(no subject)

[skygiants]

We’ve done it again! Once again, several of my friends and I have accidentally trapped ourselves within a hyperfixation that is nearly impossible to explain to anyone else, and yet once again I am going to attempt to try!

The origin here is a one-hour, two-person game called Debrief, set in a slightly alternate Cold War with ghosts and spirit mediums. The two player characters – Robert Alderidge and George Russell – are MI6 colleagues, best friends and brothers-in-law. Unfortunately, Alderidge has just been found dead in circumstances that make it extremely undeniable that he’s a double agent working for the Russians. Now spirit medium Russell has exactly one (1) hour, and no longer, for a final interrogation of the ghost of his most beloved friend!

Each player gets a character sheet that contains a lengthy backstory, an agenda for what they would like to get out of the conversation, and one or two moves they can use during the game. Two of us played over the summer, and immediately began haranguing the rest of the groupchat until we committed to doing likewise, because they were deeply emotionally compromised by Alderidge and Russell. Now, unsurprisingly, we are all deeply emotionally compromised by Alderidge and Russell. The problems, however, are these:

a.) can’t talk about it to anyone who might wish to play it except in the broadest of strokes outlined above; the game is fundamentally engaged with “loyalty, ideology, memory, obligation, and the difficulty of interpersonal knowledge,” which means that the whole point is that Russell and Alderidge’s players Do Not read each other’s character sheets before the game, and only have their character’s own preconceived notions of the other going in. Can’t know but what you think you know!

b.) as far as we could tell, it is no longer available anywhere on the internet except in [illicitly] shared Google folders! This was a deep ethical problem to us until yesterday, when one of the creators, Elisabeth Cohen, actually responded to a desperate message asking how it might be possible to pay them for our many, many hours of enjoyment, and gave us their blessing to share the game freely. Huge shout out to Paracelsus Games; we are extremely excited to check out the creative team’s other work!

c.) ‘many many hours,’ you say? Is this not a one-hour game? I’m glad you asked. It turns out, when the game is obligate Zoom (Alderidge’s player Must be contacted over video in a darkened room), and you all take advantage of this technology to record your sessions with your intensely different yet thematically linked characterizations, and then you all watch each other’s sessions and spiral ever deeper into obsessive interrogation of various potential failure modes, it’s entirely possible to make your own DIY timeloop agony!

Anyway. We all feel deeply that this extremely good game should remain in circulation, and we also feel deeply that if you play you should pay the middleman by reporting back about your experiences because the hunger is ongoing.




Cynlguebhtu Grnz 1: Ehffryy vf frys-evtugrbhf, tevz naq ohfvarffyvxr, rzbgvba nf ybpxrq-njnl nf cbffvoyr; Nyqrevqtr gevrf gb zngpu uvf gbar, ohg vf cebar gb ovggre ihyarenovyvgl naq ubeevsvrq ynhtugre. Guvf vf n qvibepr gung’f cergraqvat gb or n cebsrffvbany rapbhagre, onqyl (ohg vf nyfb jvyyvat gb npghnyyl erfbyir vgf ohfvarff, juvpu vf zber guna nalbar ryfr urer jvyy qb.) Ehffryy riraghnyyl cebzvfrf gb qb jung Nyqrevqtr jnagf uvz gb qb, va beqre gb nyybj Nyqrevqtr gb cnff ba. Nyqrevqtr vf jvyyvat uvzfrys gb oryvrir vg, ohg Ehffryy vf ylvat.

Cynlguebhtu Grnz 2: Nyqrevqtr vf fzvexvat, vqrbybtvpny, pbzcryyvat, znavchyngvir; Ehffryy vf frysvfu naq frys-evtugrbhf, cebar gb ovggre natre naq ubeevsvrq ynhtugre, naq ernql gb guebj rzbgvbany oynpxznvy. Guvf vf n qvibepr gung’f cergraqvat gb or na rguvpny nethzrag. Nyqrevqtr riraghnyyl tvirf Ehffryy jung ur jnagf, nf n svany fnyyl va na batbvat tnzr bs rguvpny puvpxra; Nyqrevqtr’f tubfg vf tbvat gb unhag Ehffryy guebhtu gur raq.

Cynlguebhtu Grnz 3: Nyqrevqtr vf frys-zlgubybtvmvat naq frys-ybnguvat, naq ernql gb guebj rzbgvbany oynpxznvy. Ehffryy vf ybivat, gehfgvat, boqhengr, rntre gb yvfgra gb Nyqrevqtr, ohg abg jvyyvat gb vagreanyvmr nalguvat gung jbhyq sbepr uvz gb erpbaprcghnyvmr uvf vqrn bs gurve eryngvbafuvc. Guvf vf n qvibepr gung’f gelvat abg gb or n qvibepr, naq guvf Ehffryy naq Nyqrevqtr ner fvzhygnarbhfyl gur zbfg naq yrnfg ubarfg bs gurz nyy. Nyqrevqtr tvirf Ehffryy jung ur jnagf. Ehffryy znxrf harnfl unys-cebzvfrf, naq jvyy or unhagrq ertneqyrff.

Guebhtuyvarf: npebff n shaqnzragny tnc va pbzzhavpngvba naq haqrefgnaqvat, cebsbhaq ybir rkvfgf! Vg vfa’g rabhtu & va snpg vg znxrf guvatf jbefr!

Comments

[sovay]

This was a deep ethical problem to us until yesterday, when one of the creators, Elisabeth Cohen, actually responded to a desperate message asking how it might be possible to pay them for our many, many hours of enjoyment, and gave us their blessing to share the game freely.

Hooray!

[skygiants]

Tragically just a smidge too late for Yuletide, but there is always next year!

[alias_sqbr]

Oh, that sounds like exactly the sort of thing I've been thinking might be fun to try!

EDIT: Also, your link to the game company seems to be broken.

[skygiants]

ack thank you, should be fixed now! I hope you have a blast with if you decide to play -- would extremely love to hear your game report :D

[landingtree]

This sounds really good! Though it is ironically the least suitable game to take with me when I go stay with roleplaying friends IRL next week, I might suggest we try it out later when back on different sides of a screen. Thank you for saving it from vanishing.

[skygiants]

lol yes, the Strictly Zoom Only nature is really both a pro and a con here ... (genarti played it from opposite sides of the house.) I hope you have a great time if you play and please do let us know how it goes! :D

[radiantfracture]

I love this both in concept and in obsessive extension and I have not read the spoilers. Is it possible to get access?

[skygiants]

Absolutely! The Google folder is linked in the post, but in case that doesn't work here it is again -- let me know if you're not able to access it. (Before playing, you should read the intro and the setting & rules, and their own character sheet, but not the other's.) Please report back, would love to hear how it goes for you!

[landofnowhere]

Ooooh, Elisabeth Cohen and the rest of the Paracelsus gang are old friends of mine from college (though I haven't caught up with them for a while)! I've played in some LARPs they've written and run, though none that they've published games on their website.

I'm glad to hear this one is good and freely available, and may make plans to play!

[skygiants]

oh my gosh, I would love to hear about any of their other LARPs you've played of theirs and how they went for you, if you remember! We all loved Debrief enormously and are extremely curious about their other work (and if we can make any of them work for six people who all live on opposite sides of the country, lol.)

[raven]

Oh my goodness, I don't normally do this sort of thing but everything about this is my catnip, I really want to play it.

[skygiants]

IT IS SO YOUR CATNIP and I think you would really dig it -- if you end up playing please tell us everything, I would be so excited to hear your version of this story!

[ellen_fremedon]

I have downloaded the game and I am commenting so I can find this post again after I have played it!

[skygiants]

yessssss extremely looking forward to your post-game thoughts!

[cahn]

This... this sounds amazing. (It also sounds like the kind of game I would be awesomely no good at, but I'm willing to try for an hour...)

So, uh, if one (or rather two) were to hypothetically try to play, the idea is that both players can read "Introduction" and "Setting and Rules," and then only the "Russell" player reads the Russell character sheet and same for Alderidge?

And also why do you hit me with a canon made up of “loyalty, ideology, memory, obligation, and the difficulty of interpersonal knowledge" right after Yuletide noms/signups? :)

[sophia_sol]

....if you don't already have someone in mind you want to play this with, would you be interested in trying with me? :D

[estrevan]

I don’t normally comment here but it turned out I needed a big content warning for school bullying on those game documents and I thought I’d pass that information on in case someone else needs it

[skygiants]

Thanks for mentioning and sorry for not thinking of it before!

[mneme]

Debrief is great! (I played it in probably the first parallel run, early in the Pandemic)

Sadly I don't remember my run in -quite- enough detail to rot13 it! But it was tense and intense and both very spy-y and very real.

I should really get around to playing Warren Buff's 2-player game with Theseus and the Minoataur (particularly as Theseus was technically written for me).

[skygiants]

Oh, that's so cool, thank you for reporting back!! I am very intrigued by this Theseus and the Minotaur game ...

[aria]

Great news I've downloaded all the game files immediately & am considering who I should rope into this!!

[skygiants]

Ari I am SO UNBELIEVABLY EXCITED to hear all about how this goes for you, absolutely and truly cannot wait

[superborb]

WE PLAYED.

After playing and reading your rot13 spoilers, I suspect we were much less inclined to ...the hostility part of negotiating.

Nyqrevqtr bcrayl pbasrffrq ubj zhpu Ehffryy zrnag gb uvz! Ehffryy vf pbaivaprq gung gurl jrer abg fhpprffshyyl Gur Punatr ng Jrfgba be ZV6! Ehffryy cebzvfrf gb tvir gur HF gur qvfehcgbe cynaf, sebz juvpu vg jvyy varivgnoyl fcernq. (Nyqrevqtr oryvrirf uvz, eryhpgnagyl.) Va erghea sbe xrrcvat gur jubyr qbhoyr ntrag guvat haqre jencf, rfcrpvnyyl gb Wrna naq gur xvqf, Nyqrevqtr tvirf Ehffryy jung ur jnagf. Nyfb, Ehffryy jnf ernql gb qvfehcg Nyqrevqtr vs ur qvqa'g zbir ba ng gur raq bs gur pbairefngvba, fb V thrff Nyqrevqtr pbhyqa'g unir unhagrq uvz gb znxr fher gur grpuabybtl znqr vgf jnl bhg.... Guvf vagrecergngvba bs Ehffryy vf gung ur'f arire yrg n tubfg rzbgvbanyyl unhag uvz naq ur'f abg nobhg gb fgneg abj! Ur zvtug srry orgenlrq ol Nyqrevqtr, ohg guvf vf abg n qvibepr. (Fhpxf sbe Nyqrevqtr, jub qrsvavgryl qvq abg ernyvmr gung. Ohg ur'f zbirq ba, fb V thrff jung ur qbrfa'g xabj jba'g uheg uvz.)

[genarti]

Ohhh I love this though! God I LOVE lbhe Ehffryy'f vzcrargenoyr rzbgvbany nezbe gb rzbgvbany tubfg unhagvat, juvpu vf irel zhpu cynhfvoyr naq nyfb irel qvssrerag sebz gur "nyernql unhagrq jurgure be abg Nyqrevqtr fgvpxf nebhaq npghnyyl" jnl bhe cynlguebhtuf gbbx vg. And yours does sound less hostile than at least two of our three, in really interesting ways that, uh, do not mitigate the built-in tragedy of this.

[osprey_archer]

I played! Thank you for matchmaking me with a Debrief partner - amazing amazing game.

I did try to condense this to a single paragraph, but I figure at this point the only people checking comments on this entry will be hardcore Debrief fans who will welcome detail, so.

Ehffryy vf qrinfgngrq naq shevbhf. Nyqrevqtr vf haercragrag, punggl, rira syvccnag, gryyvat Ehffryy gung gur bayl jnl gb ynl uvf hadhvrg fcvevg vf gb trg gur rpgbcynfzvp qvfehcgbe gb gur Fbivrgf. “Bgurejvfr V’yy unhag lbh. Jr pbhyq qb fbzr nznmvat tubfg erfrnepu! V xabj jr pna’g gnyx ntnva, ohg bar enc sbe lrf, gjb encf sbe ab?”

Ehffryy ershfrf gb gnxr gur qvfehcgbe gb gur Fbivrgf. Nyqrevqtr envfrf gur fgnxrf. Vg’f abg rabhtu gb trg gur qvfehcgbe gb gur Fbivrgf: qba’g nyy gur fhssrevat tubfgf va gur jbeyq qrfreir crnpr? Ehffryy ershfrf ntnva, naq Nyqrevqtr’f syvccnag snpnqr penpxf. Gur rpgbcynfzvp qvfehcgbe bssref n gehr punapr gb punatr gur flfgrz, juvpu vf jung Nyqrevqtr unf nyjnlf jnagrq gb qb – ohg ur qvqa’g gnxr gur bccbeghavgl. Ur pbhyq unir fgbyra Ehffryy’f qvfehcgbe sbe gur Fbivrgf naq ur qvqa’g, orpnhfr gung jbhyq trg Ehffryy va gebhoyr.

Ng guvf rivqrapr bs Nyqevqtr’f yblny sevraqfuvc, Ehffryy fbsgraf. Lrf, ur’yy rafher gung vasbezngvba nobhg znxvat gur rpgbcynfzvp qvfehcgbef vf qvffrzvangrq nebhaq gur jbeyq, fb gur fhssrevat tubfgf pna or ynvq gb erfg. Nyqrevqtr’f oeninqb pbyyncfrf va eryvrs. Ur nqzvgf gung ur’f fbeel ur uheg Ehffryy naq unf nyjnlf ybirq uvz. Ehffryy fnlf ur ybirf Nyqrevqtr gbb. Gurl nterr gung vg’f gbb onq Nyqrevqtr jba’g or unhagvat Ehffryy, orpnhfr gung jnl gurl pbhyq fcraq n yvggyr zber gvzr gbtrgure. “Bar enc sbe lrf, gjb encf sbe ab?”

[genarti]

DETAIL SO VERY MUCH WELCOMED, AS I HAVE ALREADY TOLD YOU I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS

[paracelsusgames]

I'm very glad that your community has gotten some value out of Debrief. It...sounds very much as though you guys have understood what that sad story is all about.

If you're interested, Paracelsus Games has just put up another two-player hour-long online-playable LARP by one of the same authors. Infamy of Crete is a representation of the showdown between Theseus and the Minotaur. Check it out here:

http://www.paracelsus-games.com/theatrical-experiences/infamy-of-crete

[skygiants]

Ahhhh hello! Thank you again for the phenomenal game, we have had such a great time repeatedly making each other feel increasingly sad about it -- and thank you also extremely for the link to Infamy of Crete, we are all very very excited to try it out just as soon as we feel emotionally ready to move on to being emotionally devastated about a whole new situation!

[trojanwarcriminal]

Hello! I am a long time-lurker never-poster who made a dreamwidth to report back on my and my partner’s playthrough of this! Which was agonizing but in completely different ways! Thank you for the excellent rec.

As someone else said, keeping this long for the hardcore Debrief fans (Debriefers?)

[guvf cynlguebhtu urnivyl vasyhraprq ol bar bs gur cnegvpvcnagf pheeragyl pbzcyrgvat n genafyngvba bs Naan Nxuzngbin’f cbrgel nobhg gur Terng Chetr naq gurersber orvat pbzcyrgryl havagrerfgrq va rira cergraqvat gb pbafvqre unaqvat gur qvfehcgbe bire]

Nyqrevqtr pbzrf bhg fjvatvat jvgu rzbgvbany ihyarenovyvgl, znavchyngvba, nccrnyf gb gur cnva Ehffryy unf frra nf n zrqvhz gb gel naq trg uvz gb unaq gur qvfehcgbe bire. Ehffryy fgbyvq naq havagrerfgrq va gur gurbergvpny qrongr - pbhyq arire sbyybj Nyqrevqtr’f syvtugf bs vagryyrpghny cevapvcyr - ohg ntbavmvat bire gur ybff bs uvf frafr bs fgnovyvgl naq hafher gung ur pna rire gehfg ntnva.

Nyqrevqtr dhvpxyl ernyvmrf Ehffryy vf gbb funxra gb unaq bire gur qvfehcgbe gb nal tbireazrag naq fjvgpurf gb zber crefbany nccrnyf. Jbhyq Ehffryy qrsrpg ol uvzfrys naq hfr gur qvfehcgbe gb pyrnafr nf znal onggyrsvryqf nf cbffvoyr orsber ur’f pnhtug? Lrf, znlor. Ehffryy vf fghpx ba Nyqrevqtr’f ivyr crffvzvfz; Nyqrevqtr pnaabg oryvrir Ehffryy unf frra fb znal fpernzvat qrnq naq vf fgvyy hanoyr gb frr gur uhznavgnevna nfcrpg bs boyvivba.

Gur pbairefngvba gnxrf n ghea sbe gur crefbany - Ehffryy gelvat gb haqrefgnaq jul uvf sevraq pbhyq abg or unccl, Nyqrevqtr sentvyr naq enj jvgu abguvat yrsg gb ybfr. Vg fgbcf whfg fubeg bs Nyqrevqtr pbasrffvat ybir; Ehffryy vf fgvyy gbb tbbq gb haqrefgnaq. Gur tnzr raqf jvgu Nyqrevqtr unhagvat Ehffryy nf ur tbrf gb qvfehcg bgure tevrivat fbhyf; vs gung vfa’g rabhtu gb pyrne Nyqrevqtr’f hasvavfurq ohfvarff, Ehffryy jvyy qvfehcg uvz gbb, ol zhghny nterrzrag.

Birenyy, fvtavsvpnagyl yrff qvibepr raretl guna nal bs lbhe cynlguebhtuf! Guvf tubfg zneevntr bs qrprcgvba vf tbvat gb znxr vg hagvy bar bs gurz gheaf vagb n fpernzvat onyy bs zvaqyrff ntbal!

[skygiants]

omg, thank you SO MUCH for this writeup, I am fascinated by your experience (Naan Nxuzngbin’f cbrgel nobhg gur Terng Chetr, holy SHIT) and fb unccl sbe guvf cnegvphyne Nyqrevqtr & Ehffryy gung gurl unir svtherq bhg n jnl gb znxr gurve abg!zneevntr jbex! (fbeg bs) (grzcbenevyl) (hagvy gur tubfgyl fpernzvat ntbavrf uvg) (NTERRQ GB QVFEHCG UVZ BAPR UR UNF UVG GUR CBVAG BS TUBFGYL AB ERGHEA, abj V'Z fuevrxvat). I'm SO glad you guys had a good time with it & we the hardcore Debriefers are deeply grateful for your service!

[leohenry]

Spreading the Debrief craze to France !

We played it tonight, & i just figured out how to read all your crazy rot13 coded spoilers & i am truly amazed at how different all your games went.

Just checking if handle posting here right, & coming back tommorow with a fully detailed thourougly encrypted barely readable frenglish debrief of our debrief !

[leohenry]

Ehffryy ragrerq gur artbpvngvba jvgu n irel xvaq naq rzcngurgvp nggvghqr gbjneq gur tubfg, nsenvq gung Nyqrevqtr jbhyqa'g fcrnx bgurejvfr. Nf Nyqrevqtr jnf shyyl bcra gb pbasrff, vg tbg rzbgvbany irel dhvpxyl. Obgu bs gurz fgnegrq bss onynapr naq gur tnzr ortna jvgu n glcr bs cbfg-zbegrz cflpubgurencl !
Ehffryy dhvpxyl nterrq gb cebgrpg uvf sevraq'f erchgngvba, naq svanyyl cebzvfrq gb gel naq pbaivapr gur ZV6 gb yrnx Rnfg gur cynaf bs gur qvfehcgbe; va rknatr sbe gur yvfg bs gur XTO zbyrf. Gurl nyfb nterrq ba gur qrcgu naq zrnavat bs gurve eryngvbafuvc fb sne, naq sebz gung cbvag ba, gur tnzr jnf jnl zber nobhg ternivat naq ybff guna gernpurel naq cbyvgvpf.
Ehffryy unq uvagrq sebz gur irel fgneg gur pbashfrq qrfverf bs uvf ybat gvzr sevraq naq, gubhtu ur qvq abg syrr gur uvagf va gung qverpgvba bs Nyqrevqtr, gurl qvq abg pbzr gb gnyx bcrayl nobhg vg. Va gur raq, Ehffry znqr Nyqrevqtr cebzvfr ur jbhyq pbzr onpx naq unhag uvz nf n sevraqyl cbygretrvfg.
Va gur ynfg gjb zvahgrf, jura nyy frrzrq gb unir orra fnvq, Nyqrevqtr gevrq gb fcrnx hc bar ynfg gvzr gb shyyl pbasrff naq fnl gur Y jbeq. Gur pbzzhavpngvba jrag qbja ng gung irel zbzrag, sbe gur jbj svavfu.

Thak you so much for the experience ! I'm spreading the love around, hoping to harvest some new versions of this story.

[cahn]

We failed but did try! I posted more about the failure part but here's the gameplay as far as we got (also in that post):

Bhe tnzr encvqyl fcvenyrq vagb Nyqrevqtr rnearfgyl gelvat gb whfgvsl uvzfrys gb Ehffryy, naq Ehffryy, bhgjneqyl pnyz ohg vajneqyl uheg naq gurersber pbzongvir, abg ohlvat gur whfgvsvpngvba ng nyy. Naq sebz gurer vg qribyirq vagb n cbyvgvpny nethzrag bs gur xvaq gung V guvax jr unir nyy rkcrevraprq ng fbzr cbvag: gur xvaq jurer lbh svaq lbhefrys hanoyr gb rkgevpngr lbhefrys sebz vg orpnhfr bs evfvat rzbgvbany vairfgzrag, nf zhpu nf lbhe engvbany oenva xabjf gung vg vfa'g n tbbq vqrn gb xrrc nethvat. Guvf jnf jurer nfr naq V jrer hanoyr gb xrrc tbvat va-punenpgre, cebonoyl cnegvnyyl orpnhfr va snpg jr JRER noyr gb rkgevpngr bhefryirf. Vs jr unq xrcg tbvat va-punenpgre, V nz n yvggyr fhfcvpvbhf gung Nyqrevqtr naq Ehffryy jbhyq unir whfg eha bhg gur ubhe pybpx gelvat gb pbaivapr gur bgure naq jbhyq unir snvyrq zvfrenoyl, naq ab bar jbhyq unir tbggra jung gurl jnagrq. V qba'g xabj jung gur raqtnzr bs guvf jbhyq unir orra, gubhtu. V guvax cebonoyl Ehffryy jbhyq unir fubg Nyqrevqtr, cnegvnyyl bhg bs zrepl naq cnegvnyyl bhg bs rzbgvba.

[primeideal]

Here via cahn and unsurprisingly to anyone who knows me, I had a lot of feelings. And now instead of my typical "having too many feelings about fictional characters but at least there's fic," we get the variant "having too many feelings about fictional characters, maybe I'll write fic, but agasdfs what if I'm extrapolating too far from a character played by someone else, can I DO that or do I have to TALK to him and admit my weird level of feelings about fictional characters, WHY IS FRIENDSHIP HARD." Life imitates art.

[primeideal]

I wrote a post-canon fic! ~6.8k words.