This post is from Akar Bharadvaj. Akar is the designer of the 2021 Zenobia Award first prize winner Tyranny of Blood. He is a member of the board for Zenobia II, as well as SDHistCon.
Since October 1 of last year, our second cohort of Zenobia contestants has been working hard on a broad set of historical games, on a diverse, creative, and original set of topics! We have been blown away by the quality of games.
Out of the 37 proposals that advanced from the initial stages, we received 25 prototypes. Our judges had excellent things to say about all of the games, and judging was a very difficult process indeed! We would love to see all of these on the shelf of our friendly local gaming store some day! We’ve seen several published games come out of the first Zenobia iteration, and we hope to see similar successes for all of our contestants, regardless of whether they are advancing to the finalist stage or not.
With that said, it is with great pleasure that we announce the nine finalists from Zenobia II!
Aguirre, by Annabel Journey
When madman Don Lope de Aguirre takes over a Spanish colonial expedition searching for El Dorado, members of the party must survive both the dangers of the Amazon jungle and Aguirre’s growing paranoia,
House of Wisdom, by Fagner Lima da Silva
Abbasid Baghdad hosts scholars who study, copy, and translate works of mathematics, philosophy, cartography, astronomy, and physics. Caravans cross North Africa, Europe, and Asia pursuing books for the great library.
Melaka: The Forgotten Empire, by Effendy Norzaman
The Malay Sultanate of Melaka has risen to become a great maritime empire. Nobles loyal to the Sultan outsmart each other by executing each royal command to build Melaka and expand its supremacy differently.
Obraje, by Diego Javier Luis
In colonial Mexico’s infamous textile mills, enslaved people confined to brutal labor confront moral dilemmas as they seek freedom, perhaps eking out a surprising mobility, perhaps living and dying in servitude.
An Outstretched Hand, by Max Bentovim
Russia’s annexation of Poland and Lithuania brings a huge Jewish population into a society previously hostile to Jews. The state, Polish nobles, and Hasidic and Jewish modernity movements seek different fates for the Jews
The Porters, by Lucas Cockburn, Neco Cockburn, and Alex Goss
Canadian railways employ black porters to serve the white passengers of luxury sleepers. An informal brotherhood of porters forms, overcoming racism and fatigue to secretly organize unions that will admit black workers.
The Pursuit of Aguinaldo, by Nicanor Marco P. Valdez
As the Philippine President evades capture by US forces in Luzon, his outgunned army mounts a defensive campaign. Will growing US anti-imperialist sentiment end the war, or will Aguinaldo be captured first?
Sabotage the Raj, by Mohit Patel
In colonial Bengal, the secret revolutionaries of Anushilan Samiti plot to undermine the British. Can they grow the networks, set the hideouts, get the weapons, or make the bombs to incite a troop mutiny or popular rebellion?
Silencio, by Luis M. Salas
In a Mexican community suffering a terrible wave of violence, a victim struggles to survive. Some years later, a journalist investigates what happened in the town, hoping to interview the victim and also to avoid harm.
The finalists have received feedback from the judges, and have until October 15 to revise their prototypes. After that, the judges will play the updated games, and we will announce the top three games in November! So, be on the lookout for these games!
You can read more about the Zenobia Award, its mission, and the current games in the running here.