by KieselguhrKid

Related Item: Game Tape – A Tabletop Sports Journal

Thanks, ulithebison, for your reply. Definitely good memories.

Deadball 1909 does play quickly. I'm doing a season with the fictional Southern League that came with the game. Many of the games are low-scoring pitcher duels, so the innings go by very quickly. The names of the players and teams in W.M. Akers' imaginary Southern League are full of evocative character. I'm having a lot of fun with this game.

So far I've only played Pile Up Racing and One-Pager Pro Soccer from Short Season Games. Each race in PUR takes me about 45-50 minutes to complete. I'm rerunning the 2023 NASCAR season. It's worth noting that I'm not a stock car racing fan at all, but the game play in PUR is simple, dynamic, and fun, with a minimum of time spent referring to charts.
Games in One-Pager Pro Soccer (OPPS) play very quickly, probably 5-10 minutes, maximum, so replaying a complete season league is not a big time commitment. OPPS doesn't note individual scorers but it does generate realistic figures for shots and shots on target, an aspect that adds tension to close games. In contrast with LOGacta, where you get a half- and full-time score, OPPS gives a feel for the flow of the game during each half, based on each team's shot opportunities.
So far at least all the Short Season Games are offered at no charge, with the chance to make a voluntary donation to the designer—a generous touch given the quality of the games, I think.

by brumcg

Most of the time I've played with a noob they've had a decent understanding of what a RPG is. Those tend to go well since they have a level of interest going into things...much like the first time I played a RPG.

The closest I've come to this question was my niece when she was around 10 (I think). I think I was reading a rpg and she asked me about it. So I whipped up a quick situation where she was playing a thief in a marketplace trying to make some gold. She targeted a wealthy merchant and chose violence quickly. Honestly, I was weirded out but gave her encouragement.

She never asked about rpgs again. As an adult, I wouldn't be surprised to find out that she actively campaigned against rpgs. Not my fault, I swear.

by awinnef

Related Item: RPGG News

Thanks everyone!🙂

by panzer-attack

I saw Quinn's review of this recently but his review actually made me more interested in Brindlewood Bay, so I picked that up the other day.

by St Cretin

Yeah mixed here too.
When I started (pre-voting age) my Dad wanted to no what RPGs are so we played a short intro one (Das Schwarze Auge) for an afternoon. He had fun, but it wasn't for him, still chalk this up as a good example.
Bad examples usually include people taking their grievances out on other player characters or trying to outsmart the rules and/or the DM. Like playing the game, instead of playing the game. Makes sense?

by shiva666

Tried with my brothers and 2 of my friends once. that was it for them.
Tried with my nephews when they were kids, many years of gaming until they got to the same point of previous group.
Tried with daughter, not a fan of system but much story telling, world building character creation involved...

by lhellebusch

An item GeekList: Luke H's 2026 Explore Diversity Challenge has been added to the geeklist 2026 Explore Diversity Challenge

by sdonohue

An item RPG Item: The Return of the Prodigal Son has been added to the geeklist 2026 Annual Geek Review Challenge

by sdonohue

My wife taught 5th grade (about 11 year olds) for two years and one of those years the kids became obsessed with trying Dungeons & Dragons. My wife always works to connect with students and so I was pressed into service as the GM. She thought there would be 5 or 6 kids.

On the first day, I showed up with 8 pre-gens; it turned out I needed 13. We decided to make all new characters; it took the whole first session (about 2 hours), but the kids were happy to have done it themselves. I ran 4 or 5 times for 10 or more kids, most of whom had no idea what they were doing as far as the rules went. They were very creative problem solvers, but prone to let things from outside intrude into the game. It was a pretty positive experience and the kids were eager to learn and play.

Fast forward about 15 years and my wife is meeting her new parents. One of them turns out to be one of those long-ago D&D players. She thanks my wife profusely for showing her that it was okay to have unusual hobbies and use your imagination even as you got older. That was definitely the best part.

by Derang3d

A new GeekList has been posted March Lesser Lunacy 2026 Round 2.1! (Open!)

by Eldritch

Whelp, that's Centurion done, then.

by pdzoch

QOTD MAR 18: What is your experience with playing TTRPG's with people who barely know what one is? Do you have any interesting stories about those experiences?