As part of Weird Hope Engines, the Critical Hits zine fair brings together independent publishers, artists, and writers exploring themes of critical worlding, resistance, and alternative futures. The zine fair celebrates DIY publishing and tabletop gaming with vendors from Nottingham and around the UK including Melsonian Arts Council, Copy/Paste Co-op, Warp Miniatures, Ramshackle Games and others.

Alongside a diverse range of zines and ephemera to purchase, the event also features a talks series with conversations from artists in the exhibition including Zedeck Siew and Angela Washko, and panels on fantasy illustration, game design and miniature fabrication with Andrew Walter, Amanda Lee Franck, Scrap World and Alex Huntley.

Critical Hits also features gaming sessions with David Blandy, Angela Washko and Andrew Walter, as well as a film screening programme delving further into the narratives, aesthetics, and communities that shape these immersive worlds, including the documentaries World of Darkness (2017) and Eye of the Beholder: The Art of Dungeons & Dragons (2019).



Talks Schedule 12:00 - 12:45
Drawing Down The Moon: The Art of TTRPG Illustration
Amanda Lee Franck and Scrap Princess
Chaired by Andrew Walter

13:00 - 13:45
Warped Worlds and Ramshackle Realms: Worlds In Miniature
Curtis Fell (Ramshackle Games) and Alex Huntley (Warp Miniatures)
Chaired by Chris McDowall

14:00 - 14:45

Art Can Never Be Games!: What Is An Art Game?
Tom Kemp and Angela Washko
Chaired by Jamie Sutcliffe and Rebecca Edwards
15:00 - 15:45M
Games Design For Planetary Survival
Chris Bissette, Laurie O’Connel and Zedeck Siew
Chaired by David Blandy

Game play sessions 11.30am: David Blandy, Eco Mofos
2pm: Andrew Walter, Swyvers
3.30pm: Angela Washko, The Council is in Session

Press Enworld, Feb 2025: RPG Art Exhibition and Zine: An Interview with Amanda Franck, Zedeck Siew, and Dying Earth Catalogue.
Fad Magazine, Mar 2025: New Exhibition to Investigate Tabletop Roleplaying Games Culture Art Review, Mar 2025: The 10 Exhibitions to See in March 2025
The Notts Review, Mar 2025: How Bonington Gallery’s Weird Hope Engines is embracing and expanding the culture of tabletop roleplaying games