The Goodest Girls

Each player brings a stash of shareable treats to the table. The treats are pre-negotiated by the players and may be small edible items–candy, crackers, cookies, fruit snacks–or they may be small trinkets–stickers, patches, gemstones, or cool dice. 

During character creation, each player identifies three tricks from a picklist that they can do when called upon. When a player successfully completes a trick, the outcome of their in-scene action is positive and the director awards them a treat. When they fail, the outcome of their action is negative and they do not earn a treat. Any trick may be adapted to accommodate a player’s ability, and player’s can use a write-in option to add tricks that are personally challenging for them. 

Example tricks:

• Guess the treat. The director hides a treat in one hand or under a cup. For a particularly challenging trick, the player closes their eyes and the director hides the treat in one of the other player’s hands. The player completing the trick guesses where the treat is hidden.
• Reflexology. A treat is placed in the middle of the table and the director counts to three. On three, everyone tries to grab the treat. Whoever gets the treat decides the outcome of the resolution.
• Snap it up. The player tries to toss one of their treats into the director’s mouth. They get three tosses. If the treat isn’t edible or the director doesn’t want to catch it with their mouth, the player may try tossing it into a cup across the table. 
• Sensory wonderland. The player closes their eyes. Based on sound, smell, taste, etc. the player guesses which treat is being presented to them. The director may trade one of their treats for another player’s treats to complicate the guessing.

The Goodest Girls is a lore-building game. Rather than roleplaying a single episode of a sitcom, the players collaboratively generate the lore of an entire sitcom series. The game uses a flashback episode as the framework for a shared-GM experience inviting players to take turns reminiscing about invented episodes in the sitcom series they are building together. Imagine Dorothy, Blanche, Sophia, and Rose sitting around their kitchen table and trading memories over a few slices of cheesecake. 

The Goodest Girls gather on the eve of a major change in their community to share treats and remember their time together in the shelter. One of the animals is about to be adopted, an event that seemed unimaginable before now. Across a bittersweet final evening together, the Girls reminisce about the times they’ve shared, selfishly hoping their friend will find a way to stay at the shelter and keep their little family together. 

In short flashback scenes, The Goodest Girls experience important moments in the evolution of their community, their relationships with one another, and their personal growth. Like their human Golden Girls counterparts, the Golden Good Girls experience the joy and angst of their golden years together. They pursue personal goals and carve out meaningful lives in a world that’s left them behind. They advocate for themselves and others, they make mistakes and grow from them, they experience love and heartbreak, and they confront significant social issues, all with signature Golden Girls kitsch, sass, and sarcasm. They have strong personalities and often clash, but they are always there for one another at the end.

The Goodest Girls’ concerns are animal concerns. Maybe the shelter is running out of money and their big annual fundraiser is coming up, so the Goodest Girls need to make it an event to remember. Maybe an animal from one of the character’s past lives shows up at the shelter, triggering unresolved feelings. Maybe the Goodest Girls realize they are all dating the same new shelter animal. Maybe the shelter vet is dismissing the serious ailments of senior animals. Maybe two human volunteers find themselves in a faltering romantic relationship and the Goodest Girls must stop one of them from leaving the shelter so they don’t lose their best human advocate. Maybe it’s the winter holiday season and the the Goodest Girls are grieving the way their previous human families would celebrate. 

After all of the animals have shared their memories, the animal that’s being adopted has to decide whether she’ll leave tomorrow or find a way to stay, and then the group plays out a final scene together reacting to that decision.