Wretched & Alone is a game system that has seen a significant amount of use since its creation. Chris Bissette’s collection of Wretched & Alone games on Itch.io has nearly 100 entries, but there’s no way that accounts for everything on the site that uses this ruleset. For me, this framework is also one of the most challenging that I have attempted to work work.
As I say “attempted” because every single game I have tried to create using the Wretched & Alone system has ended up on the cutting room floor. Every single one, in my opinion, had (and still has) viability, but I struggle with fitting together all the mechanics into a cohesive whole.
In our post last week, we discussed the different mechanics of this framework: The cards, the dice, the tower, and the tokens. Generally, my biggest hurdle has been the cards.
For example, I have an idea for a W&A game based around the story Romeo and Juliet: Two lovers who can’t be together because of their family’s status and hatred for one another. The tower represents your relationship: Stable at first, but deteriorating and wobbling as time goes on under the pressure of what you have to do to be together. The dice function as usual, giving you the number of prompts each turn.
But the cards. What do the cards represent? What does each suit reflect? The individual cards are easier: The King, the Patriarch of the family. Queens, the Mothers. Jacks, a close friend or family member. But how do those relate to each suit, and what does each suit mean, and how in the hell do we get prompts for every single card?
And so, I continue to struggle with multiple concepts for Wretched & Alone games that I can’t figure out how to build and put into words.
All of this is to say: Wretched & Alone is complex framework with a lot of moving parts that all need to weave together to create a comprehensive game for your player. It’s incredible to me that so many designers have made this system work for them and helped their players create unique stories that stick with them when they finish. I hope that there will be many more in the future, mine included.
The takeaway from this post, I think, is that we’re all learning. No matter what stage in our design journey, we’re all learning how to build new things and orchestrate the flow of mechanics and create a game that has a last impression on their players. The important thing is to try, and learn, and grow. Not every game you build will be a success, and that’s okay. Just don’t give up! You’ve got to keep trying, because you will get it. It will happen. You’ll see.
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