New World Magischola
Just a Little Lovin'
Summer Loving
Ars Amandi

24. Avery Alder Nov 24, 2016

Show notes

Prolific and influential game designer Avery Alder joins Alex to talk about re-entering game design with collaboration and care at the forefront. We also talk queerness, monstrosity, and kids in rpgs. Lots of other stuff too. It's a good chat.

Monsterhearts 2 on Kickstarter
Avery's Website
RIFTS
The Quiet Year
A Place to Fuck Each Other
The Rentpunk Game Jam

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