Anica Cihla, the brand director of Hero Forge, became intrigued by the practice of sin-eating at the age of 10 after reading about it in an Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader. Now, two decades later, she shares with Polygon her ambition to introduce this eerie historical concept to a broader audience through her solo RPG, Sin Eater, which kicks off its crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter today.
Sin eaters were common in the UK from the 16th to the 18th century, hired by families to consume bread and beer in sight of a newly deceased body, thereby symbolically absorbing the deceased’s sins and ensuring their soul’s passage to heaven. Cihla’s game incorporates this tradition alongside the ancient concept of balancing the four humors, creating an emotional gameplay experience grounded in ritual and forgiveness.
“As a sin eater, you find yourself alienated from your community,” Cihla explained during a Zoom call with Polygon. “You undertake this disturbing role, wherein you have the power to forgive or condemn a soul.”
Players roll six-sided dice to uncover the sins of the deceased and craft their own characters, responding to prompts that explore how their role and relationships with clients affect them. They will then create an altar that represents the corpse, adorning it with coins and personal items. As they navigate questions in the gameplay, they seek a method for balancing the soul and reflect on the outcomes of their efforts.
“I envision it as somewhat therapeutic, though I must emphasize that it isn’t actual therapy,” Cihla remarked. “This game aims to blur the distinction between the narrative and the players, providing a potential pathway for individuals to find peace in areas of their lives where they’ve struggled with self-forgiveness.”
While Cihla enjoys gaming, she prefers solitude over large gatherings, which led her to solo tabletop RPGs, beginning with Banana Chan’s Forgery, where the player’s decisions shape a story by coloring a paint-by-numbers image. Her fascination with sin eaters and the concept behind her new game was also inspired by Obsidian Entertainment’s narrative-driven RPG Pentiment, merging the illuminated manuscript aesthetic of that game with the dark artistry of Mörk Borg, featuring a cover illustration by Johan Nohr.
Sin Eater will be published by Hunters Entertainment, the indie publisher known for Alice Is Missing and Kids on Bikes. The Kickstarter campaign offers the opportunity to purchase the game book, ritual map, journal dice, and coins.
