Well, here goes game number 2.

Readers over at the Facebook page voted for science fiction comedy… so that’s what we’re going to do. But what exactly am I aiming for? What kind of comedy? Are we talking The Orville or Spaceballs? Will this be more Family Guy or Dr. Strangelove?

Honestly, it’s hard. Comedy is VERY hard. I actually did a few stand up sets back in college, and having studied comedy as an undergrad and even getting to sit in with Michael J. Nelson putting in his two cents during one of our classes taught me one thing.

Whatever you do try and be funny, it can and will be analyzed and dissected and thought about. Making someone laugh is easy… but making them laugh and think is much more difficult.

And that’s really what I’m going for. I want the players to laugh, but also to think. There are plenty of cheap shots I can make at science fiction in general. But the obvious joke just won’t do. Comedy is also, at its most basic, social commentary. Comedy is a way to discuss social issues in a way that may be more palatable for many people. And that’s what I want to do with this game, too. In other words, it also has to be relatable and easy to grasp, so I’ll be going for the Battlestar Galactica approach.

Keep it real.

Things will be real except when they’re not. What this means is that the setting must be something the average player can quickly recognize. To really tell the kind of story I want to tell, I was thinking of going the cyberpunk route. Massive corporations control everything. Poverty and class inequality are at apocalyptic levels. Small groups are trying to rally to overthrow those in power who exploit the masses. Technology and surveillance are everywhere. Law enforcement is little more than an arm of the companies that run everything.

So… you know. Basically 2020 but with starships.

A cyberpunk setting allows me to do a lot of justify a lot of the tropes of JRPG. It allows for some structure while I can also develop a semi-open world for the players to explore and find missions. Look and feel-wise, I’m aiming for something like a cross between Firefly and The Expanse. Realistic where possible but with a few embellishments. Guns are all bullets and gunpowder. Ships obey the laws of physics except for one or two things to make the setting interstellar in nature.

And it will be CONSISTENT.

This gives me a rough area to start. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go rewatch some Firefly, Guardians of the Galaxy, The Expanse, and The Orville for some inspiration.