Crème Brûléed!

When thinking of ideas for my Single Page TTRPG, I immediately knew I wanted to incorporate desserts into my world. I decided to make it a very big part of the makeup. I am a sweet-tooth at heart, and I thought it would be interesting to create a world where all the terrain is made-up of desserts (cakes, pies, jello, sundaes). However, I then entered a thought spiral surrounding climate change and decided connecting both of these (very different) themes together could be interesting. In “Crème Brûléed!” the game embeds players into a world where climate disasters have horrifically shifted the natural ecosystems; translated into a dessert-world, savoury garnishes and side-dishes have destroyed the sugary terrains! A key aspect of this setting is that the climate crisis is irreversible, so the characters move through the spaces knowing their time together will soon come to an end. This is intended to be a four-player game, which has a ‘shifting’ guide depending on the area the crew is passing through. Each character is assigned a “home” area on the collage-map, and due to their ‘knowledge’ and ‘experience’ in the area, they are appointed the guide for that round.

My aim for the TTRPG was to create a game where players are forced to be in the present moment. Literally, they will be playing the game with their friends, forcing them to be present with everyone else. However, extending beyond the game, I want the players to reflect on how they want to spend each day –– in their own lives. Players cannot lose, per say, in the game. Even in death, if the guide of the current territory decides the character perishes, they still exist in the spirit realm as the Dragonfly character can interact with the dead. Overall, the aim is for the players to journey through all areas of the world, interacting with “friends and foe” to feel and experience both the highs and lows of life. 

The tone of “Crème Brûléed!” is definitely darker, however as the guides of each area determine the obstacles players must face, there can be silly and humorous storylines incorporated into the game. Not to make a pun, but the tone is ‘bitter-sweet’ and reflects the good and bad –– people, experiences –– that we encounter along the way. 

As for the subject matter, the “end of the world” subject is sad, so people who are uncomfortable with talking about death and climate change will probably not like this game. Of course, the guide(s) will have control over the direction, so I recommend players discuss what they are comfortable or uncomfortable talking about before beginning the game.

I made this game because I’ve been baking so much this semester, and it has become one of my weekly pleasures that keeps me going. While I bake, I watch documentaries –– many of which surround National Geographic content and theories of the universe. Climate change is a very real and present-day issue, yet there does not seem to be much progress to counter-attack all the pollution and damage to our environment. It all seems very hopeless. A small, yet very essential, insect that keeps our environment healthy is the bumblebee; from this, I wanted to create a game-world where they no longer existed and make players explore those consequences. In many ways, the inspiration for my game is a collection of random ideas and hobbies, but once I mushed them together, they created an interesting dessert-world!

From my Magpie book, I picked out one of my week 2 “obsessions” which was pie flavours. The pie flavours inspired one of my areas on the collage map. Second, I took inspiration from week 7’s “location drawings” of the Urban Fare Cake section –– which also became an area on my map. I then was influenced by week 6’s “textures” where I collected some newspaper scraps. From the scraps, I decided it could be an interesting visual element to create a collage-map out of vintage dessert photographs and illustrations. 

Through exploration of ‘the end of the world’ through an insect’s lens, I decided I wanted to incorporate fire and water into my game. Each of the four areas overlaps with the four elements –– fire / lava as ketchup, ice / snow as mashed potatoes, water / rain as salt and pepper, air / clouds as rice crackers –– and therefore I wanted my mechanics to reflect those elements. The first mechanic is a burning candle that is lit at the very start of the game. This candle symbolically represents the sun in our solar system, and depending on if it blows-out or the wax drips there are consequences to the characters’ existence. By the end of the game, if it had not blown out, then the players come together to blow it out themselves –– describing their ends together. Additionally, I incorporated a mechanic which uses a shot glass (or small cup) of water that is pulled across the table while seated on the end of toilet paper. Again, depending if the liquid spills, if the toilet paper tears, or if the player successfully pulls the glass across the table, the guide will determine the player's success when helping or defeating a frog. As well as, as mentioned earlier, I used a collage as a visual mechanic to help the players imagine the dessert-world they have entered.

I hope from playing this game, they are able to enjoy the present moment more. It’s really hard when there are so many terrible things happening around us in this world, but with every interaction and experience –– no matter how terrible –– hopefully there is something to take away that will positively influence your future.