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Board/Tactical Game Review: World without End (2010)
Playtest Review by Shannon Appelcline (5/4): A thoughtful, fate-filled resource-management game that's a thematic sequel to Pillars of the Earth.
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Stage Show Review: One Man Lord of the Rings
Playtest Review by Jonathan Hicks (5/5): If one man can showcase the characters of all three Lord of the Rings films in just over an hour, then a GM can certainly represent several major NPCs in a campaign.
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RPG Review: Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Monstrous Manual (1993)
Playtest Review by Robin Ashe (5/4): The Monstrous Manual is an encyclopedia of monsters, not quite like a multi-volume encyclopedia, but it still has a wide breadth of monsters, creatures and adversaries to populate your campaign world, and is still, over a decade later, one of the better products of its kind.
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RPG Review: Time & Temp - Unbound Edition (2010)
Playtest Review by Robert Dushay (4/4): A light, humorous game with clever mechanics about time travel. And being a temp.
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RPG Review: Eclipse Phase (2009)
Capsule Review by It that must not be named (5/5): Eclipse Phase is a bold new experiment in game economics and marketing, in addition to being a great RPG for fans of transhumanism and fairly hard SF.
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RPG Review: Eclipse Phase GM Pack (2010)
Capsule Review by It that must not be named. (5/5): The Eclipse Phase GM pack is an all around excellent product for EP, combining a well done, large GM screen with a well done, even larger introductory adventure.
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RPG Review: Purge the Unclean (2008)
Playtest Review by Mac Dara Mac Donnacha (4/2): The first adventure supplement for Dark Heresy, containing three scenarios. While each adventure had potential, each feels like it was crammed into insufficient space.
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Book/Fiction Review: The Complete Hammer's Slammers, Volume 1 (2009)
Capsule Review by Shannon Appelcline (4/3): Though The Complete Hammer's Slammers Volume 1 doesn't provide a very deep look at the Slammerverse, it does offer great adventure ideas for use with Mercenary-based Traveller games.
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RPG Review: Night Horrors: Wolfsbane (2009)
Capsule Review by Christopher W. Richeson (4/4): With a broad variety of antagonists and good writing throughout, Wolfsbane does a great job of supporting any Storyteller who wants to add a few new adversaries to their game.
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RPG Review: RuneQuest II Core Rulebook (2010)
Playtest Review by Bruce Mason (3/5): The granddaddy of the down-and-dirty FRPs is back in a new edition from Mongoose that fixes the many flaws of their first attempt while producing the best RQII since, well, RQ2.
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RPG Review: Trail of Cthulhu (2008)
Playtest Review by Christopher W. Richeson (5/4): Trail of Cthulhu takes a fresh look at Lovecraft's Mythos with a strong focus on investigation, excellent writing, and plenty of play support.
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RPG Review: Vice (2009)
Capsule Review by Khadim Nasser (4/3): Does what it says: Comprehensive overview of crime in SR2072. Does NOT contain rules or crunch so don't expect them.
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RPG Review: Afterpeak (2009)
Capsule Review by Jesse Thacker (2/3): Afterpeak is a good setting that falls somewhere between the Morrow Project and Rifts in term of feel and theme, however its ideas really need to be distilled and refined through the arcane practices of a good editor to be a well realized generic setting, preferably in 1/2 to 1/3rd the page count.
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RPG Review: CthulhuTech (2008)
Capsule Review by Ben McFarland (5/5): Really, you're getting four or more games in one with Cthulhutech, and that's part of what makes it so cool. This isn't just a cult investigation game, an espionage/intrigue game, or a military strikeforce game, or a mecha combat game, its all of those things or just one of them, with enemies that integrate nicely into each option. Cthulhutech is a robust system with a detailed world and an expansive metaplot.
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RPG Review: Night Horrors: Wicked Dead (2009)
Capsule Review by Christopher W. Richeson (4/4): Provides an excellent assortment of different antagonists and plot points loosely connected by their relationship to the undead.
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RPG Review: Rifts Ultimate Edition (2005)
Capsule Review by James Gillen (4/2): "Editor's Note: I don't exist."
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Board/Tactical Game Review: Claustrophobia (2009)
Playtest Review by Shannon Appelcline (5/4): A beautifully produced light two-player fantasy war game, set in the world of Hell Dorado.
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Card Game Review: Panty Raider: A Game of Sophomoric Subterfuge (2010)
Playtest Review by Iconocaust (4/4): Panty Raider is an attractive, fast-paced American-style card game, ideal for parties or as a low-intensity palate cleanser between crunchier titles. While it doesn't boast a tremendous amount of strategic depth, its theme, humor, and ease of play definitely merit a look.
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RPG Review: Kobolds Ate My Baby! (First Edition) (1999)
Playtest Review by Lethe (3/4): Kobolds Ate My Baby! is a humor game that delivers on the humor - provided you think eating babies is funny.
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