Last month, Myrrick did some coverage on the epic tabletop role-playing game, Drinking Quest. As the fates would have it, we reached out to Jason Anarchy and were lucky enough to have him chat with us about his fantastic game. Be warned, the interview below is not for the weak of constitution or people who don’t enjoy fun!
1) This past Kickstarter wasn’t your first. What is the appeal and benefit of using crowdsourcing websites as 
opposed to generating funding on your own?
It’s the first actual Kickstarter I’ve done. I did an IndieGoGo as a preorder for Drinking Quest 3 last year. The appeal of crowdfunding is that you can figure out demand before you do a print run. Tabletop games are notoriously difficult to figure out how many games to print. Then the benefit for the backers is that they get the game for a lower price with all kinds of fun extras.
2) The existing games were already a success, why did you decide to update it? Is there an end in sight to the Drinking Quest phenomenon?
The first three games were all a success but there were a few constraints… mainly time and money. But now three years after the first game came out I have a fanbase and was in a better position to release a game where I had fewer compromises. With Drinking Quest: Trilogy Edition I was able to work with seven artists this time around so there is a ton of new art and the existing black and white art has been colourized.
A lot of people wanted the first three games to be combinable. So Trilogy Edition makes that possible and also adds three new quests (40 brand new cards for 220 in total). So that adds a lot of room for randomized quests that still keeps the progression in a nice place where you won’t get pummeled by high level monsters right away.
Plus all the components are improved, There is a better dice system, bigger character sheets, an oversized shop card, better instructions and bigger more attention grabbing box (which makes the retailers happy).
This may be the last Drinking Quest game for the foreseeable future but the world will live on in comic books and some other projects I can’t announce yet.
3) What considerations do you make when planning to do a crowd funding campaign?
Make it worthwhile and appealing to the backer and everything will follow.
In my case, the humour of the series is a big draw so I tried to dress it up with a lot of silly jokes.
Also the video has lots of explosions and Michael Bay seems to be doing alright for himself.
4) Aside from your own game, what is your favorite game to play, whether this be rpgs or old school NES?
I’m going to go full on fanboy here and give you some Top 5 lists. I put way more time into making these lists than I should have.
Top Five Favourite Tabletop Games:
1. Hero Quest
2. Lord of the Rings Risk
3. Pathfinder
4. Quarriors
5. Small World
Top Five Favourite Video Games:
1. Final Fantasy 6
2. Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
3. Bioshock
4. Final Fantasy Tactics
5. Mario Kart: Double Dash
5) If you had to summarize Drinking Quest in one cocktail, what would it be and why?
Grab three dice and mix them in a blender with some bourbon, ice and your favourite Weird Al CD.
7) You announced that there would be a comic based on the game. What made you want to go with that medium and how does it enhance the current game?
Yes it released a little while ago, it’s on Comixology and as a PDF on www.DrinkingQuest.com
I’m a huge comic book geek so I know and love the format. The world of Drinking Quest already existed in an abstract way because of the game series so with a comic book I could explore that world in more detail. Plus it’s a different kind of humour, I can have more set up for jokes.
It was amazing to work with some new artists on that one. Both Stuart (Paterson) and Anique (Zimmer) really brought the Drinking Quest world to life in a way that hasn’t been done before.
8) A troll, ranger and paladin all enter a bar to get a drink, what do they each order and why?
If you’re mixing it up with a trio like that I would say the drink isn’t as important as long as they do shots first to break the ice.
9) What’s one celebrity you would think would most benefit from playing your game, and you can’t say Nicholas Cage?
Fat Mike of NOFX.
There is a hidden layer of punk rock undercurrent in the series. I think he would like it for the drinking gameplay but also the humour and misanthropy.
Thanks a ton to Jason for chatting with us about Drinking Quest and just geeking out in general. We can’t wait to see what he has coming up next! We should be doing a review of the comic book soon, so Stay Tuned for that!
Make sure to check out the Drinking Quest website to get your hands on this amazing game, Like them on Facebook, and follow them on the Twitters! Grab your friends, some drinks, and get your hands on this most epic of all tabletop games!
~Myrrick
