za3k > games > in media res

3+ players tell a story together

supplies needed: pencil and paper (optional)

playtime 5-10 minutes

written by zachary "za3k" vance on 2022-02-25

the middle

• "Yep, that's me. I bet you're wondering how I got into this situation... here on mars... running from a jeep of bandits... wearing nothing but my underclothes..."
• start in the middle of the story
• each player adds onto the sentence in turn. you can actually write down the middle if you want, but don't bother writing down the rest of the story

the beginning

• It all started one sunny day in Florida, when I missed the bus
• each player tells one sentence of the story at a time. once you get to the middle of the story, everyone cheers.

the end

• And that's how I became known as the Moon Emerald Kid.
• once the story ends, stop.

playtesting results

• got boring once you hit the middle again. make the middle a cliffhanger and immediately resolve everything, or stop there. i worked as a puma trainer. the pay wasn't great, but i just love taunting pumas.