“A Christmas Carol is a much-loved story centred around Scrooge – a thoroughly unlikeable character whose life is transformed by encounters with a series of spirits. It has been filmed many times, and in many styles. The story of his redemption has been told by actors, singers, cartoon characters and even muppets.
Scrooge’s greed is probably the best known of the “seven deadly sins”, but why can’t we tell stories about people whose lives suffer from an unchecked relationship to any of the other vices? What about people who are ruining the lives of people around them because of their pride, their wrath, their gluttony, their envy, their lust, or their sloth? Can they be rescued too?”
So the back cover of Expect Three Visitors says. Inspired by A Christmas Carol and It’s a Wonderful Life, the game is a deep and thoughtful exploration of the human condition. Each player takes the role of a Client, someone whose life is deeply motivated by one of the seven deadly sins, and a Spirit trying to guide another player’s Client back to the path of goodness.
The game plays over six chapters:
1. Establishment
2. Vision of the Past
3. Vision of the Present
4. Vision of the Future
5. Judgement
6. Epilogue
For each chapter, the players take it turns acting as a Spirit, to frame a scene for the player’s Client on their left. As secondary characters are introduced, they are written down on an index card and played by the Spirit and other players.
In the Establishment Scene, the Client will introduce themselves, perhaps introduce some supporting characters, and describe their life in a way to exemplify the deadly sin which motivates them. The Spirit and other players help by taking on the roles of those supporting characters.
Each of the Vision Scenes will be framed by a randomly drawn playing card. If a Heart is drawn, the scene will be about love. If a Club is drawn, the scene will be about the harm done by the Client’s sin. If a diamond is drawn, the scene will demonstrate the inverse virtue of the Client’s sin (For example, Greed becomes Generosity.) If a spade is drawn, the scene will be about loss and death as a result of the Client’s sin. If a supporting character is killed in a scene, the Client should tear that character’s index card in half to reinforce the permanence of that death.
Once all the Spirits and Clients have completed their visions, a Council of Judgement is formed. Each player has one blind card, and everyone will simultaneously give that card to the Client they feel is most worthy of redemption. If any Client receives two or more cards, they are transformed and live out a good life. If they receive a single black card, they remain stuck in their evil life, but maybe are a little less bad. If they receive a single red card, they improve their life, but at a cost. However, if a client receives no cards at all, they are doomed to sink further and further into the self-destruction of their sin.
Once the game is over, it’s helpful to hold a bit of a debriefing to talk about what happened and how you may feel about it. What did everyone take away from the game? Some form of aftercare is important after games like Expect Three Visitors. Games like this are designed to be emotionally engaging and thought-provoking, and you want everyone to leave the table satisfied rather than upset.
Roleplaying gamers tend to fall on a spectrum. On the one side, there are players who want to chuck dice at bad guys and on the other end are people who want deep emotional roleplaying. Expect Three Visitors is one of the most emotionally charged games I’ve encountered in a long time. This is especially true if you frame this game as a holiday game, played at a time when both vice and virtues are on their highest display. Let me be VERY clear, that I say that as a compliment. Unfortunately, I fall pretty far into the “chuck dice at it” end of the spectrum. While it may not be apparent from the holiday content we put out, the holiday season is hard for me. It’s hard for a lot of people. For some, this game is exactly what they want: a chance to face a world of vice head-on. I, however, like to play games that let me escape from the sort of things I too often deal with in the real world. So this isn’t a good game for me, but it is a great game for the sort of players it caters to.
This review is scheduled to go live on Black Friday. A day that arguably celebrates a number of vices. So I’d like to end this review by asking you to take care of yourself and to take care of one another. Tip your servers and thank your retail workers. Be happy, be kind.
You can find Plane Sailing Games online at https://planesailinggames.com or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/PlaneSailingGames
