Design Goals for the Dream Team Game System

Team-focused Gameplay

Almost every TTRPG has a single player playing a single character, which is an intuitive and easy way to organize a game. Each person assumes a role narratively, tactically, or both. When there are multiple players, TTRPGs typically extend this so that each PC takes a turn as a way to organize a play session. This favors “heroic” storytelling where each individual character shines as a force-unto-themselves while the spotlight is on them. This is a fun and satisfying experience, and many games do this well.

While the DTGS keeps the tradition of single player/single character, some of the focus shifts from individual action to team action. In this way it aligns itself more to the conventions of team sports where the overall action of all the players working together advance the game. While there is still opportunity for individuals to shine in certain moments (when their skills and abilities align with the situation), it is the successes and failures of the team as a whole that affect the bigger picture. While the more traditional model of single turn/single character can create a sort of “emergent” team from the actions of the individuals, the DTGS makes the team central to all mechanics while still allowing for individual heroics. It’s a different experience.

Collaborative and Engaging

In many TTRPGs there can be considerable time at the table where players are not directly engaged in the game because they are waiting for other players to take their turn. Attention can wane. Especially when mechanics become complex or take several steps to resolve for each character, it can pull players out of immersion in the game (narratively and mechanically).

The DTGS addresses this by shifting both decision-making and action resolution to the team as a whole each turn. While individual players and characters still have agency and describe their individual actions, there is little-to-no “waiting time” as all the players are part of the same turn. It involves discussing strategies and tactics among all the players. Even more, the consequences of each character’s contribution will affect the whole team, giving incentive to stay aware of what is happening as the action unfolds. This team focus also gives the opportunity for each player to feel like they are contributing at all times. Sometimes their characters will be in a more supporting role, other times in a leading role, but they are always involved.

Fast-paced

This team-focused collaboration also helps to keep mechanical resolution fast, both on the player’s side and the GM’s. Challenges that might take the better part of an hour using individual turns can be resolved in minutes. Even when the team splits into smaller units to address multiple types of challenges, resolution tends to move quickly. This lends itself to genres of storytelling where a faster pace is desired (such as the action-adventure of Relics of the Moon).

Multiple Playstyles (“Narrative with Crunch”)

In the vernacular of TTRPGs, some games are more “narrative” and others more “crunchy”. Games that lean more narrative tend to be rules-and-mechanics-light to focus on the story being told. They tend to run quickly and require little cognitive load to resolve numbers or complex interactions of rules. Games that are more crunchy tend to lean into numbers and/or complex interactions of rules. While a narrative may be present as a backdrop or as thematic flavor, it generally comes second to strategies and tactics. Most TTRPGs have elements of both and can be visualized as being somewhere along a spectrum between the two.

The DTGS falls somewhere in the middle of this spectrum. It is narrative at its core while still providing interesting choices for those that enjoy complexity. It is designed in such a way that narrative and rules mechanics are tightly coupled. Each narrative trait has a mechanic. That is, a more narrative-focused player can simply describe what their character is doing and the mechanics should emerge from their character sheet. Conversely, a more crunch-focused player should be able to play with numbers and rules interactions and have the narrative emerge from the names and descriptions of each trait.

One of the draws of more narrative-focused (and rules-light) games is the ability to quickly ad-hoc rules for a wide variety of situations that may arise. This runs contrary to the complex play of established rules favored by more crunch-focused games.The DTGS allows both. It gives an easy-to-understand-and-resolve system that can handle just about any situation on-the-fly. It also gives crunch-focused players a way to anticipate ad hoc rules through the lens of existing rules. In addition–because the game is team-focused–the cognitive load that may arise for some players grappling with complex rules interactions that arise is shared by all the players without sacrificing the narrative.

Equal/Symettrical Actions

The DTGS is designed to treat all types of challenges in the same way with the same depth and complexity. Exploration, travel, and social challenges are built and resolved the same way as combat. This lends itself to deeper and more nuanced mechanics that integrate with the narrative and each other. A tense negotiation can be just as tactical and consequential as facing a rival group on the battlefield. The different areas seemlessly blend allowing multiple approaches to obstacles and allow mulitple obstacles to be addressed simultaneously with the same mechanics.