I played this game at Tapestries 2025, run by the author himself! I had a tremendous time. I enjoyed creating a concierge and a bellhop and characterizing their relationship, and I enjoyed how the tone of the game progresses naturally from lighthearted to serious and even grim, towards the end of the game. The way the challenges (prompts) are worded - that they are challenges that are happening at your hotel - really helps make them feel personal and real.
Characters can spend "favors" to help other charactesr resolve their challenges. At the beginning of the game, there are enough favors to go around and help everyone resolve their challenges. That helps players get comfortable role playing as their characters and helps players figure out the nature of their favors. But later on in the game, the challenges require more favors to resolve, and the characters are forced to choose which challenges to resolve successfully and which to fail.
The "favor economy" felt very well balanced and in line with the intention of the game, where "one good turn begets another" at the beginning of the game, which becomes less true as the game goes on. Also, the way the "suboptimal" outcomes are worded on the challenges all feel very heroic, so even if your character may not be passing with flying colors, it still feels like they tried their best and weren't shortchanged by GM fiat. It truly feels like your character is making a heroic sacrifice, especially if you play with open information and read the consequences of each choice before making your decision.
Thanks Aaron for being such a great facilitator! Bell and Key was the highlight of Tapestries 2025 for me. I've donated $15 to Trans Continental Pipeline in lieu of payment. <3
This could fit into the same slot as a long board game; it requires minimal prep, no pre-work, the rules are dead simple, and it doesn't require a GM (you can have a facilitator, but there are no secrets, so it's fine if they play).
A very collaborative game; characters are working together to help each other (or at worst, rivals forced to work together by circumstance).
The meat of the game is in-character roleplay and discussion. Not a lot of action or plotting, but the game gives lots to talk about.
I played this game and really enjoyed it! It had a good balance of lighthearted, even farcical elements along with serious, weighty choices as the game progresses. There’s a lot of leeway within the game to find the challenges and topics that are interesting to you for the narrative and character you’re exploring. I loved how much of the content was player-generated during play - I think this game would have excellent replay value! Overall a very tight, enjoyable experience with great historical details and immersion.
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I played this game at Tapestries 2025, run by the author himself! I had a tremendous time. I enjoyed creating a concierge and a bellhop and characterizing their relationship, and I enjoyed how the tone of the game progresses naturally from lighthearted to serious and even grim, towards the end of the game. The way the challenges (prompts) are worded - that they are challenges that are happening at your hotel - really helps make them feel personal and real.
Characters can spend "favors" to help other charactesr resolve their challenges. At the beginning of the game, there are enough favors to go around and help everyone resolve their challenges. That helps players get comfortable role playing as their characters and helps players figure out the nature of their favors. But later on in the game, the challenges require more favors to resolve, and the characters are forced to choose which challenges to resolve successfully and which to fail.
The "favor economy" felt very well balanced and in line with the intention of the game, where "one good turn begets another" at the beginning of the game, which becomes less true as the game goes on. Also, the way the "suboptimal" outcomes are worded on the challenges all feel very heroic, so even if your character may not be passing with flying colors, it still feels like they tried their best and weren't shortchanged by GM fiat. It truly feels like your character is making a heroic sacrifice, especially if you play with open information and read the consequences of each choice before making your decision.
Thanks Aaron for being such a great facilitator! Bell and Key was the highlight of Tapestries 2025 for me. I've donated $15 to Trans Continental Pipeline in lieu of payment. <3
Played this game, had a great time. Recommend it!
This could fit into the same slot as a long board game; it requires minimal prep, no pre-work, the rules are dead simple, and it doesn't require a GM (you can have a facilitator, but there are no secrets, so it's fine if they play).
A very collaborative game; characters are working together to help each other (or at worst, rivals forced to work together by circumstance).
The meat of the game is in-character roleplay and discussion. Not a lot of action or plotting, but the game gives lots to talk about.
I played this game and really enjoyed it! It had a good balance of lighthearted, even farcical elements along with serious, weighty choices as the game progresses. There’s a lot of leeway within the game to find the challenges and topics that are interesting to you for the narrative and character you’re exploring. I loved how much of the content was player-generated during play - I think this game would have excellent replay value! Overall a very tight, enjoyable experience with great historical details and immersion.