Lately I’ve been thinking I would like to get into writing again. Not that I have ever written a lot, but I’ve done some here and there. Maybe what I really want to get into it more seriously.

So, anyhow, I’ve been looking over my copy of De Profundis which is not really an RPG in the proper sense. Essentially, the players take the roles of letter writers in a Lovecraftian setting. You are not seeking out things as one does in most RPGs, you are experiencing them, describing them.

Nominally the you have the choice to write letters set in the present day, wherein you write as yourself more or less, or in the 1920s, where you as a character who at least could be one of Lovecraft’s, if not one in actuality.

The author also strongly suggests you avoid e-mail and write hand-written letters. Of course my first thought here is that I can barely write clearly enough for me to read it, let alone someone else; and, truth be told, writing by hand is definitely different than typing something up on a computer where you can easily edit and rearrange. It forces you to think ahead, at least if you want to write something coherent. Because the game obviously revolves around writing, I understand why he recommends this – the difference between writing about horror and terror and conveying the experince of it are two different things.

So, obviously, I’d like to play this – else, why blather on about it here? I’m inclined to write the letters here in my blog, but follow the spirit of the author’s recommendation: no going back and editing, rearranging, etc. The second option is to do the same, but set up a new blog and invite a few others to play as well. Lastly, there’s finding someone to whom I’d send actual write hand written letters.

My dilemmas with how to play De Profundis aside, this is a game I would recommend. Obviously it’s something different and innovative, as well as demanding. The book is well written (as one might expect) – despite the author not being a native English speaker.

Unfortunately, the book is out of print, so it is hard to find, but not impossible. So, if you get a change, get it. It’s small 32 pages and cheap, around $7.