“ We aren ’ t accustomed to not being able to finish things that we start ,” said Cypher partner Jack Crisci , who cowrote the story of the Collapse with Chris Frack . So , rather than struggling to gather the pieces of someone else ’ s abandoned project , the group met later that year and decided to develop a game of their own .
“ We were bored ,” said event producer Steve “ Frosty ” Solo , “ I , personally , needed something fresh . I had a vision of what scenario could be , but I wasn ’ t seeing it done . So [ Cypher ] met and we said , ‘ Well , let ’ s do it . Let ’ s do the game we wish we could play .’”
“ Old-school ballers remember the magic and the characters that other games had ,” Crisci said . ” We wanted to write something like that . No disrespect to the games that are out there , because a lot of those productions are great . But we were looking to do something with a real plot , well-developed characters , and a feeling that there was always something mysterious happening behind the curtain .”
They chose the Cold War era as a backdrop because , as Solo said , there was so much happening during that time , both publicly and underground , that it gave the ability to pull from historical references , and tremendous latitude to be really creative .
“ We created something that would appeal to different types of players ,” Solo said , explaining that there are really three main categories of players at scenario games . “ There are players who are out to push lines and play for flag points , the people who are task-oriented and enjoy running missions , and then there are the players who get deep into the story and lore .”
Jack Crisci said he loves writing for that last kind of player .
“ It ’ s one thing to run a game with a deeper plot ,” Crisci said . “ It ’ s something entirely different to let go and become someone or something else for a little bit ; to lean into the story and just embrace the escapism in it .”
064 paintball . media magazine