I have been thinking about making review for short and small rpgs since last year, originally as part of a Patreon offering. But circumstances arise and I didn't get to make a Patreon before it made changes into tier packs. I was advised not to make one unless I have a grandfather account, so I postponed the idea.
There's always new rpg projects and works coming out, but I think it gets drown out with the powerhouse works, indie darling releases, and rpg discourse takes that we see in blogs, discord servers, and twitter. I asked twitter about interest for this kind of thing, and people are quite positive about it. So I'll make mini-reviews for those works I find noteworthy from itch.io, drivethrurpg, or from personal blog/sites. And I'll call it a P.I.T.C.H.
Premise - the theme or premise of the game, adventure, or supplement.
Impression - the aesthetics of the project; less technical about layout and design and more about how captivating or stylistic the work is
Toolkit - the mechanics, tools, reminders used in the work. resolution systems, clever mechanics, safety tools, and gameplay advice to use the product
Critic - my personal review, the highlights and shortcomings of the project.
Hackability - how to tinker or brew certain aspects of it for your own games
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What is this review about?
It will be short form reviews about rpg-related works that I find noteworthy. It will be mostly things that I like about the project, but I may not necessarily like the project as a whole.
Will focus on:
- Zines or books with less than 20(?) pages. If it takes more than an hour to read then it's probably too big.
- Pamphlet-sized, pocketmods, business card-sized, or one-page rpg works
- Maybe blog posts about games/supplements? Probably, as long as it's a short work
- Mostly RPGSEA or POC works, because those don't get reviewed a lot. Doesn't mean I won't check other people's work though.
- Mostly adventure-themed rpg works, because I am a sucker for it. And I am still unsure how to view lyric games and story-heavy games to create criticism of it.
I aim to evolve past that last line in a few more months.
How am I reviewing things?
Will focus on things that are noteworthy about the project, to incite and ignite interest for people to check it out further.
What I find noteworthy:
- Thought-provoking or topical premise or theme
- Interesting twist/subversion of mechanics
- Exquisite safety tools
- Harmony of theme and system
- Provocative art and style
- Clean and table-friendly layout and design
I aim to be as succinct but detailed as possible in my reviews, but uhh let's judge that when I post my first few posts.
Will this be a scheduled post? Unless I am getting paid for a review, or when I do actually make that Patreon/Ko-fi account, probably not. Will post when I feel like it, or when a work needs to be shouted about.
Why short reviews for short rpg works?
I find it really funny and sad that short rpg works are the things that are mostly get sidelined for not being a "full rpg" when it takes literally a few minutes to an hour to read them, as opposed to big book rpgs that takes your entire week to read, a few days to search and check with other people who read the book about an interpretation of the rule, and a lifetime of argument how to run it. Or the fact that they are heavier than a two-handed sword.
The focus on short rpg works that people can read and check further after they read my short review. The idea is to incite people into reading it themselves, hence the PITCH motif.
And my main goal here is to look at rpg works as pieces of legos that can be built on each other, rather than new consoles or game franchises that need to be judged differently and create fandoms that don't help evolve the rpg scene.
And ultimately, let help people create more efficient homebrews and hacks. While making 5E-version or a PbtA-version of every existing franchise or genre is valid, it also breeds a mindset and style that is afraid of changing the foundation to create a new work, when better systems and styles are possible to emulate a good harmony of theme and mechanics for a specific work. Don't keep replacing cogs to the same old machine, it will run better and faster if you rebuild it from scratch.
As a final note, and a personal bias, please stop making elaborate simulationist combat systems that would run smoother if played as a video game or a board game. If I have to check the minutes and details of a power that has X keyword that will trigger Y ability and create Z result to finish an encounter without interference and interpretation of players or GM (aka doing things RAW), then you probably don't want role-playing games as a medium to express it.
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