I have a slot reserved for a large game in October, to cap off my contribution to the 2011 mafia season.
I have not begun assembling the game, and I wanted some feedback before I began the process. I want the game to be the biggest, baddest game I've hosted, but perhaps an improvement on ATPG Mafia II. And since bigger than II would be over 50 players, I probably can't do it. That would be a huge game and I don't have a slot reserved. That said, 49 players is doable. And such a size therefore affects what sort of game I will host.
The Big New Yorker is an idea I had in mind if I could ever assemble a truly huge crew. Until I can get more than 50 players interested in a game, that idea is sitting on the shelf. The description of that game is somewhere in the assembly yard. Other successful large games I've hosted included:
Star Wars: Fall of the Order. A sequel of this game, itself a sequel, was floating around in my mind. I didn't want to go back-to-back Star Wars games, because we had enough of that already. The plus side, this game was very popular, widely enjoyed, and I am very pleased with the results. And, all I'd need to do is briefly design the set-up, because most of the mechanics are already pre-made and all the images and stuff are re-useable from the first game. This is a large game in a box, ready to be shipped at a moment's notice. This would probably be my default idea, except the sequel will probably have a different name.
Askthepizzaguy Mafia II. This game had real potential, and a lot of that potential got realized. That said, the game was plagued with many problems which need to be fixed for me to do a sequel. Firstly, the game was a bit too complicated rule-wise, and the rules weren't fully written out properly ahead of time. Also, folks didn't like the item voting system, too much to keep track of, and I concur. I have ideas which would completely fix all of those problems. I want to see what happens to the All-God, the forces of good led by Mace Windu, and if Ganondorf ever gets another chance at Revengening.
The Dinner Party. This game was hosted on CFC and was very, very simple.... yet had a twist. It was highly praised, very popular, much enjoyed, and in spite of its bare-bones premise one of the very best games I've ever hosted.
Star Fox: Lylat Wars. This game was a last minute redesign of my star wars idea that got shamed into a repackaging after I saw Sigurd's design for a really badass Star Wars game. That said, this incarnation of the idea was much, much better than the star wars game would have been, and the enjoyment factor and presentation was very much noted.
Other series that have been popular:
Murder Manor- wouldn't quite work for a very large game.
Resident Evil- possible
Simpsons- It's been done, I'm pleased with what I've done and I don't think another large game is what I want to do. I've done like 3 or 4 of these games, large and small and mini alike.
I don't think Star Fox is the way to go, because I am happy with Lylat Wars and how it turned out.
So, here are the main ideas I am batting around:
The Big New Yorker- A large version of the Huge game The Big New Yorker, which I may never get to host, and would have to rename even if I did. It is basically a Capo di Tutti Capo-type game; even basic townies will be able to gain experience and perform night actions.
Star Wars II: Fall of the Order- A sequel game to Fall of the Order. Thing is, I realize that the end result of the first game would make a direct sequel more dark jedi and sith-oriented than basic jedi versus sith. That limits what I want to do creatively. Therefore, this game would come with a warning that it doesn't continue to follow the rise of Supreme Grandmaster Bane Anded. It may be set in another, similar universe, basically rebooting the series, much like this series used elements of the canon universe in non-canon ways, this game would use elements of the first Fall of The Order universe in a non-sequel story. You could think of it as "An even longer time ago in a galaxy far, far away..." or an alternate history.
Askthepizzaguy Mafia III- A sequel to Askthepizzaguy Mafia II, with an extensive rules overhaul. I already have a great idea for a continuation of the story, and many ideas to patch the "bugs" in the Revengening game.
All Hallows Eve- A sequel to The Dinner Party... only it is a bigger party and there will be even more unexpected mischief and mayhem. Perhaps this one will be a Halloween Party, or a Masquerade Ball. There will be murder, and there will be madness. My gears are already spinning as to how I could play this one out.
And here's where I am at on each idea:
Star Wars II: Fall of the Order- I could host this one with a week's lead time. I just need to do a new night action chart which gives different results than the first game, and I need to spend 30 minutes making a basic setup for the game to start with. Without even lifting a finger, the game is already 80% complete thanks to what I did with the first game.
The Big New Yorker- I would have to do a minor redesign to get rid of some of the overly complicated elements. That said, the main idea and the major mechanics are already done due to my prep work on the Huge version of the game, and the games which inspired the design, such as Capo III. This game would be 50% complete already just based on the ideas and prepared bits.
Askthepizzaguy Mafia III- The overhaul of the rules and game mechanics wouldn't be sweeping, but they would impact every major aspect of the first game I was dissatisfied with. And I'd want more player feedback on what I'm doing so I know III will be a bigger success than II. Bear with me, I KNOW this idea can work if done properly. Even with some of the screw-ups of Revengening, a lot of people did have fun with it, and I know I can correct the errors. I'm about 30% complete due to the prep work of the first game. I would need to redesign all the roles and create new items and stuff. This is more work than a reboot of Fall of the Order.
All Hallows Eve- It would be mostly a blank slate. But I know I can come up with something good, because the Dinner Party concept was outstanding. You like surprises? I wouldn't need anything fancy like tons of pictures, music, videos, etc, like Fall of the Order or ATPG III. As such, the game wouldn't take that long to design. It's still barely on the drawing board, 10%, still in the concept stages.
So, help me figure this out. Vote now in the poll to tell me which one you'd like me to get to work designing. You can vote for multiple games if you like several, or vote to indicate no preference but that you'll attend regardless.
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