Hello! Do you know of any ttrpgs that feature time travel? Like, within the game -- not "modern person lands in 1600" but rather "You're redoing last month" kinda thing. Bonus points if it works with two people and/or is on the shorter side :D
Thank you for this blog btw! I'm finding so many cool games to check out.
THEME: Time Travel (Duet-Friendly)
Hello! Thank you so much! Sometimes in the daily grind it is easy to feel like my blog is not noticed much, and these little reminders that I'm appreciated go a long way.
I've got quite a few recs for you today!
Instructions for using your PERSONAL TIME DEVICE, by Alice V.
Through means, connections, or cunning your characters managed to get their hands on Personal Time Devices and because of that were contacted by the House Underneath Time, an ever present organization that stands outside history.
Go on missions through history, do some time sightseeing, if anything goes wrong, don't worry, you can always time travel.
This game styles itself as an instruction manual for a piece of equipment, immersing you into a world where time travel is possible, and in some cases, even a fad. Your instruments deal with time in an interesting way - for example, Past Binoculars, which allow you to see as long as a week into the past, or a Restoration Gun, which allows you to restore an item to a past state.
From what I can gather, the time travel in this game isn't restricted to a specific time period, but it does look like time travel is restricted in other games. You are agents attempting to complete missions, and re-doing spans of time if you mess something up. If you want an immersive game with a fresh outlook on time travel, you might like this game.
Time & Space & An Old Familiar Face, by garlicbreadandroses.
A long time ago, someone who means something to you died under semi-mysterious circumstances. Maybe they were your partner or your brother or a writer you like, it doesn't matter. What matters is that you know things would have been different if you were there. You've lost countless hours wishing for a way to go back and save them. Now, at last, you've found one. You've figured out how to send yourself back in time. It's not exactly a precise method and there's more cool-down required than you'd prefer, but this is your chance. One way or another, you're going to rewrite history.
Time & Space & An Old Familiar Face uses a dice pool to generate a number of complications, which can range from manageable to incredibly complicated. Your characters move through eight scenes together, navigating through complications to determine if your time traveler can save their loved one, or if their loved one is truly doomed.
You can technically replay scenes once to attempt to address every problem, but replaying a scene runs the risk of creating a paradox. Too many paradoxes, and you cannot save the doomed one. This game has the potential to be very emotional, as it touches heavily on themes of grief and regret; for this reason I recommend playing this game with someone you trust.
The Time Traveler's Life, by Gamenomicon.
Had we but World enough, and Time, This coyness, Lady, were no crime. We would sit down, and think which way To walk, and pass our long Loves Day.
-Andrew Marvell, To His Coy Mistress
The Time Traveler's Life is an RPG created using the Second Guess System first used in games like One White Eye and The Date. Here, the system of impending dread and self-deception is instead tweaked and expanded into a two player (duo) game that explores the uncertainty of a relationship between a time traveler and their significant other who experiences time in the standard, linear manner. Here, the system is expanded to two pages so that both the Time Traveler and the Significant Other get their own single page playbook and semi-interlocking prompts that can show players a whole new way to Twist events as each player experiences their character’s life in a different order.
Second Guess games are typically games in which characters have to re-assess their judgement of themselves and the world around them. This is represented by the way you have to find a new way to answer a question when you roll it a second time. Typically Second Guess games are played solo, so I think it's interesting that this hack has found a way to make it work for two people! If you like romance, and stories about overcoming obstacles in relationships, you might like this game.
Time To Drop, by Marn S..
YOU are a member of a heist crew about to pull off ONE LAST JOB. You and your crew are under the impression that you only have 24 HOURS left with one another - 12 to finalize your preparation, and 12 to pull off the heist itself.
You and your crew are wrong.
You are about to find yourselves trapped in a loop of those same 24 hours, living and reliving them as many times as it takes to identify every complication, refine your plan, and get it right. No one besides your crew will remember the previous loops as clear as day, but make a strong enough impression on someone in one loop and it might carry to the next. What you do here matters. What you do here has to matter, if you ever want to say your final goodbyes and get out of the game for good.
Time to drop. Fuck shit up.
Time To Drop is a GM-less game that can accommodate a larger group of players, but I think you can also play it as a duet! Party of One recently released an episode of this game, which would be a great example of how to play this game with just two players. You use a tarot deck and some dice to figure out what complications come up and how you will overcome them. You'll also need the Nonagon Infinity album by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard! You use this as a timer for the heist.
Since the game is structured after a heist, you'll see a number of phases and aids to help you work through the job. The album you play is 41 minutes in length, which also is the length of your time loop: when the album ends, the loop resets. You could play through multiple loops in one session, or have each session be its own loop. I like the fact that the built-in timer ensures that you finish the game on time; it looks like a great option for people on a tight schedule!
Thursday is a tabletop role playing game for 2-4 players of time loops, drama, and learning from your mistakes inspired by Russian Doll.
It is a game about finding out what is important in life as you fall off the fire escape for the fifth time. It's about finally making that deep connection, but knowing it'll all be lost with the next reset. Discover your character's hidden backstory and unmet desires, and help them reach the personal epiphany they need to escape the fatal time loop and move on.
Thursday is based on the No Dice No Masters system created by Avery Alder, and has been adapted for a shorter mini series length game with no prep.
This is another game that was featured on Party of One! Such a great resource for two-player demos. This is a great game for folks who want to delve into the complex web of character motivations, flaws, and emotions. The No Dice No Masters game system provides you with a series of moves that you can use; some of these moves are free, some of these moves give you a Token, and some of these moves cost a Token to use. This creates an ebb and flow in the narrative, while giving players control over when they want a scene to really it - especially the Weak Move Die, which gives you the power to end a loop when you think it's appropriate.
When The Music Stops, by Yuri Runnel.
When the Music Stops is a GM-less story game for 1-5 players that should last 2-4 hours. The game is designed to be played while listening to a mix-tape prepared in advance by one of the players and rewinding it to go back in time. The characters work together in order to prevent a big disaster from coming to pass, struggling against the rigidity of events and time itself.
The game is setting-agnostic, where the only assumption being made is that characters possess some method or ability to travel through time. It's also tone-agnostic, as what constitutes a "disaster" is left vague. It could be anything from a prom gone wrong due to a senior prank to the first omen of the world ending.
A great option for folks who love to find music that matches your play. You'll collaboratively generate the obstacles that prevent you from resolving the Disaster until the very last minute; these obstacles will be ripples in time that you can affect, hopefully changing the course of time in your favor. When The Music Stops uses the lyrics of your final song to determine what kind of disaster happens, which is thematically genius, since the final song will play when the disaster hits. I love the idea of using music as a mechanic that will deepen your experience of the story, and that's why I'm recommending this game.
Across Time, by War Song Games.
Heavily inspired by the book, The Time Traveler’s Wife, this journaling TTRPG explores the highs and lows of companionship with a person that has a condition to spontaneously time travel. It deals with themes of fate, love, morality, and of course time. Is your life your own? Or has it already been chosen for you?
One player will take on the role of the Traveler, and the other, the role of the Constant. The Traveler will jump through time to different defining points of the Constant’s life. The Constant, on the other hand, is simply living their natural, linear life, which is often interrupted, blessed, shaken, or driven by the inevitable run-ins with their once and future companion.
Across Time is mostly a prompt game, with cards drawn from a deck to inspire a scene. Your characters will each roll different sets of dice to determine their ages, and use these prompts to write journal entries about their lives and what's happening for them in the moment. Your journal entries will happen at different times, and in a different order, so you'll likely have to check with your partner to make sure your writing includes facts that they've already established.
This is a great game option for folks who may not be able to play at the same time, or who might prefer writing and contemplation for instant improv.
You Should Also Check Out…
Time Heist, by roll/flip/draw.
Against Time And Death, by Nick Bate. Inspired by This Is How You Lose The Time War!
Asynchronous, by Tiny Ghost Chef Games.
You're Stuck in a Death Loop, by CoDA de Moda.
If you're lost you can look and you will find me, Time after Time, by breathingstories.
My Time Travel Tag! I've got a lot of great time-related recommendations there.
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