New Zealand has developed a vibrant and exciting community of game designers. We can easily make it to GenCon or Dragonmeet, Morgan told io9 over email.
io9 was able to chat with a couple of designers and participants who are involved in KiwiWeek, including Liam Stevens, who describes himself as a Kaitiaki, a steward orcaregiver who is part of the community responsible for KiwiRPG, and Brendon Bennetts. Stevens told us that no one stood over the others. In Te Ao M, community comes first, so I felt it was important for us to build a community that was self-supporting and less reliant on overseas parties.
According to a press release provided to io9 by Liz Parker, the story of the creative industries in New Zealand is making our small size our greatest strength. We have seen it in film and television and video games.
We are a culture that puts community and the group before the self, and that meshes well with a hobby likeRPGs that is inherently social in nature. Stevens wants to help bring other native, indigenous voices to the forefront of design. We are not very common in this hobby, so I want to see who we can welcome in.
Bennetts was struck by how generous everyone is. There are a dozen game masters who will happily offer advice if I'm stuck on adventure design.
The theater of the absurd holds true to our art, according to Stevens.
Bennetts said it was difficult to make generalizations about the culture of games in New Zealand.
Everything is tongue in cheek. Our culture has had a bit of a cultural cringe at attempts to be taken seriously. Stevens said that we are shaking this and doing better at finding our voice. Stevens wants people to see and recognize the breadth of talent that exists in Aotearoa, and so many international creators love appropriating M&#
There is a proverb called a Māori proverb. It's a chance for us to talk about the amazing things we're doing.
I think that the acceptance of other TTRPGs beyond D&D is growing, as I know lots of people who play Monster of the Week.
Stevens was asked by io9 to choose a couple favorites to share. The man was worth a lot. Pam Punzalan and Zedeck Siew are two designers that I am excited about. I keep coming back to Mothership and Mörk Borg. They just talk to me.
Bennetts chose games from New Zealand. It is a kind of game where you play a group of small-town cultists trying to summon a dark god. The tone is dark but it turns into a hilarious chaotic mess like something out of a show. If you are familiar with the games, a 7-9 roll is very satisfying.
Stevens helped create the name of the event, which honors the M&x101;ori te reo and the culture of play. We use metaphor and story to teach and explore philosophy, and we lean heavily into it from a young age.
You can either browse the #KiwiWeek tag on itch.io or peruse the bundle on DriveThruRPG. Here are some games from New Zealand.
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