GenCon Followup

Black & Green Games (that is, me, Emily) made it to GenCon Indy this year as part of the Forge Booth. Our little traveling party to get there, made up of Meg & Vincent Baker, Drew Baker, Joshua Newman & Ben Lehman, had five role playing games between us we were bringing to the show, three of which were just hot off the presses for their debut:

Under the Bed by Joshua Newman is a slick little role playing game where you play a child's toys trying to help the child overcome the difficulties of childhood. Think Wizard of Oz the role playing game, or Alice in Wonderland.

Polaris by Ben Lehman is a role playing game set in a fabulous civilization in the uttermost North, facing it's demise in the face of demonic invasion. Think Lord of the Rings crossed with the Ice Queen, by way of Baudelaire.

Breaking the Ice by me is a romantic comedy role playing game for two (or more) players. You play two characters going on their first three dates. Think Bringing up Baby, Sleepless in Seattle or Four Weddings and a Funeral.

It was, in a word, amazing. Meeting the many amazing people from the Forge and elsewhere that I've only known from online was a real treat. Folks whom I've enjoyed working with & admired for years are now known quantities, and what's more, real friends. Ralph, Mike, Julie, Paul, Danielle, Matt & Matt, Clint, Ron, Dave, Luke, Tim, Eric, Star, Andrew, Michael, Kat, Gordon, Keith, Judd and many more--it was so great to meet you finally, what an amazing group of folks. And new friends: Allan, Gregor, Malcolm, Ian, Morgue, John, James, Ed and everyone else--what an unexpected delight to get to know each of you. Well met!

And working at the Forge Booth taught me the real value of a cooperative creative endeavor. There were 23 game companies there, all independent designers of games with their staff & helpers. In another context we would have seen each other as the competition, people to vie against for sales. But instead, we demo'd each other's games, sent likely customers towards the designer who'd written the game they were interested in, and helped run the register & stock the books to keep everyone's sales flowing.

And sales were kind to me: 66 copies of Breaking the Ice sold, putting it as the 5th best selling game at the Booth (per unit sales). I got incredible feedback on the game and it's art by my talented friend Barry Deutsch. And seem to be off to a good start all around. If you're thinking about publishing a game, I can't recommend starting out this way highly enough.