Today is Fallen London’s official 15th birthday, and the date Failbetter was incorporated! Happy birthday to us.
Fallen London: The Roleplaying Game first look
Magpie Games are the very able creators behind Fallen London: The Roleplaying Game, and they’re now at a point where they’re ready to share a first look at the game itself!
They’re running free online sessions for people to try the new system today, Saturday the 11th of January. This is the first time the system will have been seen anywhere, in advance of the Quickstart guide being published and the Kickstarter launching! There are seventy (!) ready and willing game masters, a cadre of pre-prepared characters, and an enticing example Venture all waiting for you.
To find out timings and sign up to play, join the Magpie Games discord. We’re filling slots ad hoc so even if it looks busy, drop in and see if there’s space!
We’re also doing a panel on twitch at 9pm GMT/4pm Eastern with Mark and Brandon from Magpie and yours truly. Hope to see you there!
Celebrating Fallen London on her 15th birthday
I first came across Fallen London when I was working at an art gallery, making games about art for their website. My boss at the time was playing this new online game. She loved it so much, I remember her shouting aloud about some achievement, and slapping her bank card on the table in excitement to support this weird, new thing.
That was in 2009, when Echo Bazaar (as it was then known) was a few thousand words in total. Actions regenerated at a rate of one every seven minutes, and capped at ten. By that December, there were 70,000 words in the game, death had been introduced, and Londoners were enjoying the first Christmas in the Neath.
On the 11th of January 2010, Failbetter was incorporated. With it all being official, that’s the date we consider to be Fallen London’s birthday.
Fallen London now contains over 4.5 million words, which is about five complete Shakespeares. It’s spawned multiple other games and enabled us to pay our bills for a decade and a half; a feat which has eluded many of our contemporaries. I’ve been going through the thousands of responses to the Fallen London player survey this week, which included so many stories of the ways our game has helped people through difficult times; we’re honoured to have a small place in your lives.
This niche game has thrived thanks to the very specific talents of its many contributors; I invite you to take a look at the credits page if you haven’t before.
Thank you to all of them, and to you, delicious friend.
(I’m indebted to the wiki Fallen London timeline for some of the details above. It contains much more historical detail about the game if you’re interested.)
Tea and Treasures
In celebration of the 15th birthday, some of our creator friends from down the years have reissued some very special treats:
- Have you ever wanted to squeeze a Master? Mr Pages crochet kits are back in stock at The Pigeon’s Nest!
- Bex at The Pigeon’s Nest is also offering to make ten complete Mr Pages to order. Act quickly to add a Master to your household!
- The pattern to crochet your own Mr Pages is free, as ever, and now even easier to download.
- Friday Afternoon Tea are stocking their Love and Murder Fallen London brew year-round, so for an atmospheric tea experience to accompany your play, hop over and pick some up.
