Mediums and séances seem to abound in small freeform scenarios, but The Residents by Suzanne Schenewerk invigorates these tropes with lucid game writing and evocative prompts. The game uses a game mechanic called “Impressions” to frame flashbacks and metalepsis without fundamentally disrupting the flow of play. Focused enough to cue player behavior while being open enough to invite their emotional investment, The Residents provides an exciting range of possibilities for personal supernatural exploration, while also making sure that each narrative path taken will be meaningful and interesting. This Honorable Mention is in anticipation of the many chills and feels that players of this scenario are likely to experience.

The people I play games with would tell you this game is directly in the bullseye of My Zone, and they'd be right. Religious themes, eschatology, sitting around a table with candles: I am already wanting to play this game before I even find out what the mechanics are. I love the richness of the setting -- very vivid and evocative -- I will offer the critique that there's really only one "make a decision" play step -- the big one, at the end -- and it's great, but my feeling is that if there were a way to complicate that step a little, it would make the anticipation more delicious.