Nerve, the Elliquiy Edition

[wigglebiscuit]

You've seen the movie, now let's play the game.

Nerve is similar to Truth or Dare, but much darker.

The game is divided into Players and Watchers. Watchers gives Players dares, which they must perform within a certain amount of time. If the Players succeed, they are given money. If they fail or bail, they are penalized.

As this is E, many of the dares would be of a sexual nature, usually involving exhibitionism, public nudity, risk of getting caught, and so on. But as the game proceeds, the dares would get progressively darker, and even dangerous.

spoiler warning

For those who haven't seen the movie, when the Players sign up for Nerve, they surrender all of their personal data to the Watchers. As the game progresses, the Watchers can use that information as leverage, essentially blackmailing the Players to take dares they wouldn't otherwise take.

Those who attempt to snitch face severe repercussions, both against themselves and their families. Those who snitch also become owned by the game, forced to play until they win.

spoiler end

I see three groups of player: Watchers, Players, and Extras. The first two are obvious. Extras would be people not playing the game that become randomly involved in the game through dares. For example, if a Player is dared to kiss a random guy, the guy would be an Extra. If a Player is dared to masturbate on a subway, some person watching her might be an Extra.

Finally, Watchers manipulate the dares to create drama. In the above dare, for example, they might dare a player to masturbate on a particular subway car at a particular time, knowing that the Player's teacher (played as an Extra) will be on that subway car. OR they might Dare a Player to make out with another Player's significant other, hoping to cause a fight. Stuff like that.

Depending on interest, I see this as either a group story or a one-on-one with one writer acting as the Player and another writing Watchers and Extras.

[Ixy]

I'm not familiar with the film, but I assume that the description would sum this up enough for a player to get by. 

I think I might be interested in this.  How would you handle multiple "Players"?  And how much control are you giving the "Watchers," as it's their ons/offs and ideas that will really control the story?

[Kitteredge]

I also don't know the film, but it's similar (if more sensical) to a supernaturally-tinged game I have run. Mi am not clear whether the Watchers are all the collective viewers on the stream, and the challenges are crowdsourced, or if they are more of a shadowy cabal.  The act of videotaping oneself sounds a little awkward. Maybe that can be hand-waved as nano-drones with cameras or something?  I dunno.

Anyway, I can certainly think of a spectrum of naughty and borderline (and not so borderline) illegal challenges as a GM/Watcher.

I like the idea of playing Extras.  This is something I don't think we do enough in these role-plays.  We fasten so deeply into our characters' POVs.  Jumping out to describe what a school teacher might feel when he sees one of his student pressing herself lustily against a stranger would be added fun, esp when public displays are very much on the menu.

[wigglebiscuit]

I'm not familiar with the film, but I assume that the description would sum this up enough for a player to get by. 

I think I might be interested in this.  How would you handle multiple "Players"?  And how much control are you giving the "Watchers," as it's their ons/offs and ideas that will really control the story?

If we go the multi-player route, this would be a sandbox with loose GM input. There would be "rounds" that get progressively darker and more promiscuous. So the first round might be simply flashing a stranger or something similar, in later rounds it might be having anonymous sex at a sex club, or something even more dangerous.

Watchers and Players would need to collaborate out of character before the Watcher can impose a dare on a Player. Otherwise, it's just too open to abusing people's O/O. There would be story reasons for orchestrating a dare in which a Player 'bails' or snitches.

I also don't know the film, but it's similar (if more sensical) to a supernaturally-tinged game I have run. Mi am not clear whether the Watchers are all the collective viewers on the stream, and the challenges are crowdsourced, or if they are more of a shadowy cabal.  The act of videotaping oneself sounds a little awkward. Maybe that can be hand-waved as nano-drones with cameras or something?  I dunno.

All Dares must be recorded to count, either by the Player, an associate (Extra) or Watchers. All streams are broadcast to all Watchers, though I imagine that would mostly be behind-the-scenes.

So imagine a scene where a Player must masturbate in a library without getting caught. That would be simple enough to stream by putting a phone somewhere and recording it.

In another dare, a Player must rub her ass on an Extra to entice him to grope her. This might be discreetly recorded by an Extra or by a body cam on the Player. With a little imagination, we can set almost anything up.

[Yukina]

I loved the movie, so interest noted. :)

[TheLostCastor]

Very interested! If you ever manage to get enough writers together, I would love to be one of the watchers/extras!