Think tabletop games and you’ll probably conjure up an image of Monopoly, Risk or Catan, seizing assets and building worlds. If you’re a roleplay gamer your mind might go to Dungeons & Dragons or fantasy lands. But for Edinburgh games maker Tanya Floaker, the inspiration for their latest creation was found closer to home. 

‘It came from parenting, being a mum and seeing all the wonderful mums around me,’ Floaker says over Zoom. ‘I think we’ve all had shared experiences, reaching out to others around us, who you just have these really poignant moments with. Sometimes it’s joyous and fun, and you’re seeing your kids in this amazing spot, and it’s just beautiful. And sometimes you walk over and you can see that someone’s not in a good way, and they’re having a really tough day.’

Floaker’s newest game Mum Chums is designed to replicate both types of experience, playing out the highs and lows of parenting in a safe environment, where challenging situations can be shared and talked through. Floaker is mum to a seven-year-old, but is keen to stress that despite the game’s title it was created with all carers in mind. ‘You can be playing a dad or a grandparent or a kinship carer, anyone in a care role. It’s those moments and the connection with other parents that sparked the creativity for this game.’

After choosing a character, players enact scenarios based on prompts from the game’s book. While Floaker didn’t want these to be ‘mawkish’ or fetishise tragedy, they also didn’t want the game to shy away from confronting the tough realities of parenting. ‘It could be something like a looming court date, trouble with the neighbours, or that you’re estranged from the family in some way. It could just be you think your parenting is really shit and you’re struggling with that.’ The players explore the situation and think about how to respond. ‘And while it isn’t the same as actually living an experience, it can, I think, help foster some empathy.’

Mum Chums is one of a slew of new Scottish games with tougher subjects in mind. ‘In Scotland we’ve got a really good crop of game designers doing things that aren’t your standard “let’s fight a dragon”’, says Floaker. ‘Aleksandra Brokman created Wise Women, a game of Slavic witchcraft and folklore; Wraithlands by Leckie contains a fantastical commentary on the Highland Clearances; and Malcom Craig’s Cold City Hot War deals with the trust you put in one another.’

Mum Chums launches on Kickstarter, Saturday 1 February.