User:Annasandri/py.rate.chnic
intro(21.09)
First session with Manetta:
- brainstorming about the different format that a workshop can have;
- forming the groups by tracking overlapping interests;
and chaos.agents.bureau!!grand.opening: preparation
We formed this group because of the common interest in working with fake news and disinformation on the web and social media.
workshop formats
The first idea was to move this universe into the context of a game/treasure hunt in order to explore its working mechanism. We decided to go for this format after sharing some thoughts regarding workshops and the way we approach them: if not provided with a precise goal they sometimes remain a bit vague (and even boring) whereas providing a precise scope and plan a sort of defined achievement at the end can become too demanding for some people.
Firstly we thought about creating a sort on online treasure hunt based on popular social deduction games such as the werewolf (also known as Mafia).
We also found out that a version of this game already exists online in IRC chats.
Since at the time we were also working with IRC channels and bots we considered the idea of creating a customised environment that could recreate our fictional world. We also thought about expanding this universe by creating web pages that could report news, bios, gossips and more.
Needless to say, the project was rapidly escalating into something that looked much more like a plan for an all year of research than a workshop.
Considering the time frame we opted to focus on the creation of the fictional reality and characters and employ already existing game mechanics.
After a research into games based on social deduction we found one that one suitable to our purpose: Coup.
chaos.agents.bureau!!grand.opening: workshop
The workshop took place the 5th of November from 14.00 to 17.30.
welcoming and workshop presentation
We introduced the setting and explained the rules of the game.
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We made some slides to go through the points.
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the deck of cards
During the explanation of the game the deck of cards and all the elements were already placed on the table.
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We ended up producing two decks of cards:
- a black one which only shows the ability of the card itself;[image 1,4,5,7]
- a violet one which also contains a short description on the character that calls back to the fictional universe described here .[image 2,3]
During the workshop we played with the black version.
playing the game
We split in two groups of six people in order to play the game. It was quite funny so we played two matches and another one with the all group of participants (12 people).
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feedback moment
We took some time to discuss the game with the participants. We received some valuable feedbacks:
- some cards were maybe a bit too powerful compared to others;
- somehow the effort that we put in the creation of the fictional world and characters was a bit obscured in the black deck because it didn't contain the description of the characters that can make the player more involved in the story;
- the possibility to extend the role of the player itself and create a new character role assigned to each player that goes beyond the abilities and personalities of the Allies cards.