therapeutically applied ttrpgs: the thesis the zine

What is this zine?

This is a preview of my thesis, “Designing Spiritkeep: Therapeutically Applied Roleplaying Games as a Discourse Community”  

The goal of this zine is to launch the Itchfunding of a few things:

One, paying the fee to my school so that my thesis can be open access, meaning anyone can read it for free.

Two, early fees associated with Spiritkeep, like sources and consulting.

Three, eventual further costs, like initial art, promotion, and putting together materials for a Kickstarter campaign.  

But what’s Spiritkeep …?

What is Spiritkeep?

Spiritkeep is an upcoming TTRPG designed for multiplayer, campaign play with a GM. It’s also specifically a TA-RPG, or a therapeutically applied roleplaying game.

What are TA-RPGs?

TA-RPGs are TTRPGs run with the intent of being therapeutic: healing from trauma, overcoming social anxiety, learning new social skills, and more! Often, they are run by a practitioner like a therapist or counselor, or they may be run by a certified Therapeutic Game Master. You can get certification to run TA-RPGs from groups like Game to Grow or Geek Therapeutics, among others. This thesis draws from the work of TA-RPG practitioners Kilmer et al. (2023) and Connell (2023).

What is the goal of this?  

After I graduate, I'm intending to dive headfirst into designing Spiritkeep. While I have the groundwork already laid out, there's a lot to do before it's able to be playtested. I want to bring in consultants, hire other writers, and also get some initial art off the ground. I'm also going to be pitching the game to publishers so I can focus more on the game itself and less on the business aspects.

Once Spiritkeep is finished, it will be crowdfunded, and then available for purchase! The game is going to be just as applicable for casual, home play as it is for use in clinical settings. You do have to approach the game with a certain mindset, but growth and healing through TTRPGs is certainly not unique to clinical use!

This is just step one! I hope you join me for the journey :)