Like many writers, I have a bad habit. When I’m working on something, my instinct is to keep it close to my chest until it’s done. It’s a defense mechanism. If I don’t finish it, I don’t want too many people to know. But I don’t think that’s actually a good way to do game design, at least not for me (and it’s not entirely healthy). I need to share what I’m working on, and I need to do it often!
The best edition of Gamma World Ever
Way back when, I made a fun little game called Isotope, about Humans, Mutants, Mutant Animals, and Trolls living in a weird phantasmagorical post-apocalyptic world full of radiation storms, killer plants, runaway robots, and sinister AI. It was a couple of pages long and included a map. Here’s what it looked like.
And, if you’re a patron, you can still get it free here: Isotope by tonydowler (itch.io)
That’s the main thing I’m working on—a longer, more refined, rules-complete version of this game. It’s meant to be my PbtA love letter to Gamma World, Thundarr the Barbarian, Mad Max, Adventure Time, and She-Ra. Someone called it “the best edition of Gamma World ever”. That’s my design goal. I call it Isotope238.
EDIT: PbtA stands for “Powered by the Apocalypse”. It’s a system designed by Meg and Vincent Baker for their game Apocalypse World. I talk about it a bit more in the comments below.
Mechanics
Isotope is a rule-light PbtA game. The three stats are Human, Mutant, and Wildling (mutant animal). Those are also the classes, basically. Roll Human when you do human stuff. Likewise Mutant and Wildling. There’s a lot to discover in this framework. Like, what exact are humans? What are they good at? What do they do? That’s what you’re finding out when you play Isotope.
Oh yeah, and you can play an awesome mutant jaguar with wings and a sniper rifle or something.
How?
Isotope isn’t just about what I’m writing, it’s about how I’m writing it. Maps inspire me. The original Isotope began with a map, and Isotope238 is no different. The original was a map of a single complex with a bunch of different areas and themes to explore. Isotope238 starts with a world:
Each region of the map reflects the bizarre world of Isotope through a strong theme supported by missions, hazards, denizens, artifacts, opportunities, characters, and adventure sites. OK, that’s a mouthful. Basically, each region’s going to provide a specific setting mood and expand the game in a different way. In Farm, you’ll see how the genetically-engineered foodstuffs of the Ancients have taken over and become their own society. In Blacktop, you’ll get rules for bizarre vehicles and road combat. In Anthropocene you’ll meet the robots and find out what they’re about. And so on.
It goes kind of like this:
Farm: In farm, food eat you!
Blacktop: Get in loser, we’re road warriors now.
Suburbia: all the things we conformed with are meaningless and dead, yet still we conform.
Gyre: The center cannot hold; mere anarchy is loosed on the world. Maybe that’s for the best?
Tower: There are androids? What are androids? Am I an android?
You get the idea.
Each region book is meant to be a pick-up-and-play-ready source with a table of missions, a set of beefy encounters, a prepared adventure location, and a bunch of beasts, artifacts, random tables, and rules to support those. Each setting book also adds something to the core rules, such as weird vehicles, titans, androids, and so on.
And yeah, I’ve got dozens and dozens of pages of hand-written notes; enough material to keep me writing at a steady pace for a year or two if I want it.
So, here’s my question: what in all that is most interesting to you? Is there a map location or an aspect of gameplay that sounds most intriguing to you?
How about a sale?
Hey, to celebrate summer and all the folks who have come and joined my Substack, I’m having a sale on Itch—50% off all my games, or every item in my store for $5.00!
Sale ends one week from today on August 7, 2023.
Hey Tony,
This sounds great! I love your touchstones. Finding ancient, misunderstood ancient artifacts. I’m less into the mutations as magic aspect. My #dungeon23 work was Thundarr/Gamma World inspired. https://twitter.com/beekzor/status/1632954592307843077?s=46&t=3t7tT_Ebfix6ocUicERY6A
PS, there is a setting to change your articles preview image in the flow for when you send your image.
Does everyone know what PbtA means, or is it just me who had to look it up...?