RPG Design Panelcast

Recorded at Metatopia Online 2020 Presented by Gerrit Reininghaus, Tara Clapper, Acata Felton, and Kate Hill. Live Action Online Games (LAOG)s, also known as online LARPs, have reached unthinkable dimensions of attention due to the pandemic. This is a design framework with a completely new set of possibilities and requirements. We are not only talking about technology as a design surface but also questions around accessibility, safety and environmental awareness. Where do LAOGs come from? What were the driving forces? What has happened in 2020? How to become a LAOG designer? Where to find all the games and the community?

Recorded at Metatopia Online 2020 Presented by Tara Clapper, Olivia Montoya, Joie Martin. Running a digital LARP (or LAOG - live action online game) can be a simple impromptu effort or a multi-session experience requiring significant organization. Let's talk about how to run a digital live action experience while keeping in mind safety and participants' needs.

Presented at Metatopia Online 2020 Presented by Tam Myaing, David Gordon, Chris Backe, Kevin Dunkelberger. When the COVID lockdowns began, the NYC Playtest Group was one of the first to move to online playtesting. Since then we have run over 50 sessions since mid April, and have also helped other gaming conventions with running games virtually. In this panel we will discuss with moderators from other groups around the world, on the the lessons we've learned in the trenches in running a successful virtual playtest group. 

Recorded at Metatopia Online 2020 Presented by Chris O'Neill, Stephanie Bryant, Warren Morrison, Walt Ciechanowski. Roll20 provides players and GMs with a popular virtual tabletop for games. How can you best take advantage of it as a player, a designer or a publisher? Our experts and power-users will bring you up to speed on the service.

Recorded at Metatopia 2020 Online Presented by Dan DiLorenzo, Frank DiLorenzo, Kira Peavley, Curt Covert, Shari Spiro, Ben Harkins. You have a great board/card game and you're ready to start shopping for a Publisher. What are they looking for these days? Our panelists will explain what excites them, and talk about how they look for key elements that they can extend into sellable games.

Recorded at Metatopia Online 2021 Presented by Bryan Dalrymple, Patrick Day. Any board or card game being published in 2021 needs to take into account the likelihood that in-person demos and shopping will be limited. Our panelists will talk about what the design implications of this are, and how you can adjust to make your board or card game more viable as a physical commercial product.

Recorded at Metatopia 2020 Presented by Jonathan Ritter-Roderick, Anya Combs. Join representatives of Kickstarter for a discussion of the state of crowdfunding projects going into 2021. Topics will include what's different, what hasn't changed at all and how to prepare for success if you're taking a campaign live.

Recorded at Metatopia 2020 Presented by Rach Shelkey and Jaqueline Bryk. It's time once again to talk about happy, uplifting games! How do you make space for pastoral gaming while the world is going through a global health crisis? How does one find joy when the long term outlook changes by the minute? Our panelists will share their thoughts and personal experiences on exploring the heartwarming through the plague.

Recorded at Metatopia 2020 Presented by Vivian Abraham and Jason Cox. Some games are easy to play online, and some have robust platforms to support them. But what if your game involves group singing? Or social mingling? Or some other mechanic that is harder to do online? Let's share some ideas for converting these trickier games to be enjoyable virtually! 

Recorded at Metatopia 2020 Presented by Brian Dalrymple, Jessie Edwards, Hal Mangold. Our panelists will walk you through the basics of turning your game design hobby into a business. We'll talk about the most cost-efficient ways to register an LLC, open a business bank account, file a trademark and keep track of your expenses for tax season.