ADS Reflection
10/12/26
ADS: Apocalypse Delivery Service was pretty shamelessly inspired by Death Stranding, since I started playing the sequel the same week I had to design this game. It’s probably pretty telling about me as a designer that the first TTRPG I made for this class was based on a video game, but since we talked in class about drawing inspiration from other works of art, Death Stranding was at the front of my mind. The biggest issue I have with Death Stranding is that the delivery part of it is actually really fun and engaging (I like it, at least - it’s an acquired taste) but you get so little characterization for the protagonist over the course of the game. What ADS does is take a similar scenario fundamentally and makes the character’s internal monologue more explicit and, hopefully, more engaging.
One thing that I was worried about for the playtest was making sure the game was still interpretive enough that people could have differing experiences. However, all three of us who played had vastly different interpretations of what the titular “Apocalypse” would look like - and, additionally, we all had three vastly different player characters. I really enjoyed the journaling aspect while I played, especially with the time limit imposed. Not only is the format of the game a good spark for creativity, but the time limit is also a good motivator to make things QUICKLY (something I often struggle with).
If I had more time, I would not limit myself to a one-pager, and I would formalize the music mechanic that we used during playtesting. As I said, I wish each song gave you more time per journal entry, but I wouldn’t want to make the guidelines for the music any stricter. To me, it emulates the feeling of putting on a certain album to listen to when you’re walking to the grocery store. I’m a person who constantly has my headphones on while I’m walking from place to place in Boston, and I want to preserve that feeling as part of this game. If I was writing more in the rules, I might include some suggestions, but I would emphasize that players can make their playlist however they want.
When I was designing, I had a bunch of ideas for more in-depth mechanics. I briefly thought about using stats, having combat, or having to deal with things like weight limit and making multiple deliveries at the same time. While I enjoy those things in Death Stranding, having now playtested ADS I don’t see them having a place. I think the best thing I could do to extend this game without radically changing it would be to add more prompts for deliveries/random events.
My biggest qualm with ADS is that it feels too open-ended. This is a qualm I only have as a designer, not a player, because I personally am invested enough in the premise that I don’t need more systems to get me engaged with the world. I’m okay with a looser ruleset. However, it’s really not a crunchy game at all, and it functions (as some solo journaling games do) as more of a loose creative writing framework. Again, this is something I think works for me and largely for this game specifically, but it feels a little underwhelming as a designer.