The Wizarding World of Roleplaying

Debs and I, about fourth in the queue at the first Fantastic Beasts fan event 2016 in London
(Yes, J K Rowling was there. No she didn't hear us screaming)

Yes. I have a problem. I'm a little obsessed.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again - I need to write the Official Harry Potter tabletop roleplaying game. Not some "numbers filed off" unofficial one. I need to write an official, licensed RPG set within J K Rowling's Wizarding World.

The frustration that there isn't one, and that I'm not involved, ebbs and flows but it is times like yesterday when the leaked footage of an awesome looking video-game RPG within the Wizarding World hit the internet, that I start screaming at my computer.

First of all, about that video game footage. It looks amazing. I'm so glad I wasn't part of their focus group as I would have been leaping about the room, making noises like a Fwooper. It's a great studio behind it if the rumours are true (Avalanche who did Disney Infinity), and the game looks stunning.

Like Portkey Games and their Hogwarts Mystery game, they've been sensible and set the rumoured RPG in another time period to avoid clashing with the events of Harry Potter (and Fantastic Beasts). And like Portkey's Hogwarts Mystery it tells a new story within the Wizarding World, with new characters visiting familiar locations.

My character tutoring Lumos in Hogwarts Mystery - so long ago... I'm a fourth year now...

So the question is, if this fantastic video game, as well as Portkey's Hogwarts Mystery, can tell new stories at Hogwarts (and in the Wizarding World in general) that are not necessarily considered canon, why is a tabletop roleplaying game any different?

I'd just love some answers.

If it's fear of players creating their own stories and adventures within the Wizarding World, in the games they play and create sitting around a table, it's not like it's that far from fan-fiction. It's not making money and it's certainly not considered canon to the universe.

If it's worry about the potential publisher creating new stories and adventures, I'm sure that any adventure idea would be vetted by Warner Brothers, and is it that different from creating the narrative of the video games currently published or in development? When Portkey first announced their games there was a section in their FAQ's that said J K Rowling would be approving everything - a line that was removed a few months later making it seem like the developers have been given a little more free rein.

Is it just about the money? While a Harry Potter tabletop RPG would be huge in the games world, the tabletop games industry makes a fraction of the money that a video games company would.

I've addressed in earlier posts the many benefits of tabletop gaming and how a Harry Potter RPG would get kids (and adults) interacting sociably in a face-to-face environment, fuelling their imaginations, getting them thinking on their feet, problem solving, and creating. You can see the lengthier post here: http://autocratik.blogspot.com/2017/11/harry-potter-adventures-in-wizarding.html

Pitch layout for a potential Harry Potter RPG - layout by Will Brooks

That same post also details my first attempt at pitching to Warner Bros with the support of a major game company, and how it didn't get very far. I have to wonder if the thing that stopping a Harry Potter RPG is not speaking to the right people? Or getting through to them in the first place? When we pitched (successfully) to the BBC for the Doctor Who RPG, I learned that a factor in other companies' attempts at the license may be purely down to them not getting through to the right person with their proposal.

So my big questions are...

Why is there no Harry Potter / Wizarding World tabletop roleplaying game?

If it's purely financial, I can understand that - I'll just have to hope either to gain the backing of a successful and fluid publisher, or hope for a lottery win. Of course, if a publisher is already working towards a Potterverse game, please let me know!

If it's about creative control, then why can video games companies do all of the things that seem to hold a tabletop game back.

One day I'll corner the Warner execs in a room with J K Rowling, and I'll give them the Powerpoint presentation of a lifetime...

Until then, I'll just have to play with my hack of Tales from the Loop...

Three Doors

There's a really cool track on the VAST album (Visual Audio Sensory Theater) called "Three Doors". It has been circling my head a lot these last few days, as I really do feel like I'm trying to pick a direction.

WILD

If you've been following my blog for any length of time you know I've been working for many years on WILD, an RPG of Dreamsharing. Open, untethered, and born from my love of Inception, Dreamscape, Paprika and The Matrix. I've been working on it off and on while doing other projects and its always bubbling away at the back of my mind, like a constantly spinning top locked away in a safe, in a house, in the city of my subconscious.

But I keep suffering from doubt, and also hearing tales of how horrible our hobby can be. Ignorant, vocal men, mostly. Threatening creators, posting abuse online. I'm sick of it.

I tried to voice some positivity years ago by creating RPGaDAY, trying to get people talking about the positive aspects of gaming. But I'm so ashamed of the abuse and discrimination in my hobby.

WILD Fiction

The door next to working on WILD is to concentrate on the fiction. For a NaNoWriMo many moons ago I wrote the first book of a trilogy, set in the WILD universe. A teenage school-leaver finds herself trapped in a nightmare she cannot wake from, while her father tries to create what will eventually become the dreamshare technology of the game to try to guide her back to the waking world. It was bizarre, a little personal, and weird thinking as my lead character - an eighteen year old girl facing the pressures of leaving school, going to university, her strained relationships with her parents and the betrayals of her friends.

Once again, doubt has reared its ugly head. Can I write fiction? Would anyone want to read it? What's the point?

And behind door number 3?

Something else?

My desire to write the Harry Potter RPG has never subsided. I know it's a mostly fruitless exercise, but there's that part of me that knows it's a good thing. It could be great for kids and adults alike, getting kids using their imaginations rather than staring at a screen. But while things seem to be more likely now than ever before, with the Fantastic Beasts - Cases from the Wizarding World game on iOS, as well as the forthcoming Harry Potter miniatures game, I'm still just a dreamer. A lone writer with no financial backing or big company to put the money where my mouth is.

I know how it could work, how it wouldn't even really be an RPG, and part of me just wants to write a good chunk of it, and digitally print a couple of copies to really show off what I have in mind. Send copies to WB and JK Rowling. But even then, I'm just me.

Besides, I'm sure there are already others out there who are working on it.

--

So at the moment, I'm standing there, like the guy in the stock photo above. Looking at the doors.

I had a birthday recently, and there's a big one coming up next year. Part of me is just thinking "You're too old for this crap" and there's another part of me shouting "Get it done! Do something before the next birthday. You have a year. Get off your ass!"

Well, I'm off my ass. I'm just lost looking for the right door.

Staying up late to catch a Fantastic Beast

Last Thursday night we did the crazy and exhausting thing that every true fan does, and we went to the midnight opening first screening of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them at the IMAX. We'd already seen the first ten minutes thanks to attending the amazing Fan Event last month, but the movie continues to be a delight for fans of JK Rowling's Wizarding World.

You probably know what the story is by now - Newt Scamander, magizoologist, arrives in New York by ship (thinking about it, you can only apparate so far without risk, and portkeys have a nasty habit of making you sick... maybe a portkey would have affected the animals in the case too). He has a TARDIS-like suitcase storing many fantastic beasts, and some escape when his case gets muddled with budding baker/muggle, sorry - no-maj, Jacob Kowalski. The chase is on to recapture the beasts before they are harmed.

Simple huh?

Minor Spoilers follow... so shhhhhh...

No. Not simple at all. Behind this is not only the underlying threat of Gellert Grindelwald, the dark wizard that fought to undo the International Statute of Secrecy protecting the wizarding world from muggles (and vice-versa), but also the threat of a different kind of "beast" that is terrorising New York.

As expected, I loved the film. Great stuff, though very, very different from what you could have expected. It really does feel like the start of a much longer story (which will be told over the next four movies) and it doesn't follow the predictable Hollywood structure. Things happen because they have to, not because it follows a three act structure or "set pieces". It's a little jarring at first, but refreshing in the end.

At first I was unsure about the casting of Eddie Redmayne, especially as it felt in the trailers that he was going to be mumbling a lot through the film, but when you actually watch it it all makes perfect sense. He's quiet, introspective, shy, and (much like someone who spends all of his time with animals) rarely makes eye contact. He's determined to save lives, both the creatures he's protecting, and everyone around him - even the villain(s) of the piece.

It has some seriously dark moments too. With the major monster of the movie being the way humans treat things they don't understand, you can expect some dark turns. Not only that, MACUSA (the US equivalent of the Ministry of Magic) is super-paranoid about creatures, and exposure to the muggles. A bit of a comment about gun registration with the need for wizards to have a license to carry a wand. Hmmm... But also, a nasty bit about capital punishment as well, with MACUSA's equivalent of the gas chamber, where wizards are executed in a "death cell" - but it's okay, because they'll take your nice memories out of your head and put them in the pool that'll kill you and you'll be happy to go and see all those nice memories again. As I said... DARK!

We're already planning a second trip to see it, so we can take in the extra details that we missed the first time around (mostly due to it being the early hours of the morning).

--

On top of that, the few free moments I've had recently have been spent playing a little free app (available on Android and iOS) called Fantastic Beasts Cases from the Wizarding World. A new game approved by JK Rowling where you play an investigator for the Ministry of Magic's Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.

You partner with Mathilda Grimblehawk and go around locations trying to solve mysteries that involve beasts. It's a basic "find the object" game, with timers, mirrored levels, spot the difference, and more. It's horribly addictive.

--

What with that, and the announcement of a new Harry Potter Miniatures game coming next year from Knight Models...

Looks like I should brush off that pitch for a Harry Potter RPG again...  one day... one day...

Fantastic Beasts Fan Event (and Where to Find Us)

You're probably well aware by now by my posts about the regular visits to the Warner Bros. Studio Tour: The Making of Harry Potter, and my numerous posts about how and why a Harry Potter RPG would be a great thing, that the wife and I may be a little obsessed with JK Rowling's Wizarding World.

Just because you're allowed to do magic now doesn't mean you can whip your wands out for every tiny thing!
(Me and Debs in the queue - any excuse to wear the Hogwarts robes)

Press interviews the group at the
front of the queue

Last week we were lucky enough to be invited to the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them "Fan Event" in London, at the Cineworld Empire in Leicester Square. It was one of those things that they advertise on the film's social media pages - they get you to sign up for updates and you never really expect to get tickets. But, miracle of miracles, we had the email saying we had tickets reserved for us, and we hurriedly set about booking the necessary time off of work to make a quick trip to London.

We got there in plenty of time, but considering the event we were surprised to be about fifth in the queue with only a couple of hours to waste before they started letting in. Security was high, but the press presence was even higher, with them targeting all those who had made an effort to dress up for the night (as suggested on the invitation). We were interviewed by Sky News Germany, a website for Japan, and Good Morning Britain where our bemused and startled mugs graced the TV screens across the country the following morning.

Then, the doors opened and we were let in. Checking our names off of a list, we were given our tickets and had a UV mark made on our hands. Then it was into the entranceway to take in the cool decorations they'd done. Astounding considering they weren't even showing the film, just a few bits of it.

In the main hall, we handed our tickets over to get a specially produced Newt wand, and an even more special silver foil bag. That would be an essential item later... the drinks stands had been decorated with wanted posters of the cast, and there was a couple of booths where you could wave a wand and make a video of yourself doing magic effects.

Also on display were the costumes as worn by the cast for the film. We had just enough time to take in the sights before the doors opened to the auditorium and we were let in. A quick check of the UV marks on our hands, and double checking we had a silver bag each, and we were let into Cineworld's IMAX screen. 

Costumes as worn by the cast!

Once inside there was the decision of where to sit. We knew we were there to see footage from the film, but that was purely secondary. I mean, let's face it - we're going to see the film when it comes out anyway. Possibly more than once. No. The important thing is getting to sit at the front to get a good view for the interviews with the actors. 

We managed to get seats on the front row, to the side. It was only when we really settled into our seats and looked around we noticed that we were near the doors where the cast would emerge and walk to the stage for the event! 

With the audience settled, a guy came out to warm up the audience, to get them suitably worked up into a state of complete fan-frenzy. He got everyone cheering, ran around the audience doing some quiz questions to give away tickets for the London premiere, and hosted the fancy dress competition to determine who would win the big bluray boxed set of the Harry Potter movies. 

Then our real host, Edith Bowman, came out and took to the stage. She explained that it was a worldwide fan event, and the screens would be syncing up with audiences worldwide and live on Facebook. 

You can see the whole video online here -

As you can see from that, the main cast of the film were in London on stage (Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterson, Alison Sudol and Dan Fogler) along with director David Yates and producer David Heyman. They were joined via video from LA by Colin Farrell and Jon Voight.

They answered questions, and it really came across that everyone involved really got very into their characters and loved being part of the wizarding world. Despite the huge names involved, they just seemed to enjoy their time on the film, and the meaning of their characters, and the heart behind the story. I've been to a number of press conferences and you can tell when someone's faking it, or a bit cheesed off with having to do the press junkets. None of that was apparent here. It bodes very well for the franchise.

Then, of course, was the big moment when they brought out the extra chair. Debs was about five feet away from where JK Rowling was standing waiting to take to the stage. I'm surprised she didn't just jump over the railing and hug her right then.

JK Rowling took to the stage, and announced that Fantastic Beasts wouldn't be a trilogy as originally thought, and that it would be five films. The audience went nuts. 

Then the celebs left, the live feed ended, the press cameras were taken away and we were asked to put our phones in those special silver bags, to ensure we didn't video any of what was about to be shown. Security stood at the front of the cinema with nightvision goggles to try to catch any acts of piracy, and they screened the first ten minutes of the film.

I won't go into many details, but I will say that it starts just like a Harry Potter movie, with the music, the dark clouds, the camera flying through the logo. Then, with an epic explosion of magic, we see Gellert Grindelwald, one of the most dangerous dark wizards of all time, defeat a group of wizards. Headlines from newspapers whiz by before we join Newt Scamander...

Epic stuff. And an interesting tie into the history behind Harry Potter - events covered in the books but not put on film. 

The T-shirt and wand we had in the goodie bags!

The ten minutes was over way too fast (everyone's going to want a toy Niffler) and we started to shuffle out of the screen. 

We were collared by some of the publicity people for the film and they recorded our reactions for possible use in some advertising, then headed over to the exit where they gave us all goodie bags that contained our tickets again (so we could keep them as a memento), a poster and a t-shirt (far too small for my lardy arse, but a very cool t-shirt all the same). 

The back of the t-shirt, the ticket and the free bag of popcorn everyone got!

Very much looking forward to the movie, and had a real blast at the fan event!