Twenty-Sided Tavern, a live theatre stage show inspired by the table-top gameplay of Dungeons and Dragons, is about to make its UK premiere – and believes its technology could change how we watch live esports events.
The 70-minute show will be coming to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world’s largest arts festival (which is returning for the first time since 2019), throughout the month of August.
It’s for viewers aged eight years old and above and is targeting hardcore fans of D&D to those just dipping their toes into the world of role-playing games (RPGs).
It’s had sell-out shows in New York, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and now Twenty-Sided Tavern will be performed in the UK at the Pleasance Dome (King Dome) venue 23 from 4.30pm, from August 3rd to 28th 2022 (other than August 15th).
The show lets the audience control the adventure by interacting on their phones. This can involve anything from the roll of a dice, to an audience vote on complex storylines that develop as the show goes along, to simply voting for an actor to do something specific.
There are also ways for the audience to battle in teams and each result impacts the developing storyline.
Gamiotics’ web-based design means audiences access a website on their phone via a QR code on entering the venue, with no app download required.
“One of the successes we’re found is breaking down the fourth wall and allowing for competitive and co-operative play to happen between audiences and players. Since our software works in real-time, the content can respond to the audience input without any lag, unlike Twitch.”
David Carpenter, Gamiotics
Organisers say that with so many branching paths and potential outcomes, audiences can create one of literally thousands of scenarios.
Because everything is changing in real time, the plot has to be improvised as the actors go along, responding to the directions the audience give the performers; and then the programmers can put new options into the system at any point. So, for example, if the performer comes across a basket that contains an apple and a brick, the audience might be able to vote for him to eat the apple, but they might also be able to vote for him to eat (or at least try to eat) the brick… and the actor would need to play out that scenario.
The production is only being shown at the Edinburgh Festival for now, but there are discussions ongoing about possibly playing London shows.
Audiences are guided by DAGL, Sarah Reynolds, Mateo Ervin, Travis Klemm, Madelyn Murphy and Carlina Parker, while the Twenty-Sided Tavern show was created by David Andrew Laws, Sarah Davis Reynolds and David Carpenter.
As for the story, here’s the blurb: “When called upon to defeat the monster that is inhabiting Coldfire Caverns, little is known about the beast other than its insatiable appetite. As they explore the caverns, the audience-chosen party will uncover clues and unlock items to best prepare them for the climactic confrontation. But what deadly secrets lie in the depths of this ever-changing labyrinth? The cryptid will be created by the audience, and the only way to find out is to be there.”
Can Gamiotics’ audience-led tech change how we watch live esports events?
David Carpenter, CEO of Gamiotics, told Esports News UK: “There’s no question Gamiotics can be used for esports events. The platform is built to give agency to an audience at a live event by taking the phone in their pocket and using it as an easy accessible tool for engagement.
“One of the successes we’re found is breaking down the fourth wall and allowing for competitive and co-operative play to happen between audiences and players. Since our software works in real-time, the content can respond to the audience input without any lag, unlike Twitch.
“Audiences could vote for players [or those on stage] to do things in real time, and competitions can be made at the event between fans of different teams in the audience. There are an endless amount of possibilities which Gamiotics can provide to deepen the experience to the attendees.”
The technology is reminiscent of the Weavr technology project and platform, which aimed to look into the future of esports viewing.
The Weavr consortium – led by ESL UK and announced at the start of 2019 – was awarded £5.8m in funding and a Weavr app was later launched.
Weavr’s updated mobile app and VR experience allowed fans at ESL One Hamburg to watch Dota 2 action live. It gave fans more info on the performance of players and teams, as well as win predictions and more.
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
