Heartbreak & Heroines

There is a new kickstarter up for a game called Heartbreak & Heroines (hat tip to Borderhouse Blog).

First impression is very strong. I am intrigued. This may be my first RPG purchase in a long time. We will have to see. With Borders going out of business, anything can happen. Funds need to be allocated wisely. I am running on a tight budget this year due to newborn and some sickness with my wife. I had to pay the full out of pocket on my health insurance two years in a row (the annual break fell conveniently between the birth and the sickness, wonderful luck, eh?). If I wasn't under that kind of pressure, I would drop $25 on this in a second.

The artist doing (as I understand it) the entire book's artwork is a fellow Atlanta resident, Joanne Renaud. Her work feels very Victorian to me. Also a very classical hand-drawn feel. As far as RPGs go I could easily see it in Ars Magica or Mouseguard books. Below is my favorite piece from her gallery. Makes me think of a tense political scene in an Ars Magica game.

I have a few concerns with the game. I hope they are misplaced in the final analysis once I have seen the product.

I worry that the game so heavily genders itself, using our gendering standards. In Novarium, I have a very gendered world. But it is flipped. Women are portrayed as being well... like men view themselves. And men are portrayed as men view women. The point is to challenge the stereotypes that form as a result of male physical prowess (by undermining it through female magical exclusivity), not reinforce them.

I worry that this will be headed down the road towards the idea of a "girl" RPG, much like "girl" video games (which I despise). I'm not saying this game is Barbie & Dragons (far from it, by the looks of things), I just hesitate to take even one step down that road. The descriptions seem to feed into the stereotypes that dominate the media about how women are. For example, portraying adventuring as a response to heartbreak rather than just a choice to live a dangerous lifestyle; women are forced into adventure while men embrace the challenge willingly.

I also worry that they are going with a basic 2d6 system. This will further feed into a view that this is a dumbed down game for women (you know, because they are so stoopid!). Just like the female push-up and the underarm throwing style of softball.

Now I really really hope that is not the case here. I really hope they can pull it off without falling into these traps.

So check it out. Support it if you feel like it is a game you want to see made.