Stretch goal achieved! Now for something different...
about 3 years ago – Sun, Feb 07, 2021 at 10:09:07 PM

We've hit our first stretch goal!

What does this mean?

I'll be commissioning at least 12 more pieces from our artist Nuša to replace any stock images I'm currently using in the zine. Each special and main event will have its own illustration to ensure the zine is full of character. I'm excited to see how it all comes together!

New stretch goal

I'm really happy with the amount of artwork I have for the zine now. I'd like to set a slightly bigger stretch goal this time and aim for something special.

Some context; when I play RPGs, I love having music playing in the background. It could be an atmospheric piece or an actual album. I think it really helps to set the tone for an evening and certain songs still remind of great times spent playing campaigns with my friends.

So here's the next stretch goal:

• If we hit £3,000 I'll commission a 30-40 minute lo-fi beats soundtrack for A Complicated Profession. 
• It will be composed by Christopher Michael Roberts, creator of the critically-acclaimed soundtrack for Artefact by Jack Harrison (and the upcoming Orbital soundtrack). He's also one of my best friends!
• I'll also commission Nuša to take some of the assets from my promo video and create a looping animation to accompany the music.

What are you talking about?

Ever seen those lo-fi beats soundtracks that are all over YouTube? You know, with a looping animation of someone sat studying, or lying on a bed with their cat, while the rain is pouring outside. 

The music tends to be beat-driven, atmospheric and relaxing. The tracks are often played on a loop so you can leave it on for hours while you focus on what you're doing. That's what we're aiming for here.

I've found that ACP is a game that's usually played in 1 or 2 sessions of 2-3 hours. The ACP soundtrack will also play on a loop that hopefully covers at least one gaming session without getting stale.

Thanks again for backing ACP 

I'll be posting more updates this week covering how some of the systems work in the game and maybe some examples from my playtesting sessions.

- Jason

ACP explained #1 - Hunters turned Hosts
about 3 years ago – Sun, Feb 07, 2021 at 04:13:21 AM

We're halfway to the first stretch goal!

As promised, I'm going to post regular small updates that provide more detail about how ACP plays. 

Today I'm focusing on the Hunter and Host roles and how your character evolves as you play.

The Hunter roles

At the start of the game, each player picks up a character sheet for their previous role within their Hunter crew. 

The choices are:

•  Bounty Hunter - your go-to for weaponry, shady contacts and tracking 
•  Hired Muscle - strong and unshakeable, with a connection to wildlife
•  Notorious Hacker - full of electronic tricks and master of misdirection
•  'The Doc' - surprisingly good at fixing injuries and a calming presence
•  Mystic Mentor - wielder of strange abilities and arcane knowledge
•  Outdated Droid - capable of any task, depending on their programming
•  Lucky Companion - turns up when needed and often underestimated
•  Hostshot Pilot - dashing and skilful, with stories to tell

You'll pick three skills (called experiences) and fill out details about your name, species, look and a signature possession.

The Host Roles

At the start of the game, each player also selects a character sheet for their new Host role on the ship. 

The choices are:

•  Captain - leads the crew and ensures everything is in order 
•  Mechanic - a resourceful sort, who can fix most things 
•  Bouncer - keeps the passengers safe and lends a hand when needed
•  Barkeep - often the most popular host and hears a lot of rumours
•  Master Of Ceremonies - the frontman who makes himself heard
•  Chef - keeps everyone fed and makes something special when needed
•  Live Entertainment - the star, who provides captivating performances
•  Janitor - often goes unnoticed but perhaps should be listened to

You don't start with any Host experiences, but you'll fill out details about your feelings towards your new career, what you've added to your wardrobe to try and fit in, and another signature possession you've acquired.

How your character evolves

Each time you use a Hunter experience to solve a problem or take part in a scene, you cross it out on your Hunter sheet and pick a Host experience on your Host sheet.

At some point in the game, you'll use your last Hunter experience and finally have given up your past. When this happens, you'll (literally) give up your Hunter sheet, including your old name and possessions.

The other players will get the chance to give you a new Host nickname that you must use exclusively for the rest of the game. 

You'll also have to rely solely on your Host experiences - and this might change how you approach the problems you encounter.

What's next?

Hopefully this gets you thinking about the kind of character you'd like to create in ACP. 

It's worth noting that the artwork shows examples of some of the species prompts and role combos you can pick, but they're entirely interchangeable!

There's lots of amusing combinations and you're also free to describe yourself as you wish.

Of course, your experiences and possessions are only one tool you have to tell your story. There's a whole ship that you're going to fill with useful items and NPC crew members as you play. 

Expect more about playing events and earning rewards in the next few updates! Thanks for reading this far - I'm sure I said these would be short?

- Jason

ACP is now FUNDED! Time for a stretch goal...
about 3 years ago – Sun, Feb 07, 2021 at 04:05:28 AM

We did it.

A Complicated Profession is now funded and will be a real thing in your hands (or hard drives) later this year!

Thanks again to anyone who's backed the game or helped promote it so far. 

What does this mean?

Hitting the funding goal means:

• Our layout artist Vee (@rocketeer_vee) will be taking my first draft layout and assembling it into something much more professional, usable and beautiful.
• All the initial artwork by Nuša is now funded, including the cover art, two pieces that show some examples of the kind of characters you can create in ACP, a bunch of environmental scenes and other assets to help to decorate the zine.
• The zine print run with Mixam and accessories like stickers, dice and cards will be covered.

BUT, this is just the beginning. There's still 10 days to go (although that's like 10 minutes in these COVID-times, right?).

Stretch goals

My priority is to commission some more artwork for the zine. At its core, ACP is a collection of events, memorable moments and short adventures that you'll eventually work your way through as you play. 

I want to ensure each event comes with its own little piece of artwork that gives it life and character. Currently I'm using stock art to fill the gaps and I think we can do better.

SO, my first stretch goal is at £2,000. This will allow me to commission Nuša to create 12 (twelve!) small art pieces to accompany each event. This is the way.

- Jason

So close to fully funded!
about 3 years ago – Thu, Feb 04, 2021 at 10:38:40 PM

The target's in our sights...

First of all, HEY! It's great to meet you.

Thanks so much to everyone who's backed A Complicated Profession already. 

We're so close to hitting that full funding goal that I almost held off from posting an update. But I'm hoping it won't be too long now...

What's been happening?

It's been a wild few days launching my first kickstarter project. 

I had no idea what to expect as the pitch for ACP isn't very, uh, conventional. But I hope I've conveyed the combination of humour and heart I want to bring to my little game about giving up the past, beginning a new life and making up very silly stories with your friends.

It was amazing watching so many people back the project within the first few hours and it's been steadily increasing every day. I've also been lucky enough to have some great (and unexpected) promotion for ACP already.

In case you've missed anything:

• I spoke at length about ACP on the Yes Indie'd podcast, including why I started designing games and my experiences playtesting ACP. See if you can tell that I'd just had my morning coffee.
• ACP got a big shout out on a Polygon ZineQuest article(!) - this took me completely by surprise but it was amazing and slightly surreal (also great for ZineQuest to get some of the coverage it deserves).

What's next?

If we manage to hit the funding goal over the next few days I'll start posting regular updates that cover some of the systems, stories and characters you can expect from ACP!

It's hard to succinctly cover all of that in a short campaign page, but I'd love to give some examples of play and flesh out the hunter and host roles - so you can hopefully start getting as excited as I am.

I'm hard at work ironing out any creases in the design and trying to ensure ACP is the best it can be before Vee (@rocketeer_vee) works her layout magic on it later in the year. I'd love to add more of Nuša's vibrant and detailed artwork to the zine too, but that's for another day.

In the meantime, fingers crossed for that funding goal and I hope there will be some good news very soon!

- Jason