Jason Anarchy Games recently successfully funded a new instalment to the Drinking Quest series. To mark the occasion we look back at the Drinking Quest game feature in Issue 16 with this article extract. The issue is still available as digital download or in limited print stock.
By Matthew Lee
You are going on an adventure! But watch out, for this is a harrowing and sometimes baffling non-sequitur of mayhem, fighting and beverages. Will you fall by the wayside, or come out on top? Those who dare, win! But be careful not to spill your drink.
Drinking Quest is a game of fantasy and adventure that is part roleplay game and part drinking game. Players each take on the role of a character and play through a quest, which is delivered by a deck of cards. Obstacles and monsters stand in the players’ way, which they struggle against to fulfil the quest objectives. If the worst should happen and a character is killed, the player simply chugs their drink to revive the hero and continue on.
The creator and publisher of Drinking Quest is Canadian game designer Jason Anarchy. His ethos behind the game is very simple. “Drinking with your friends and having a game night is a pretty perfect formula for a fun evening.” Jason explained. “[The game is] really quick to learn and start, and the ridiculous fictional characters in the game are all drinking along with you.”
Let’s play a little game
Mashing a roleplay and drinking game together may seem like a simple enough concept. But Jason had his work cut out for him. While a long time roleplay gamer, and not unfamiliar with adding his own spin to existing game systems, Drinking Quest called for Jason to tackle the project from the ground up.
“I had always done stuff like this as a hobby without ever thinking it as a career.” Jason said. “I would take mechanics from other games and mod them in a way to make them more fun and accessible. My friends were always into it and it really taught me what kind of mechanics work and which ones don’t.”
The first step was defining what the game would achieve. This gave Jason a clear outcome to work towards, and provided the foundation around which all else was built. As Jason described the process “Basically [I was] deciding what I wanted the final game to be and then working backwards. Then it’s just a series of 1000 small steps before the game is printed and in your hand.”
One of the main issues Jason faced was how to integrate the drinking aspect into the roleplay game. He wanted to make sure that the inclusion of drinking was fun, but not gratuitous. The main goal would be to play Drinking Quest to its conclusion, not to become so intoxicated that you forget the game ever happened.
“As far as Drinking Games go, this is likely the safest one on the market. It’s a light RPG and a light Drinking Game.” Jason explained. “The RPG elements needed to be simple enough to play while drinking and the drinking elements needed to have a pacing mechanism so people actually finished the game.”
To achieve this Jason needed to carefully control how the chugging mechanic was handled. Drinking became a way to revive fallen characters, giving it an important role, but not one that would happen frequently. Further, each game is divided into four quests. Players are only required to chug once each quest, being allowed to opt for smaller subsequent swigs where required. “That stops it from being like most drinking games where it’s just ‘drink as much as you can as fast as you can’”. Said Jason.
However, players can decide to change or ignore the rules. The instructions give some basic guidelines on how the drinking aspect can be handled. But as Jason points out, “Ultimately it’s up to the player what they’re drinking, so it’s expected that they’re drinking within their tolerance.”
Typically roleplay games have a dungeon master, or game master, who delivers the session content to the players. Drinking where a game is involved is a social activity, and Jason didn’t want the dungeon master trapped behind a screen unable to participate.
To this end Jason introduced a quest card deck. These are card which contain the required plot points to advance the story, with additional events and monsters to provide a bit of variety. Jason gave some insight into this decision, “A Drinking RPG shouldn’t have a DM so the cards run the show and everyone gets to be a hero and drink with their friends.”
Cards play an important role in the game, but Jason doesn’t consider Drinking Quest a card game. They deliver the narrative and gameplay, but in the same way a choose-your-own-adventure book provides sections of a multi-branch story. “I had played a few random cards game but overall I wouldn’t have described myself as card game person.” Said Jason. “Drinking Quest uses cards, but basically to tell the story.”
The remainder of this article is available in Issue 16. The issue is still available as a digital download or in print.
