Remember Frankie? by Rhodrick Magsino belongs to a very fun subset of games that I would classify as “a type of conversation barely and loosely gestured at via a zine.” You could probably argue this is all games, but I’m not here to get into that particular can of worms today. When I say it about Remember Frankie?, I mean that it is basically a loose framework to guide you through a conversation. In this case, it’s you’re swapping stories about an important figure from your past named Frankie.
I found Remember Frankie to be surprise after welcome surprise. On first blush, it seems like a fun game: a GMless narrative game about recalling a shared acquaintance. I’d play that, sounds great. But wait, in addition to making up stories about this Frankie, you’re actually writing lyrics to a song based on the stories? And wait, you’re not just making up stories about Frankie, you’re actually weaving Frankie into stories from your real life, using the made up character to add whatever level of anonymity that you’re comfortable with? Hold on, there’s a whole list of potential settings, each with their own special rules for how you tell your stories and write your lyrics? There’s just so much packed into this short 50 page zine, and it’s all works. There are more surprises that I won’t spoil for you here, you’ll need to pick this one up for yourself.
It’s not often I see an RPG that actively requires you to put part of your real lived experiences into play. This is a tall order, especially given that you can, by the rules, be randomly asked to tell a story about your own fear, guilt or pain, in addition to your own happiness, courage, and love. But this is where Frankie comes in. Since Frankie is a shared, entirely fictional acquaintance, he can be used as a built-in living veil. Frankie takes attention away from anyone in the story the teller might not want to shine the spotlight on.
The list of settings provided in Remember Frankie are one of its greatest strengths. The base setting is just friends around a table, and there are no special rules. But things just get more interesting from there. There’s more than one setting that takes place at Frankie’s funeral. A few have you speaking directly to other people who were or are important in Frankie’s life like children or a partner. Still others send you as far afield as outer space or put you in touch with omnipotent God beings. The robust settings section is what really set Remember Frankie apart for me. It reminds me of the different playsets in the game Dialect,which ensure that it’s possible to play the game over and over again with wildly different results.
All in all, Remember Frankie? is a game with a lot of style backed up with real substance. The zine looks great, and I’m really excited to play it. If you like freeform roleplaying with some direction, or if the idea of writing lyrics as you play an RPG appeals to you, I highly recommend you check it out.
The Remember Frankie? Kickstart runs till November 21st, and you can find it here.