The JAY Games™ Story

The beginning

We love games - tabletop role-play games to be precise (obviously). And that's how we started - during the COVID-19 pandemic with custom TTRPGs for friends. But that's where we ran into one of the biggest challenges facing tactical TTRPGs - dyscalcula. No matter how engaging the plot nor how simple the rules, requiring Players to roll 30 million dice to build a PC (player character) and do, really, anything can be a serious challenge to Players because of the math involved.

In the lab

So, JAY Games started to mess around with mechanics and figure out the sweet spot between structure and Player freedom - without math. We even experimented with real-world physics for some Play experiences - and are excited to bring this concept to JAY Games in the future - and thus was born the Just As Yourself™ system!

Into the desert

All our labwork culiminated in Under the desert sun™, our first JAY Games Play experience. Streamlined to limit 90% of all math for a tactical TTRPG - with ample role-play action, Under the desert sun represented the start of a new style of TTRPG - because it's what happens when you play Just As Yourself.

Back to the lab

Following the success of our first Under the desert sun playtest, we went back to the lab to refine mechanics, streamline PC creation, and build out custom full-color maps for an immersive Player experience.

To the world

2024 was a big year for us at JAY Games - the year of our global debut. We launched our marketing efforts and increased public playtests for Under the desert sun, our first TTRPG Play experience release - and our Just As Yourself Quickstart Pack was released for free download on Itch.io.

What's to come

JAY Games is always looking to the future of playing Just As Yourself - Be it Under the desert sun releasing for digital download in Spring 2025 (hardcover release hopefully shortly after), developing a sequel in the A Qán adventure™ brand, or developing entirely new brands that focus on our love of Chicago and breaking the rules of TTRPGs - JAY Games is committed to building an accessible future for all TTRPG Players be it with our own games or collaborations with other developers.

The JAY Games Team

Jay La Plante - Owner and Lead Developer

Celestine Nox - Character Artist, Under the desert sun

Jay La Plante is a TTRPG game master from Chicago with a passion for storytelling and breaking the rules. A chaos gremlin by nature and a Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) dungeon master, Jay set out to create a game system that combines the best aspects of D&D with those of other TTRPGs where everyone, regardless of ability and comfort with TTRPGs, could immerse themselves in a story and enjoy an open-world environment without being railroaded by rules from a library of books and confined by comfort levels and ability in math. In his free time, Jay is a Legend of Zelda fan and enjoys playing and writing music, photography, and spending time with his cat, Batrick.

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Celestine Nox - Character Artist, Under the desert sun

Celestine Nox is a self-taught artist originally from Louisiana and currently happily living in Massachusetts. Their medium is digital painting and their current favorite program is Procreate for iPad but they also have experience with Rebelle Pro 5 & 6 and MediBang. In addition, they're an experienced Game Master, specializing in Powere

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This could be you!

Celestine Nox - Character Artist, Under the desert sun

This could be you!

JAY Games will be looking for talented people to join our team! Character artists, writers, and marketing experts galore! More information coming soon.

The JAY Games™ Story

The beginning

In the lab

Into the desert

Back to the lab

To the world

What's to come

The JAY Games Team

Jay La Plante - Owner and Lead Developer

Celestine Nox - Character Artist, Under the desert sun

Celestine Nox - Character Artist, Under the desert sun

Celestine Nox - Character Artist, Under the desert sun

Celestine Nox - Character Artist, Under the desert sun

Celestine Nox - Character Artist, Under the desert sun

This could be you!

Celestine Nox - Character Artist, Under the desert sun

This could be you!

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