The Time After

Closure isn’t guaranteed in a chaotic and imperfect world. But these moments can be part of life’s beauty, a chance to look ahead to the next chapter and choose how you write your own story. A part of play’s enjoyment is how it allows us the experience of seeking closure, an ending to tales, a destined state that concludes the game. Still, even in the realms of simulation, endings may elude us.

Two years ago, I posted what became my first game here on Itch, All the While. In the then sole, now previous, devlog on this project, I wrote how ATW was made for a home ttrpg table to span the time between the ending of one years-long campaign and the start of a new one. In the end, that campaign from the post only lasted a few sessions before I made the choice to walk away to focus on healing from my burn out and past.

It really hits me now how much my relationship to games and writing has changed in even such a short time. Writing has always been something I’ve enjoyed, ever since childhood, but I never considered I could do it as a career, no matter how small. Now, that idea is the treasure I dream about, even if I’m still at times lost and rambling on this journey.

Unexpectedly, I found I had already started my next chapter. The changes and priorities I made for my health and environment allowed me to nurture my creativity again. While that homebrew campaign will never have an ending, I want to finish raising the game that tottered out of its nest.

Revisions and Full CC Release

All the While was released polished but it always felt unfinished to me. Since posting the original, I’ve wanted to return to this game for another go at it with the intent of writing something fuller to be released to Creative Commons so folks could use it for personal or commercial use. At the time, I didn’t have an idea of how I would change it to make it more fun. However, after working on and revising my sophomore one-page ttrpg system, Witch Knife, I got a better idea of how I’d like to do that.

Additionally, in a more personal move to update All the While, I’d like to create new illustrations for this game that better reflect who I am and my interests as an artist. In the years since last I visited this game, I’ve made progress in recovering my traditional painting skills from the jaws of burn out. Returning to ink, gouache, and the committment of imperfections has felt a lot like a homecoming. It would mean a lot to me to see that growth reflected here.

Until Then...

No timelines at this moment, just a stating of intention on this game’s page that my time with it is not quite finished. That and I suppose a promise to a past self that what they made was not forgotten and I’ll be the one to bring this journey home.