The Name of the Game

This last weekend, Awen and I were listening to Session 0 of a new podcast, Redemption HQ (link below). And if you love Everyday Heroes, you definitely need to check it out. This new bi-weekly podcast features four of “Walt’s Boys”—Brobarian69, Spectral Force, HarlenReaver, and Robert_D—swapping stories and talking news, reviews, how-tos, and everything else about Everyday Heroes and E.G.O. It is going to be informative, instructive, entertaining, and downright fun. Session 0 was a “Four Everyday Heroes walk into a bar and get to know each other” affair. From what I have heard, Session 1 will focus on developing characters for Everyday Heroes and E.G.O.

One of the things that struck us, as we were listening in on the conversation, was how much TTRPG players love their games, the worlds that these games create, and the characters that they create to inhabit, explore, and adventure there. In fact, a common way for players to establish their identities is by naming the games and characters that they have played over time, like epic heroes reciting their genealogies to each other. And then it struck us that, although E.G.O. has a name for its program, it doesn’t have a name for its game.

What’s in a name?

Could it be that we are missing something in the way that we promote and build the E.G.O. program? No TTRPG hobbyist wakes up and decides that what they would really like to do with their free time is find and join a program with a cool app. No, they wake up wanting to find cool and exciting games, set in cool and exciting worlds, with cool and exciting characters that they can play. And once they find them, they join game communities online, at their local stores, at conventions, or in organized-play programs to play them. 

Now, at the beginning of the E.G.O. program, we were all just kids with a crazy dream. All we had were the outlines for a program, adventures, and a cool app.* But now, things are different. We have a season of adventures for Everyday Heroes to explore as agents of REDEMPTION with nine episodes, four side-adventures, and one helluva multi-table event at Gen Con. And soon, REDEMPTION agents will foray into new worlds and against new foes, some of which involve the worlds of Everyday Heroes Cinematic Adventures and our developing IPs. 

Maybe we shouldn’t put so much emphasis on encouraging folks to join our E.G.O. program, so they can play E.G.O. games using our app. Instead, maybe we should be inviting folks to join us in playing (let’s just call it) REDEMPTION, the terrific new Everyday Heroes game specifically designed for E.G.O., the Evil Genius Organized-Play Program. Because players want great games, and we have one.

REDEMPTION has all the cinematic flavor of other Everyday Heroes adventures, in which players star in their own action movie. However, REDEMPTION adventures are intentionally designed to favor fun and humor. Think Everyday Heroes seasoned with a bit of Free Guy, Last Action Hero, Archer, The Venture Bros, and maybe even a dash of Disenchanted. It’s a seriously fun game that doesn’t take itself too seriously. 

Players become agents of REDEMPTION, a covert, global organization of Everyday Heroes committed to protecting the innocent and saving the world from threats beyond the reach of governments. Governed by a mysterious “Board of Directors,” agents are primarily under the direction of Walt DeWalt, their enigmatic yet folksy REDEMPTION handler. Strange occurrences and threats from the Earth to the Moon lead agents to discover another clandestine organization, whose plans threaten not only our world, but also other dimensions in the Everyday Heroes multiverse.

Now, that sounds like an invitation that I would be interested in. How about you?  Join here: https://forms.gle/Wu7mzVDmnRWY8ri6A

* The E.G.O. program uses a web-based app, Dispatch, to let players schedule, find, and play games online, at conventions, and in venues all over the world. What’s more, the app tracks the progress of your characters as their adventures unfold, so that you don’t have to. Players can unlock additional Talents and Classes from other Everyday Heroes products that they have purchased. The adventures are all between 2 and 4 hours, so you can run or play them in an afternoon, and you can earn in-game and in-store perks and rewards for playing or running a game. For more about the E.G.O. Program, go to https://evilgeniusgames.com/the-organized-play/

Session 1 of REDEMPTION HQ: https://youtu.be/a3hwRb262no