Long Haul 1983 - A journaling game of isolated survival - Review
Hit the road in Long Haul 1983. Drive across a desolate countryside where not a living soul can be found, while you keep one step ahead of whatever is hunting you. At the end of your journey is someone you love and miss, if you can make it.
The sign says ‘Labor omnia vincit’. A buddy of mine told me that means ‘work conquers all’. Maybe it's some sort of joke, who knows. ‘Welcome to Oaklahoma’ is the other thing it says. Sure, maybe this is Oklahoma, how would I even know? I’ve been driving for days now, haven’t seen a soul on the road, at any gas stations, and nobody on the radio. God damn, what happened? Please pick up, I’m scared. You must be terrified, I wish I was with you.
Long Haul 1983 is a solo long haul cross country drive of an RPG by Sean Patrick Cain, where you play as a truck driver, trying to get home as you travel through a desolate countryside. There is nobody on the roads, not a single person to speak with you, comfort you, or give you directions. You are driving to get to someone, someone important to you who needs you right now. And while there are no people around, you are not alone. Something dark is hunting you, following just beyond your tail lights, always.
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| It's a long and lonely drive. Photo by Katie Moum on Unsplash |
Long Haul 1983 is a journaling game with a twist, where other games like Grimoire have you reacting to prompts by writing in a journal, Long Haul 1983 has you recording the day's travels by recording your voice. See at the end of each day, your character tries to call the person they are trying to get to. This can be a spouse, a child, a loved one, or something else completely, but it must be something your character is willing to drive through a terrifying landscape, devoid of any human. You stop at a pay phone every day and call this person, but they never answer. So you leave a message, and that message is what you record.
The last gas station I was at had no food. The rats must have gotten to it, or something larger than rats, who knows. As soon as I filled up, I hauled ass out of there as quick as this old rig could get going. Don’t have any food, not today. It’s fine you know. I can go without food for a few days. Reminds me of my childhood you know? We didn’t have much food, and ma’ worked so hard for what little we did have. We always used to appreciate every meal we had, because we never knew when it would be our last. Are you eating well? I hope so, I’d love to sit down and have a nice dinner with you.
What do you need to play?
Like most journaling games, what you need to get started you probably already have lying around or you can easily make.
You need the game and the character sheet. The rules are beautifully designed and the character sheet has the look and feel of a truck's dashboard.
You’ll need a deck of standard 52 playing cards.
You need Fudge/Fate Dice. These are a bit harder to come by. Fudge dice are six-sided dice, but two + sides, two - sides, and two blank sides. You can buy some (some other RPGs use Fudge dice), you can make fudge dice from a standard D6 (with the pips), you can use a standard D6 and convert the results over, or use a dice roller app. Either way, don’t let the fudge dice put you off from playing Long Haul.
You need to be able to record your voice. Any computer microphone or the voice recorder app on your phone will work.
And you’ll need to be able to listen to music. This is another key and interesting part of Long Haul, it comes with a recommended playlist to set the mood for the game.
As I’m driving, I keep repeating the words to that one song. I forgot its name but you know the one. It goes ‘We’ll make it through. We’ll make it. We gotta make it
Design and Feel
The 33-page book or PDF is stunningly designed, it evokes the feeling of being on a lonely drive across the country. The yellow and black color scheme is a great call back to the sights of a road trip. The feel of the game is inspired clearly by the 80’s (as seen in the name), so no cellphones, no internet, and no computers.
All in all, the booklet is easy to read and follow along, just great design through and through.
Character Creation
Like most RPGs you're going to spend time at the start creating your character. Stats in Long Haul are the same for anyone starting off, so much of the character creation is about who you are going to be over this journey. What do you look like, what are you thinking when you realise you are utterly alone, who are you thinking and worried about, and what song keeps repeating in your head.
You’ll then determine what environment you’ll be starting in and what order you’ll be travelling in. They are ice, snow, wind, rain, heat, flood, fog and dust. You can arrange them in any order. Some prompts will have you advance your location, which will get you closer to where you are going.
Next, is the destination, where are you driving and why? You are trying to get to someone, you define who they are and who they are to you. This is the person you call every day but who never picks up.
You also decided on a wound for your character. Something bad but not too dangerous.
Lastly, you pick a threat. Something or someone who is stalking you from the shadows, what is it, and why are they following? Some moves have you advance the threat, if you mark a fourth threat your game is over.
All in all, you can get a game going in about 5 to 10 minutes of thought and you are ready to make your first call.
Rain again today, same as yesterday and same as the day before. My headlights barely cut through it, even on high beams. I’m tired of it. I’m just tired. I should be making progress, I should be covering a few states a day, but all I see is rain. I want it to stop. Maybe it's sunny where you are? Warm, bright. I wish I was with you.
How it Plays
The game is broken into four phases.
You start your engine. This involves rolling dice and there is a risk it won’t start. But if it doesn’t you can just take a moment, ponder what’s gone wrong, and give it another try.
Next is ‘Hit the Road.’ This is where you draw cards from your deck of 52 cards and flip them one by one, working through the prompt that correlates to the card, rolling a move if required, and hopefully making it to the end of the day.
You then check your progress to see if you’ve advanced your location and moved closer to your destination. You can take a moment to gather your thoughts and prepare some notes for your daily call.
Lastly, you ‘Make the Call’. You call the person you're trying to get to, tell them about your day and what happened on the road, tell them how much you miss them, and tell them how scared you are for yourself and for them.
Then you do it all over again.
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| Maybe they will pick up this time? Photo by Yuan Yang on Unsplash |
How it Ends
The game has one happy ending, and that is if you made it to your destination navigating through a desolate countryside and avoiding horrors that stalk you through the journey. But that isn’t the end of the story, soon you are back on the road and you get to answer why you need to travel again and where you are going now.
And then there are multiple ways to end the game on a less happy note. You can be caught by the threat that chases you. Also, your body could fail you, your rig could fail you, or your mind could fail you, all leading to the end of the game.
Will you make it? Maybe, maybe not. The odds don’t look great but you gotta try.
Gracie, my little girl. I’m so sorry. I ain’t going to make it to see you. I don’t even know if you are there. Why would you be? Nobody else is here. The world is empty, empty except for the shadow that has been stalking me. Gracie, I’m so sorry. It’s caught me, it's waiting for me outside this phone booth. I have nowhere to hide. I love you, little girl. I love you so much…
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| The road is unforgiving. But maybe, just maybe, you'll make it. Photo by Robson Hatsukami Morgan on Unsplash |
Should I Buy this Game and Who is it for?
As I said in my review of Grimoire, there are thousands of RPGs you could play solo, so should you take time out of your busy day to play this? Yes, you should. This game is a masterpiece in dark, personal storytelling. It is personal, it is profound, and it is sad. But it is hopeful. We all have someone in our life we would drive clear across a continent to be with, no matter what was between us and them.
Do you like games that are connected to specific time periods? Then this game is for you. Long Haul 1983 perfectly captures the feel of being on the road in the 1980s. The rest stops, gas stations, payphones, and tape decks.
Do you like games with an amazing atmosphere? Then get this game. The game has a curated music playlist you are encouraged to listen to as you play. It puts you in the mood for cranking that engine and hitting the road.
Do you like Journaling or Journaling games like Thousand-Year Old Vampire or Grimoire? No brainer, buy this game and get stuck into a deeply personal story.
Do you like games that are innovative and creative? Then get this, the inclusion of music and voice recording is pretty innovative in the solo genre and I’m interested to see who else will put it to use.
And do you want to support an awesome indie creator? That's why I’m here and I think why you are here also.
So go pick up Long Haul 1983 by Sean Patrick Cain today at Drive Thru RPG or Itch.
And follow SPC on Drive Thru, Itch, and on Twitter.
There is also a shop where you can buy physical SPC Games.
If you want to check out this actual play of Long Haul 1983, check out the Five Games for Doomsday podcast. They have a 10-episode arc!
Thank you for reading, and safe driving out there partner.
For other reviews check out my review and preview page.
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- Croaker
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