Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao
games for mecha fights, anime duels, and girls who are angry af. plus a chinese designer shout-out!
A lot of people already know the author of IRON WIDOW—Xiran Jay Zhao (they/them) is an internet personality with a lot of historical and cultural knowledge to dispense. They’re also a massive nerd. Iron Widow reads like a love letter (or a breakup text?) to all the anime that Zhao has ever watched.
Taking inspiration from Yu-Gi-Oh, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and Pacific Rim, Iron Widow is a wild fucking ride. It’s dark, disastrous and full of fury. Let’s get into these games for bad girls who have gone even fucking worse.
The main crux of this novel is the fact that giant mechs, called Chrysalises, have been built to hold back the Hunduns—evil monsters trying to destroy humanity. Chrysalises require two pilots, one male and one female (think yin-yang Confucianism for a lot of this mythology), and usually, USUALLY, the girl dies. It’s brutal. So! To start out, I’m recommending link by Riley Rethal which uses cards to negotiate sharing a mind to pilot a mech.
We’re going to keep with the theme—two-person mecha games. Last Shooting by Grant is fast and furious, where you have to destroy aspects of yourself to get what you want. Imagine this takes place in the yin-yang mind-mech of Iron Widow and you got yourself a banger.
Very few mecha-game roundups miss Lancer, by Massif Press, and I’m not about to break the trend. If you read Iron Widow and you’re so caught up in how fucking cool all the Chrysalises are (they’re inspired by Chinese mythology, and the five-element system, so yeah, they fucking slap) then you’ll want to dig into Lancer and all the fun customizable mecha options it offers.
Our last mecha game is Swansong of Blood and Tears by W.H. Arthur (he/him) where the heroes take the fight to the Big Bad. Our MC, Wu Zetian, has to overcome impossible odds just to survive. Swansong brings out her desperation, her resolve, her anger, and says Fuck You World, I’m going to do this all this bad girl shit anyway.
No Yu-Gi-Oh-inspired novel should miss YOUR MOVE! by Olivia Spankhorn (they/them)—a LARP about one-upmanship and rivalry. If you’re into being better than everyone else, internal monologuing, and eviscerating your opponents with a single move, check this bad boy out. I have a feeling this is the LARP Zhao would play if they had a chance.
Saber Light, Sword Shadow by J.Y. is a wuxia-inspired martial arts dueling LARP where you compose idioms in order to defeat your rival. As you circle each other with swords or fists or guns you find ways to draw your opponent in closer… and then defeat them with poetry! This game of negotiation is fast-paced and dramatic, perfect for Iron Widow’s over-the-top characters.
Iron Widow deals with some dark themes—abusive relationships and manipulation at the center of it all. Captive, Caught by ryyy is a game that explores this, diving into what it takes to lose yourself, what it means to become a monster, and how at every step of the relationship there is a re-negotiation of boundaries, sometimes assumed, often implied.
Last, if you want to explore some of the ways that Chinese elemental theories interact within gameplay, pick up the setting-agnostic WuDe-The Five Powers (there’s also a Chinese version!). If you want to just wing all the mechanics for mechas and alien battles, using The Five Powers system will get you deep into Iron Widow’s elemental science-fantasy magic system.
As a bonus, here are some Chinese and Chinese-diaspora TTRPG writers and designers to check out!
W.H. Arthur, Daniel Kwan, J.Y., Banana Chan, Sen-Foong Lim, Elias V Wong, J. Ch’ng, Mae 美妍, Sebastian Yue, Daniel Yim, Kienna Shaw, Sam Tung, Bailey Ree, Jay Anyong, Alison Huang, Sen H.H.S., Grady Wang, Jacky Leung, Jason Phelps, Quincy Surasmith, Colette Quach, Curious Chimeras, Connie Chang, Yilin Wang
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