Ideation: Time Loops
On the untapped potential of time loops in tabletop narratives.
Introduction
Over the past decade a persistent but niche narrative trend has risen to prominence in the science fiction space. Edge of Tomorrow, Russian Doll, and even Disney’s Loki series have played with this concept to varying degrees, inviting viewers to imagine the existential repercussions of a character fixed in time. Inspired by these narratives, as well as the release of popular video games featuring this phenomena — the questionably pretentious 12 Minutes, Arkane Studio’s much anticipated Death Loop, etc. — I set out on a mental quest to explore how time loops might best be utilized in tabletop narratives.
These are my ideations.
Exploring the Trope
While time loop narratives have certainly had their day, it’s important that we point to their existence as a subset of stories within travel genre. For the sake of this ideation, I posit that a standard time loop story shares three major commonalities not inherently found elsewhere.
Time Loop Ingredients
A protagonist who is forced to repeat their failures. Fundamentally, time loops are a metaphysical trap in which the observer is caught. More often than not, this trap implies some failure or deficit on behalf of the victim, an antagonist, or society at large. Whether the loop is born of a fault in logic or ability, it’s continued existence is dependent on this flaw. Once the protagonist finds the power to address this deficit, the time loop unravels.
The assumption that the loop is a puzzle. Time loop narratives treat each repetition of the cycle as an opportunity to learn more about the forces at play. What each loop is building towards may be ambiguous, as is the case in Groundhog's Day, but the existence of some discreet solution is heavily implied.
A descent into existential dread. In the first act of most time loop stories the hero enjoys a power trip, of sorts, as their knowledge expands. For a time, this mastery is empowering, giving rise to a mania that cap the first act. Eventually, however, this power is revealed to be a delusion. As despair sets in, the victim of the loop retreats inside themselves where, eventually, they will discover some hidden truth.
Taking these conceits into account, time loop narratives are specifically situated to highlight the emotional struggles of a tragic characters caught in a self-defeating cycle. Also note that, while most time loops have a foundation in science fiction, some time loop stories — such as Memento (2000) — manage to engage the genre without featuring any actual time travel.
Exceptions and Implications
Authors hoping to put a unique twist on their own time loop narrative often start by reimagining the nature of the loop itself — Is the loop a product of flawed technology or is it the manifestation of some existential crisis? — Does the loop’s solution rest on some personal revelation or on the execution of a seemingly impossible task? — By examining the fundamental nature of these tropes authors can develop newer, more significant twists on the genre.
Fruitful Questions
Must the protagonist of our story be the center of the loop? Consider that the protagonist might not be aware of the loop at all. If the character or characters we follow have their own memories reset after each loop what hope might they have to resolve it? Perhaps the players, themselves, are the true observers of the loop. This particular twist is interesting in that it mirrors our own engagement with video game narratives.
If the loop is a puzzle, who is its designer? Many time loop narratives allow this question to go unanswered. Consider: is the lesson the loop imparts a noble one? Must the protagonists of your story follow the course set out for them or might they find the power to refute its assertion.
What if the loop is imperfect? Imagine your time loop narrative as an imperfect container, one in which the protagonists’ actions exert a small but significant influence on successive loops. Suddenly the careless experimentation of time loop protagonists is brought into question.
Time loops are alternatively absurd, disturbing, and delightful. Strongly consider breaking free of the conventions established so far.
Applying What We’ve Learned
Turning our gaze to the tabletop sphere, time loops can be imagined in a variety of ways. They might be reproduced via a recursive session structure or modeled mechanically with an advancement system that reflects the PC’s mastery over the loop. Will your own narrative play into the most gameable elements of the trope or will you challenge yourself to subvert these structures? After thinking really really hard about these questions, I offer the following ideations.
Dissect the trope with a hidden morality system: In games featuring time loops protagonists tend to treat other characters as guinea pigs in some personal experiment. After all, if the harm they inflict is reset after each loop, was any damage truly done in the first place? A system by which these choices might be judged — or even reflected in the next loop — could make for some powerful commentary on the disposable nature of simulated worlds.
Model your players mastery over the loop: Games centering time loop narratives open up the possibility of unique new advancement options. Consider that players might invest XP into frequently repeated tasks or opponents in order to trivialize them or earn their loyalty? In a Forged in the Dark game, players might gain the ability to resist by literally turning back the clock. Will you accept the consequences of your actions in the name of progress or double-back and explore an alternate timeline?
Track your loop with clocks: User Revinant/Dez of the Brain Trust discord puts forth the idea that GMs might utilize a “loop clock” to model player progress (or lack thereof). As players explore the loop the GM ticks segments on this clock to mark the passage of literal or metaphorical time. When it fills the loop resets and any progress the players have made is largely undone. This simple idea gives rise to other interesting mechanics. Might your players use what they’ve learned to execute a heist with impossible precision? Or must they piece together their true purpose over the course of multiple loops?
Turn your favorite one-shot module into a surreal campaign: Are you a fan of a particular adventure or scenario? Do you want to play it over and over again? Transform it into something completely new with a recursive time loop twist.
Parting Thoughts
To many time loop narratives can feel too complex to tackle. Indeed, the time travel genre frequently features interlocking puzzle pieces that only come into focus after multiple retellings. While time loops do offer some sophisticated toys for designers to play with, they are ultimately a surreal expression of more familiar tropes.
I posit that we will see many new time loop games enter the ttrpg space over the next several years. There is, after all, a certain thematic resonance to be found in simulating recursive fiction with circular systems.
For those of you interested in exploring this concept in its distilled form, What’s So Cool About Time Loops, by Max Kämmerer, offers a rules-light framework in which to engage in chronal hijinks. In the list below, I’ve included my own favorite time loop narratives from across media. Feel free to tweet your thoughts to me @mothlands on twitter or share your own ideations on #beggartok via the TikTok app.
5 Intriguing Time Loops
Perhaps one of my favorite video games of all time, Into the Breach, by Subset Games, throws players into a multi-dimensional loop that pits a team of 3 plucky mechs against a highly deterministic swarm of giant insects.
Ten years ago I would say that Groundhog’s Day, directed by Harold Ramis, needs no introduction. Seeing as it’s thirtieth anniversary is growing ever closer I’ll just say that it’s a classic and you should check it out if you haven’t before.
In 2019 Netflix released surreal time loop series Russian Doll. Though the plot appears, at first, to tread familiar waters, the show quickly veers off in a unique direction that complicates our understanding of the loop.
At first I didn’t think much of the previews for Edge of Tomorrow, a 2014 film directed by Doug Liman, but it won me over with a surprisingly nuanced narrative that could easily be be the premise of a popular video game.
In the 2011 Dark Souls, by From Software, the world is caught in a repetitive cycle of opulence and decline only to be re-kindled thanks to the heroic actions of the player character.
