Wow. I've given you a really cool rating because of the new version. My question now is, where would I submit a journal response? Very very nice update and also amazing that you have included both versions for people to try, because I could see myself coming back to the writing prompt version later and trying to add in some of my own ideas such as other random systems and cards as part of that story. But for the mechanic version, I shall stick to dice roles and prompts only.
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a lonely space cowboy at the end of the universe? a solo journaling TTRPG's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Creativity | #31 | 2.487 | 3.182 |
| Fun gameplay | #33 | 1.777 | 2.273 |
| Sound design | #33 | 1.635 | 2.091 |
| Overall | #34 | 1.966 | 2.515 |
Ranked from 11 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Comments
Thank you so much, & so sorry for my late reply! I'm so glad you enjoyed the new version! If you'd like to submit a journal response, I think either posting it on the social media or blog site of your choice & then link to the post here, or you could post your journal entry in the comments for this game if you prefer! Thanks so much again for your original feedback, & for checking out this game in the first place!
I'm not as familiar with solo-journaling TTRPGs, but have played a good number of indie TTRPGs, so take any feedback here with that in mind.
As others have mentioned, I don't know that there is quite enough here to really constitute a game. For me, having more thematic elements, more detailed prompts, and (probably most importantly for me) having some kind of card-draw / dice-roll / rules would have been really valuable.
I think, if there was any concern that those tools wouldn't be accessible, you could always point to online tools to do that (like https://www.random.org/playing-cards/ or https://www.random.org/dice/).
You mention on the page description that "the JPG version has fancier & more aesthetic formatting" - I think, given the nature of the jam, it would have been valuable to port that, either describing the nature of that content in the PDF, or replicating the space / star-like scenery in the audio recording (with sound-effects / ambiance).
Perhaps you could even use accessible fonts and high contrast lettering to make sure that the content is as-readable-as-possible for those with some amounts of low vision!
The solo-journaling scene feels (at least to me) relatively young and certainly niche, so I would hate for this to turn off would-be enthusiast of the genre. I think there's probably a space for it in this kind of jam, but needs a bit more development, and some clear affordances for a visually impaired audience, and that needs to be the primary offering for that experience, rather than a substitute.
I sincerely hope this doesn't come across as mean-spirited, and hope you continue to participate in these jams - this is my second year participating, and I learned so so much from the feedback that I received in the first one. I do hope that you and others take this feedback, learn, and help teach others how to build accessible-first experiences!
Submitted
Ladybud RollHi, thank you & that's all really helpful!
I wanted to clarify that the game itself was one I wrote for a separate game jam (the 36-Word TTRPG Jam, with the limitation that games had to be written using exactly 36 words) which occurred during the same period as the Games for Blind Gamers Jam & wasn't written specifically for the Games for Blind Gamers Jam, which is why it's as minimalist a game as it is!
I am fairly new also to playing & writing journaling TTRPGs, & when I looked at other submissions in the 36-word game jam before creating mine, I saw, played, & enjoyed many other games submitted to the 36-word jam which also consisted solely of writing prompts & didn't involve further mechanics beyond that, which is why I wrote it the way that I did. I felt as my lonely space cowboy game was among my most popular games & was fairly short, it would be a good candidate for testing out, on a small scale the idea of making fully-produced audio versions of my games in the future which I would love to do!
Your feedback about adding more ambience is also helpful & a great idea, as is your feedback of making a version with an accessible font (I haven't had a chance to make that version yet, but I definitely will make accessible font versions of this game & other games of mine in the future, so thank you for that suggestion!)
Based on feedback I've received, I've made a more TTRPG game mechanic-focused version of this game-- the audio file for the updated version of the game not only includes game mechanics in the way of oracle-like D6 rolls that help give answers to the questions, but I've also gone ahead & taken feedback from other comments about speaking less slowly & added ambience like you suggested to create an atmosphere to the game in the same way the graphic designed version of the game provides to heart, so I have included that in the updated audio file as well! In case you're interested in listening to that version, the first file listed on the game page is the new audio version with these changes implemented.
Thank you again, your feedback was helpful!
Wow - I'm stunned. I just listend to the new version, and I'm immediately blown away by how amazing the new audio version is. I really enjoyed the possible dice results (not just success and failure, but like, really neat ways to think about what the results could mean), and the subtle music in the background really set the tone!
I think this also does a really great job of explaining how people should interface with this kind of thing. Great job on the new edition 👏
I don’t really understand how a TTRPG works, so like some others said I might not be the target demographic here. But I think your voice is really pleasing and if you don’t do voice over work yet you should definitely try to invest into that. I’d love to listen to an audiobook too. You could totally narrate a game as a main character with a monologue all by yourself. Or a story.
I’d appreciate if the voice were a bit more flowy and less paused (between sentences it’s fairly okay, but within the same sentence some pauses sound a little bit off), or simply not be read so slowly.
But yeah, the art’s pretty nice too. Everything evokes a really nice, calm ambience, from the visual to the audio art. Interesting submission.
Submitted
Necromancer NonsenseThank you so much, that means a lot! I actually am a professional voice actor, so your comments are extra appreciated! I haven't had a chance to do a lot of narration work yet, but I have played characters in various podcasts, games, & more!
In regards to the rest of your feedback, I actually uploaded a new audio file version of the game taking this & other feedback into account. Thank you again so much for checking out the game! :)
I don’t think I can rate this fairly against the other entries. However, I wanted to thank you for the prompt, and for including it as part of the RPGs for Accessible Gaming bundle. I have something in it too! and those dice are going to be super rad!
Submitted
Lacus OpportunitasLove this concept! Just wanted to let you know, I couldn't get any sound from the mp3 you uploaded to this page!
Submitted
SongbearerHi! I'm so sorry I just saw this now! Since you commented, I actually made an updated audio version which explains what the 36 words is for as I realized that was unclear originally! The 36 words is in reference to the fact that the game itself including the prompts is only 36 words long, as it was created for the 36 word game jam. The journal responses could also be 36 words if desired, but the journal responses can be as long as the player wants them to be! Thanks again!
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