"They cry" Laura Kröger on Odysseus & Finnish Larp (S11E1)

About this episode

Laura Kröger discusses the emotional depth and logistics of the Finnish larp 'Odysseus'.

Answer our 2026 Audience Census! "One of the highlights of the Finnish larp is heavy, hard emotions. Crying is very much associated with Nordic style and Finnish style larping." Have you ever wanted to trauma bond with a hundred strangers aboard a spaceship while fleeing an alien threat? Do you want to be emotionally devastated while making hard choices about love, sacrifice, and humanity? Then Finnish larp is for you! Laura Kröger is the lead producer and narrative director of Odysseus, a large-scale sci-fi larp run in Helsinki, Finland in 2019 and 2024, in both Finnish and English. Built for 104 players, it's set in an original science fiction universe inspired by classics such as Battlestar Galactica. Each participant has a pre-written role with past relationships, loyalties, secrets and fears, but the choices and emotional journeys are in the hands of the players. Beyond the script, the set of Odysseus is mind-blowingly realistic, considering it was built into an elementary school as a temporary installation during summer break. Laura talks to us about all the logistics of running such a massively complex larp, including how food and lodging is handled, costuming, and…

People in this episode

Hosts: David Spira, Peih-Gee Law

Guest: Laura Kröger

Topics covered

• Finnish larp
• emotional experiences
• sci-fi
• role-playing games
• logistics of larp

Keywords

• larp
• emotional bonding
• sci-fi larp
• role-playing
• Odysseus
• Helsinki
• Battlestar Galactica
• logistics
• costuming
• special effects

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Odysseus

Books & works: Battlestar Galactica

Places: Helsinki

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