The HYPT Weekly News 2/22/22

Cover Image for The HYPT Weekly News 2/22/22
Adam Bell
Adam Bell

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Adam Bell:

What's happening everyone? Oh right, that's what we're supposed to tell you. As you wish: here's what's happening, everyone!

Jeremy Gage:

We continue to parse what it means to have a website as a content hub but we are plugging away every week to bring you awesome info about games and people and all the stuff!


Last Week for the Weasels

Draw Your Dice

JG: Last Saturday (2/19/22) was the premier of an episode with Michael Low (he/him) a live-scan certified CA high school English teacher, parent, story-teller, and game designer. I teach kids non-violent conflict resolution, collaboration, confidence, critical thinking, and creative writing using games, inspired by a love of learning, not fear of failure. We chat about game design and game play for children and for helping with future visioning. You can find that episode here or any other podcast distributor.

Adam's Videos

AB: Last week I brought back an old youtube series of mine called designing a tabletop rpg, in which I do exactly that. Check it out on the site! I'll be designing the "faction turn" style system of a game I'm in the process of designing throughout these videos, and I hope the little peek behind the curtain is interesting and maybe even helpful!

The HYPT Podcast

AB: Yesterday on the show we talked a bit about my experience playing the zone, Jeremy's brain blast that came from reading over Samurai Spirit and how it can related to Umbral Dive, and more.


This Week for the Weasels

Draw Your Dice

JG: All of my interviews for the first half of the year are done which means interview comes to a close for now and we open up editing season! those who subscribe to the DYD Patreon will get bulk releases as soon as I finish, while those on the public feed will get an interview every other Saturday, the Other half being the Dev Logs for Umbral Dive, This week I'm gonna go into the setting for UD and take everyone on a high-level tour of Kroun.

Adam's Video for the Week & Tabletop Call In Show for 2/28

AB: There will be video this week and no call in show next week! You heard it here first, we're taking a week off. I need a vacation after a month of running a kickstarter, building two websites, and some other personal stuff so the plan is to just kick it for at least the next week.

Personal Projects

Adam's Games

With the completion of the Legend Has It kickstarter last week, I've also been taking it easy on game design and just wrapping up the launch of my personal webstore. It's coming close to being time to figure out what the heck my plan is for the rest of my publishing year. I've got quite a few designs in the pipeline for completion (Uneasy Lies the Head 2e, Burnt Champagne, The Bell Hack, Promise the Moon, BOOmates//Dead Ringer Halloween Special Double Zine, Launch Prevention... I can keep naming titles if you want) but only so much time to actually spend on design. It's tough to choose! I think a big goal of mine this year is going to be to explore options for getting my games published by other people so I have to wear fewer hats, so cross your fingers for me.

Umbral Dive

BIG LEAPS FORWARD FOR DESIGN!!! God... you ever just keep making something and just being unhappy with it? I too have rare moments of #JUICEdrought. BUT! thanks to a little game called Samurai Spirit I've unlocked some thoughts about dungeon exploration and encounter design, in addition to, getting some legs on Enemy and Class Design, finding some new setting inspiration, and getting so much closer to a Quickstart product.


What's Going on in the forest?

JG: I wanted to shout out some peeps who are also covering Zine Month projects and other non Zine Month related games. So without further adoooooo….

Thomas Manuel | Indie RPG Newsletter

Every Sunday, Thomas writes a weekly newsletter about so many different projects in the RPG space. This last week's (2/20/22) newsletter, Titled Sandwich Theory Links to a ton of cool projects and knowledge, which I am NOT going to spoil here. Go Subscribe!

Sam Leigh | TikTok TTRPG Videos

Sam has been doing very cool dives and shout-outs about so many cool indie games and is becoming a master of the TTRPG Tiktok sphere. Its mostly because of Sam I have even gotten involved on TikTok so please go check her out! She also makes sick games!

AB: Last week, Sean Patrick Cain polled the wide world of indie ttrpg twitter to share the ten games they'd say are best for newcomers to the space. They then went ahead and compiled the data and shared some insight on the games listed here. It's well worth a readthrough, whether you're looking for new games to play or trying to think about what games to get your friends hooked on. I have a similar video in the pipeline for the coming weeks, because this is a topic that I'm super into.

In other news, a bundle of very cool games from the RPGSEA community (a community of designers from Southeast Asia) is live on itch.io. You can get up to 10 different super unique & interesting games from 10 different creators for just two more days. I already owned Homebound & Maharlika and can say that the bundle would be worth it for these alone - check it out!

Finally, here are three games funding right now that I think are super interesting but haven't quite hit their funding goals yet. The Mysterious Trbulations of Count Duckworth by Tony Tran touts itself as a short appetiser adventure for a party of 2-4 players, and really seems like it aims to capture the joyous fun that tabletop rpgs can bring us. Medusa's Marauders M.C. by Therapeutic Blasphemy Games brings gmless magical and queer motorcycling action to the table, and the character sheet simply rocks. Renovation by kay w. is a solo journaling game about a house that's currently "slowfunding", which means they're collecting preorders on an indefinite time scale and once the funding goal is met the games will begin printing.

That'll do it for us this week!