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Systems Failure is the newest RPG by Palladium. It is completely compatible with their Megaverse® rules. The book itself is a good read, but it seems to have been a little rushed.

To begin with, I don't like the Palladium system all that much. The only experience (before buying this book) I've had with it is from my copy of Rifts Russia. Systems Failure seems to be written for those who are already familiar with Palladium system, which is bad news for people like me. The system itself uses all types of dice, especially d10's and d20's. It's a level based game where your level determines how well you perform your skills (not my favorite way of playing, but whatever floats your boat), the levels are for the character, not the specific skills...unless you pick one using experience points. Unfortunately, the book never comes out and specifically says how to roll your skills! They allude that it is a percentile system, but never come out and say that's how you roll it. Damage Capacity and Hit Points are also separate entities...I never understood that.

I covered the Bad and the Ugly first, so let's get to the Good. The setting is done very well. It is our world ten years from now, after The Meltdown (Y2K) and the Bug invasion. It turns out that on Y2K all electronics went down, and the Bugs began their invasion. The Bugs are aliens from "somewhere else" (it's never said where they're really from), they also have an unknown agenda. They have the ability to turn into energy and travel through any conduit at the speed of light. They also feed on energy and can blast it from biocannons on their backs. They also have a maggot kind of Bug that buries itself into the brains of humans, controls their body fully, turning the hapless victim into a Zombie.

Not all the humans, of course, took this lying down. The survivalists who we all scoffed in '99 became the richest in the world after The Meltdown. Militias also became big powers in the ravaged U.S. Add to that the Warlords that set themselves up some places (ala The Postman) and you have one big mess. Now, the book goes into virtually no detail on these groups, although they name about twenty. The three or four that they actually describe only get rough outlines of their goals. The only specific person named is the General of the Wyoming Free Irregulars, the only Militia to be described.

The book describes the sections of the former US in small three-quarters of a page descriptions that give very little information other than where the Bug Cities are. The idea of Bug Controlled Cities is great, unfortunately the book doesn't describe what these cities are like, or what life is like within them.

All in all, I enjoyed this book. It presents some very good ideas and sets the mood very well. I have always been a fan of Post-Apocalyptic fiction and so do not mind all of the work it takes to make a campaign setting for this world. And the work it takes! The information in here is presented well, but it's like eating ribs that are just bones with barbecue sauce on them. There's nothing really there to sink your teeth into, but plenty to get your fingers dirty with.

I recommend it to those who want to try it, just be ready to do a lot of your own world building...because the book isn't very detailed in its descriptions. It's definitely a campaign game; good for one shots, but not excellent. On the whole, it is definitely a good read and an excellent addition to your shelf. And for the price, it's worth it.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 2 (Sparse)

Systems Failure
Author: Bill Coffin Category: game Company/Publisher: Palladium Books Inc. Line: Megaverse Cost: $12.95 Page count: 143 ISBN: 1-54757-038-2 SKU: Cat. No. 650 Capsule Review by JFC Wolz on 10/04/99. Genre tags: Science_fiction Post-apocalypse	Systems Failure is the newest RPG by Palladium. It is completely compatible with their Megaverse® rules. The book itself is a good read, but it seems to have been a little rushed. To begin with, I don't like the Palladium system all that much. The only experience (before buying this book) I've had with it is from my copy of Rifts Russia. Systems Failure seems to be written for those who are already familiar with Palladium system, which is bad news for people like me. The system itself uses all types of dice, especially d10's and d20's. It's a level based game where your level determines how well you perform your skills (not my favorite way of playing, but whatever floats your boat), the levels are for the character, not the specific skills...unless you pick one using experience points. Unfortunately, the book never comes out and specifically says how to roll your skills! They allude that it is a percentile system, but never come out and say that's how you roll it. Damage Capacity and Hit Points are also separate entities...I never understood that. I covered the Bad and the Ugly first, so let's get to the Good. The setting is done very well. It is our world ten years from now, after The Meltdown (Y2K) and the Bug invasion. It turns out that on Y2K all electronics went down, and the Bugs began their invasion. The Bugs are aliens from "somewhere else" (it's never said where they're really from), they also have an unknown agenda. They have the ability to turn into energy and travel through any conduit at the speed of light. They also feed on energy and can blast it from biocannons on their backs. They also have a maggot kind of Bug that buries itself into the brains of humans, controls their body fully, turning the hapless victim into a Zombie. Not all the humans, of course, took this lying down. The survivalists who we all scoffed in '99 became the richest in the world after The Meltdown. Militias also became big powers in the ravaged U.S. Add to that the Warlords that set themselves up some places (ala The Postman) and you have one big mess. Now, the book goes into virtually no detail on these groups, although they name about twenty. The three or four that they actually describe only get rough outlines of their goals. The only specific person named is the General of the Wyoming Free Irregulars, the only Militia to be described. The book describes the sections of the former US in small three-quarters of a page descriptions that give very little information other than where the Bug Cities are. The idea of Bug Controlled Cities is great, unfortunately the book doesn't describe what these cities are like, or what life is like within them. All in all, I enjoyed this book. It presents some very good ideas and sets the mood very well. I have always been a fan of Post-Apocalyptic fiction and so do not mind all of the work it takes to make a campaign setting for this world. And the work it takes! The information in here is presented well, but it's like eating ribs that are just bones with barbecue sauce on them. There's nothing really there to sink your teeth into, but plenty to get your fingers dirty with. I recommend it to those who want to try it, just be ready to do a lot of your own world building...because the book isn't very detailed in its descriptions. It's definitely a campaign game; good for one shots, but not excellent. On the whole, it is definitely a good read and an excellent addition to your shelf. And for the price, it's worth it. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 2 (Sparse)