Terry Pratchett’s Discworld offers a universe brimming with unforgettable characters, ingenious plots, and satirical brilliance, making it fertile ground for video game adaptations. While we’ve been treated to a few gems like the unique Discworld Noir, the vast potential of this fantastical realm remains largely untapped. This should change.
Imagine stepping into the grimy streets of Ankh-Morpork with modern graphics, or exploring the furthest reaches of the Disc in entirely new genres. This is a heartfelt, slightly desperate plea to game developers: dive back into the Discworld! We’re ready for more adventures, more laughs, and more reasons to lose ourselves in Pratchett’s unparalleled imagination.
8Discworld Noir 2: Sequilis Inevitabilis
Discworld Noir captured lightning in a bottle. A point-and-click adventure that captured Ankh-Morpork’s grit and grandeur and wrapped it up in a film noir package was perfection. We need more of this sort of thing.
Bringing Rob Brydon back as Lewton and delivering a follow-up adventure with his unique werewolf powers opens up a huge world of possibilities. Even if they stayed in Ankh-Morpork, there are myriad narrative threads to pull upon in a world as rich as the Disc’s.
7Rincewind: The Luggage’s Revenge
Rincewind, the Disc’s foremost wizzard [sic] has been on plenty of adventures, taking him to perilous deserts to even more perilous mountains. Imagine, if you will, a 3D platformer/action-adventure game where you control the poor guy, constantly trying to escape peril while occasionally calling on The Luggage, a magical, almost sentient chest on legs, for destructive assistance.
Level design could bewildlyvaried, from the chaotic streets of Ankh-Morpork to the surreal landscapes beyond the Circle Sea that plague Rincewind’s narrative adventures.
6Ankh-Morpork: City Of Guilds
This is one that I’ve been imagining for about a decade and a half, at this point. A city-building and management sim where players take on the role of a budding guild master (or even a new Patrician, sorry Vetinari), navigating the intricate politics, economics, and eccentricities of the Disc’s greatest city.
Balancing guild power, public opinion, and the ever-present threat of chaos would be key, and there are plenty of ways that this could be made so gripping yet hilarious. In an alternate universe where this game exists, I’ve lostdaysto it.
5Ankh-Morpork’s Okayest
Now this is something that could be very interesting. Think of all the best open-world RPGs of the past years, mix them all together, and shove them into Ankh-Morpork. Starting out as a humble new recruit in the Watch, you’d explore the city, solving crimes and probably committing dozens of your own.
An open-world Discworld game would be utterly ripe for fan-fave cameos and references, secrets to discover, and a branching storyline that lets you, dear player, leave your imprint on a world that you love so much.
4The Wyrd Sisters
Inspired by Witches Abroad and, to a lesser extent, the entire Witches series, this would be a Telltale-style episodic narrative adventure game following Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, and Magrat Garlick on one of their ‘holidays.’
Choices would deeply impact the story, exploring the nuances of witchcraft and destiny across various Discworld locations. Agnes and Tiffany would obviously feature too, but in my heart of hearts, it’s the original coven who play the starring roles.
3Death’s Domain
Play as Death’s overworked assistant! Managing the infinite paperwork, spectral appointments, and occasional existential crises of the afterlife, this game has something for everyone!
Thinly-veiled audition for the marketing position of this fake game aside, this idea has legs. Imagine a Papers Please mixed with any of the myriad cosy management sims you can play today. Now give it a humorous twist that also manages to dive into the nature of life, death, and the transition between.
Also included in this pitch: plenty of gratuitous cats and Albert playing the grumpy yet lovable tutorial character.
2The Second Last Hero
This is my pitch for all those who, like me, grew up on JRPGs. A classic Final Fantasy-esque journey following a band of unlikely heroes - perhaps a grizzled barbarian, a cynical wizard (or wizard [sic, again] if you prefer), a surprisingly competent thief, and a not-so-innocent priestess - on a quest across the Disc to confront the gods themselves.
I imagine the Game Over screen to be a blunt, slightly mocking jibe from Death.
The game would feature a vast world map, airship travel, and deep character customisation. The narrative would obviously be a grand parody of epic fantasy tropes, with the ‘final boss’ being a particularly petty or bureaucratic deity.
1The Dysk Players
This is the ultimate game that I wouldloveto exist, some sort of unique grand strategy game where you manage a troupe of travelling actors, using theatrical performances and clever manipulation to influence events across the Disc, inspired by Wyrd Sisters.
Think Crusader Kings meets The Movies meets The Procuers, with Shakespeare and witchcraft and plenty of satire and culture.
