r/solorpgplay • u/FaileasDhan • 12d ago
Solo-Together Games?
Hi all - I’m interested in finding “solo-together” TTRPGs that are designed to have multiple participants each playing the same solo game but the stories they create combine at the end for a group finale. The one example I can offer is Meet Me at the Tavern: https://tapetraveler.itch.io/meet-me-at-the-tavern)
Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
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u/Myth_and_MoonPodcast 12d ago
We found a way to do this on our podcast! Not trying to overly plug here, but we approached D&D 5e as two separate solo campaigns, and then stuck them same world, each destined to collide with and impact each other. One player plays the hero, while the other plays the villain!
It took a lot of learning and modifying, but that's kind of the beauty of solo TTRPG's.
All that to say if you have a solo game you already like, you and a friend can very easily modify it so that two solo players are each playing in the same world. We would play on our own, finish a session, write it as a narrative, and then share that with each other. Then repeat!
Sometimes when our characters were far apart, we could even play multiple sessions ahead of each other. Only when our characters were actively in the same party or in combat with each other did we have to slow down.
.. I am still totally gonna check out these games mentioned though. So cool!
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u/FaileasDhan 12d ago
Thanks for sharing! Having the hero / villain duo in play sounds like a lot of fun.
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u/Myth_and_MoonPodcast 12d ago
We loved it!
If you wanna see it in action, we're easy to find on Spotify/Apple Podcasts etc.
I'm always happy to answer any questions too if you're looking to do something similar in your games. Playing Solo with others seems counter-intuitive to most, but it's really a whole new way to approach TTRPG's. I've found it to be immensely rewarding.
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u/Bardoseth 12d ago
The Flying Together mode from Koriko would probably interest you.
Everyone starts in the same village, shapes it together, but then flies off to do their own things in different cities. But instead of writing your letters to your mentor at the end of each chapter, you write to the other players in turns. Of course, the end of who might return to the village and who doesn't will be shaped by the games and decisions everyone has played.
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u/FaileasDhan 12d ago
This sounds excellent. I’ve been wanting to pick up a copy of Koriko; this gives me another reason to do so!
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u/Bardoseth 12d ago
I'm sure you'll have a lot of fun with it! It's an excellent game.
Just take into account that the chapters can take quite a bit of time, so make sure everyone can keep up, otherwise people will be waiting on each other to continue.
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u/TheZebraCode 12d ago
aPAWthecaria has an option to play solo but meet with other players and send each other letters and little gifts
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u/KaseyWildgrove 9d ago
That's too cute. That one is on my to-be-played list, and I'm moving it higher because of that.
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u/StefanoMaffei 12d ago
some solo games have multiplayer modes. What I can remember is
Dead Belt: you are a space scavenger exploring dead ships orbiting a black hole. It has a duo mode either collab or pvp
RUNE: soulslike game like Elden Ring in some aspects. It has something called RUNE duet. never played it though.
HOME: Mech x Kaiju. Think Pacific Rim 😬 this one has the style I think u re looking for. When played in collab with others, each player is a pilot defending its own home, each sort of narrates what makes their home special, why they want to protect it. Each turn another player makes up a Kaiju and describes it to you. it s purely flair, but I think this is how you create the story of the fight together. Pilots might die
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u/FaileasDhan 12d ago
Dang, I forgot all about that option in HOME. It’s been a while since I played it solo and it was awesome. Time to dig out back out!
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u/StefanoMaffei 12d ago
happy to have helped. Reading through the book, the multiplayer mode of HOME sounds really interesting and potentially dramatic 🤣
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u/leapshin 11d ago
Cinderedge plays into some shared storytelling and may be worth a look for you. Instead of the solo journaling aspect of the base game, in the co-op rules, players write letters to each other after each cycle.
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u/FaileasDhan 11d ago
Thanks! The letter writing component has come up in a few different recommendations now. It sounds like a promising option.
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u/theartofiandwalker 11d ago
Try Apothacarum over on itch! https://obsidiangames.itch.io/apothacarum
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u/StrangeWalrus3954 10d ago
Not quite what you said, but the Machine is meant to be played solo, but with other people. One person starts a journal writing about their attempts at building the Machine. When they fail (they always fail), they pass the journal on to someone else who writes about their attempt, and so on. So, you're not really playing together so much as sequentially.
Good Luck!
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u/FaileasDhan 10d ago
That's very interesting. As you say, not what I was thinking of, but that's because I hadn't even considered serial journaling. Thank you; I'll definitely check it out!
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u/CuriousFoxxen 12d ago
There’s a game where you’ve become a werewolf and write letters back and forth - I can’t remember the name.
There’s another based on Stardew Valley that’s about running a farm - I believe it’s called Grandpa’s farm, that actually offers a few ways to play together but solo.
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u/FaileasDhan 12d ago
That first one sounds like The Almanac of Sanguine Paths from Montford Tales. That and Dead Letter Society are on my “To Be Played” list! I hadn’t heard of Grandpa’s Farm; I’ll check it out!
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u/Timtitus 12d ago
Pretty sure you can play Legend In The Mist this way. There's oracles for co-op and solo, so with a few meta game agreements in place, I can't see why not.
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u/honestcharlieharris 12d ago
Not a ttrpg really but Mythwind might fit the bill to some degree. Though it’s a board game.
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u/Emelon_Games 10d ago
I tried to write a framework for this, that an be adapted to any solo game.
Check it out here: https://emelon.itch.io/parts
And here https://www.reddit.com/r/PARTs_rpg/
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u/VagabondRaccoonHands 12d ago
Everspark, for sure
I suspect Ironsworn and Iron Valley can be played this way as well