I like how Beliefs are tied into Smoke, Challenges, and Recovery. It would be cool if Identity had similar hooks into the game mechanisms.
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Embers of Spite's itch.io pageResults
Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
How cohesively designed do you think the game is overall? | #7 | 3.600 | 3.600 |
How elegant, useful, and intuitive are the game's mechanics? | #7 | 3.600 | 3.600 |
How clear & compelling is the game's central idea? | #12 | 3.800 | 3.800 |
Ranked from 5 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Judge feedback
Judge feedback is anonymous and shown in a random order.
- How clear & compelling is the game's central idea? the setting described in the opening is rich with possibilities. I could easily see being wandering law enforcement between towns or town protectors in it. How elegant, useful, and intuitive are the game's mechanics? it is a stripped down PbtA, but stripped down well. it keeps the bones and leaves lots of space for expansion. How cohesively designed do you think the game is overall? the game very well connects to the theme, and uses the little space it has effectively. there doesn't seem to be any major disconnect in the text from other portions
- There's a lot that I quite like about this game, but I think the thing that stands out above everything is how well I thought everything in the game served the tone. Every part of character creation, the central conflict resolution mechanic, your scars/stress/spite as your health - everything in here is in service to the grimly fatalist world of the game. Character beliefs and identities are given a central focus, as well as a lot of support for thinking about how to generate them but also put them at risk and make them work for you and against you. The GM advice section is also especially useful and well written! All in all, very compelling.
- An interesting combination of Fate Accelerated with Powered by the Appocalypse style dice and GM moves, this game could easily be at home on the shelf of a number of gamers. It makes some very interesting points about the nature of our convictions, and teaches some poignant lessons about the dangers of giving in to brutal efficiency. The character creation is open ended, and could perhaps do with a little more scaffolding of the later universe principles presented to the players before they create their character and the world itself. Also, there would be a temptation to cast the GM in the role of the Overlords themselves. I appreciate that this game does not create that antagonistic set up, but could still do with more mention of safety.
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