Dwelling
A downloadable game
An old house, your new home... and you aren’t the only one restless at night.
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Dwelling is a role-playing game and short story for one.
Taking on the role of the embodied narrator you will wander through your new strange home at night. Conjuring spectres and finding they summon parts of your past along with them. Read, write, and draw in this curated solitary experience of a sleepless night in a haunted house.
As you navigate the house at night you find yourself stumbling into strange occurrences in each room, strange spectres summoned before your eyes. Spectres that slink, stretch, drip and ooze. Draw, sketch, or collage your spectres into being.
With each spectre comes something else dredged up with them. Your mind swirls as you get lost in remembering a time you've felt like this before. Each memory comes up in small pieces, as you are lost wondering where were you? What happened? What was left after that moment?
As the memory slips away, so does your spectre, leaving you alone, once again, in an empty room in the middle of the night. Though something is different, something has changed, something about this encounter has left a mark on you.
This edition of Dwelling is the Expanded edition of Dwelling which includes an additional 6 rooms originally published in the Dwelling: Addition companion zine.
Game includes: the digital version of the gamebook, printable room spreads for print & play, printable safety tools for print & play. Text-only version of the game is also available.
Physical copies are available on the Good Luck Press website.
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Credits
Design, Layout, Illustration, Writing: Seb Pines
Editing: Will Jobst
Playtesters:
Samuel Mendez, Caitlin Knight, Plumpy Thimble, WhatNames, Linda "Druttercup" Evans, R. Gregory, and @latibulous.
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"I have not been this strongly pulled into a solo game ever. I felt that I was much more the character in the book than a character in other games where I feel I am clearly "playing." Writing in the book and marking yourself and reading, this gameplay loop is very strong and carries the player through the experience in an ethereal manner." - Floating Chair
"It wasn't what I was expecting from a solo RPG. It felt more like a partnership in storytelling with the book, and it was a much richer experience than what I was expecting." - Plumpy Thimble
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Reviewed on Liber Ludorum - https://liberludorum.com/2021/07/23/dwelling-a-book-for-ghosts-to-haunt/
Featured on DiceBreaker - https://www.dicebreaker.com/games/dwelling/news/dwelling-solo-rpg-cyoa-legacy-game-kickstarter
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Status | Released |
Category | Physical game |
Rating | Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars (32 total ratings) |
Author | spines |
Tags | Drawing, Ghosts, Horror, journalling, Narrative, prose, Singleplayer, solo, Solo RPG, Story Rich |
Purchase
In order to download this game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $15 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Exclusive content
Support this game at or above a special price point to receive something exclusive.
Community Copy
Free copies of Dwelling available to marginalized and low income individuals.
Development log
- Dwelling Expanded Update75 days ago
Comments
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This game looks absolutely gorgeous! Do you plan on adding any more community copies at any point? Planning on buying it when I have more money available either way :))
I'm thinking about getting the physical copies of this and Addition, but what is in Dwelling: Expanded edition? How different will it be?
Thanks for asking! Dwelling: Expanded edition will have the extra rooms in the Addition zine and some updated art and that's it for the changes from the first printing. It won't include the designer notes from the Addition zine, just the extra rooms and the core game text will be unchanged.
This sounds amazing its on my to play list :-) will you be releasing any more community copies please?
Can you add more screenshots?
Can't wait to play hehehe
I hope they release more community copies soon. i really want to try this game, looks so cool.
Apologies for missing this comment, just added a bunch more!
I was wondering if there is any way to get a copy of the room spreads by chance? I bought a physical copy from a local store that I work at and really don’t want to draw on the pages if possible.
yes! feel free to grab a community copy to get access to the room spread downloads or if it runs out you can contact me through the Good Luck Press site at goodluckpress.co and I'll get you set up with an itch key!
Thank you so much! We are very much enjoying this game and we can’t wait to play all the way through.
This is a truly glorious and magical book. I had a wonderful, nostalgic, emotional and silly time with this game. This is such a beautifully presented, thoughtful and inspired concept.
It also helped me get over writing and drawing in-game books, which I am very thankful for
I played this at the beginning of the year and have been enchanted by it since.
I like this game but I cannot pay for it, could you please make some community copies?I really want to try this!!!!!!!!
THANKS
I just added some! I hope you enjoy the game!
thanks!
This is truly glorious and magical. I've only played through a few rooms so far, but I'm having the absolute best time and this is such a beautifully presented, thoughtful and insoired concept. I'm absolutely in love!
Finished playing through tonight and look forward to having more cogent thoughts on it another day, but I absolutely loved this truly novel and enchanting game book. Absolutely wonderful!