I have decided on my next project, to turn Light and Dark into a full game, using FATE as the engine. I have had some very good feedback on the original post, and I think that this is an idea which I can really make a great game out of.
So, where to now? This is the first time In about 20 years I am trying to design a game (my first attempt, in my teens, involved using a twist on the White Wolf system to make it more cyberpunk… The other influence on the system was RoleMaster, so it is probably a good thing that I never completed it).
So, honestly, I am not entirely sure how I am going to go about this. I have some ideas in mind for my next couple of steps, although if anybody here has more experience in writing/creating/publishing games, I would really appreciate it if you shared your knowledge with me.
So, step one is going to involve gathering my notes, as well as going through the discussions on G+ and on my blog, so that I make sure that I have all the ideas together.
The way I see it, there are several things that I will need to do, if I want to make a success out of this project, some of which will happen in parallel:
Writing the Actual Game
Kind of an important step. I will probably do this in several stages, with revisions in between. Since I will be using FATE, I will have to give some thought how to customize the system to suit the setting better. I suspect the bulk of the work will go into bringing the setting across.
Of course, I am going to need somebody to edit my maddened scribbles, which means that I would have to find a good editor. I do have a couple of friends who are professional fiction editors, so I am thinking of approaching them, although I don’t think they have experience editing RPGs. That is something I will give a bit more thought to when I am closer to completing my game.
PlayTesting
I am going to need to Playtest this if I am going to release it into circulation. I am thinking of making extensive use of Hangouts and other forms of virtual tabletop at this stage, since it should increase the Playtest pool by a lot. Of course, I will try to stage some face to face playtests as well.
At some stage, once I have something written, I will have to do some beta testing, to see what people do with the game without my sage advice at the table.
If anybody reading this is brave enough to want to Playtest this, please drop me a comment (although, I must warn you, it might be some time until I have something Playtest-able)
Art and Layout
I am lumping these two together, since they both share one thing in common, that I do not know anything about them, which means that I will have to get other people to do that for me.
Publishing
This is the stage at which I actually release the fruit of my labours into the world. Since there is still a long way to go until I get there, I have not really made any decisions about how I will do that. I am thinking to do something like a PDF release, but I will see. I also have to decide if I will handle this myself, or try to go through a publisher.
Promotion
What use is publishing a game if nobody plays it? So, I will have to put some thought into promoting this. I think that this is something I will need to do continuously, from right now (as a matter of fact, this very article could be considered a way to increase interest in the game).
Funding
Since I cannot do everything myself, I will have to get other people to do things for me, such as Art, Layout and Editing. Since I doubt I will get too many individuals helping me out of the goodness of their heart, I will have to pay them, which involves giving them money.
I am thinking of using a crowdfunding site to raise the funds necessary, once the game is a bit further along. I am thinking of using IndieGoGo, although I have not decided that yet,
So, there is my plan for the new game, at least in rough form. Any feedback, from those of you more experienced in such matters?
