Design Doc

Queuing for Canoeing

How many generations does it take to get into a canoe-making class? In this episode we go on a quest to redesign a queue system for a local craft school and quickly find that you cannot make a perfect queue without systemic social change. Episode Mentions: Hill Institute (With their mission right there on the front page) What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets by Michael J. Sandel, 2013 (This link takes you to bookshop.org supporting one of our local bookstores—you can set your own!) Happy Rex Manning Day! We are having a game sale! Visit ⁠turtlebun.com⁠ for 20% off TTRPGs and ⁠turtlebun.itch.io⁠ for 35% off PDFs. Links & Credits: Turtlebun Discord: ⁠https://discord.gg/ajP36nzPb2⁠ Turtlebun on Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Where to buy our games: ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost: ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado: ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky: ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠⁠

Trapped in the Liminal Zone

A discussion about how to design a liminal zone in a TTRPG leaves us trapped in an in-between place. Episode mentions: r/backrooms House of Leaves (2000 - Horror novel by Mark Z. Danielewski) The Last Unicorn (1982 - Animated movie based on 1968 book by Peter S. Beagle) Ultimate Haunted House (1994 - Point-and-click video game with art by Gahan Wilson) Play it on archive.org here. Links: Turtlebun Discord: https://discord.gg/ajP36nzPb2 Our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠  Where to buy our games: https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠  Credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost: https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episodes edited by Rob Abrazado: https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram: ⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠

Fatigue

In this episode, we talk fatigue. Is fatigue something to conquer, or is it a warning sign on the way to a physical and emotional crash? Evan is tired, but we’ve got strategies! After years of learning what the burnout cycle looks like while working on a game, we’re eager to intervene before exhaustion gets the best of us. Episode mentions: Ever so briefly, The Witness (2016 video game, Jonathan Blow) Snowpiercer (2013 movie, Bong Joon Ho) Links: Join us on Discord! ⁠ https://discord.gg/XD4WVDjvbz Support our work Patreon: ⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Buy our games online: ⁠⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost: ⁠⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episode edited by Rob Abrazado: ⁠⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky: ⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠

The Path to a Question

Game design questions can be longer and more complex than their answers. In this episode, we initially set out to do a live-design session tackling an issue from our latest playtest, but discovered that describing the question required revisiting nearly every other part of the game. Join us for a chat about Twilight rules, open-eyed investigations, and escaping a cursed amusement park. Links: We have a Discord! Come talk about Design Doc and Star Trek. ⁠https://discord.gg/XD4WVDjvbz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Turtlebun on Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Our games: ⁠https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost: ⁠https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episode edited by Rob Abrazado: ⁠https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky: ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠

Who Designs the Game?

Who designs the game? Is it the players, who make decisions in real time at the table? The GM, who’s at the ready to suggest ideas or dole out consequences? Or the designers, who… well… make the game? In this episode, we talk about when and how to distribute control of the experience between the players, the GM, ourselves as designers, and random rolls of the dice. Links: Join the Turtlebun Discord: https://discord.gg/ApNfNvUk Support our work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/turtlebun⁠⁠⁠⁠  Check out our games: https://turtlebun.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠  Credits: Design Doc intro/outro theme by ipaghost: https://www.ipaghost.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episode edited by Rob Abrazado: https://robabrazado.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get in touch: Designdocpod (at) gmail (dot) com Instagram: ⁠⁠instagram.com/turtleandbun⁠⁠⁠ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/turtlebun.com⁠