DESCRIPTION

In The World We Left Behind, play as astronauts trekking across an alien planet. Learn about the planet’s flora and fauna while uncovering vestiges of the past. What happened to the sapient species that called this planet home? Why do only remnants of their lives remain?

During this casual worldbuilding game, players draw symbols on playing cards to create a planet, populate it with traits, and uncover the mystery of the species that left this world behind. Tell a story of wonder, companionship, and legacy in the midst of a lonely planet.

The World We Left Behind is GMless and designed for 1-5 players. The game is 44 pages long, there is zero prep needed to play, and a full game lasts 2-4 sessions. Alternate rules for one-shots are found in the back of the book.

Instructions and templates for online, one-shot play are included in the digital bundle.

Materials needed to play:
A standard deck of playing cards (these cards will be written on during play)
At least one fine-tipped permanent marker
A six-sided die (d6)
A flat surface
A few hours of time per session

Digital files included:
PDF of The World We Left Behind
Online play instructions
PlayingCardsIO template
Excalidraw template

Digital files will automatically be sent via email. If you do not receive a download link in your email within 24 hours, please check your spam folder, then email [email protected].

No generative AI was used in the making of this game.

FEATURED IN

Gizmodo - Roleplaying Games Enter the World of Ballet in a Unique New Performance by Linda Codega

Polygon - Anamnesis designer Sam Leigh dropped two highly anticipated games — and they both deliver by Rowan Zeoli

THE BALLET

The World We Left Behind was originally commissioned by BalletCollective to be used as Source Art in their 2023 season, THE MOMENT IS IMMINENT. Composer Phong Tran and choreographer Troy Schumacher played The World We Left Behind and used it as inspiration for the music and choreography of the ballet.

The ballet The World We Left Behind premiered in NYC in Fall 2023, performed by dancers from New York City Ballet. It returned for an encore show for BalletCollective's 2024 season: THE ENTRANCE IS THE EXIT.

A free livestream of the show took place on Oct 30 2024. The video of the livestream is available to watch on YouTube - The World We Left Behind begins at time stamp 1:38:00.

The World We Left Behind TTRPG has been heavily edited since the ballet first premiered, but the original version of the game presented to BalletCollective is free and available to download.

THE ALBUM

Phong Tran, the composer of the ballet, released an album through cmntx records of the music he composed for The World We Left Behind.

You can listen to it on Bandcamp, where it is also available for digital purchase and as a cassette.

CREDITS

Game Design: Samantha Leigh

Graphic Design: Sinta Posadas

Cover Art and Spot Art: Helena Santana

The original version of The World We Left Behind was commissioned by BalletCollective and designed in collaboration with Troy Schumacher and Phong Tran.

DISCOUNTED DAMAGED COPIES

Damaged copies are available at a discount. These copies might have bent corners, scratches on the front or back cover, odd coloration, and/or ink smudges. All are still readable and contain all pages.

PDF-ONLY

If you do not want a physical copy of The World We Left Behind and only want the PDF ($10), you can pick it up at itch.io.

FROM THE EU?

We currently do not ship directly to the EU. If you are from the EU, please instead order through The Lost Bay.