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I read through the whole issue and soon after played a game with a few of my buddies. It was fantastic! I wasn't actually expecting the game to be this good. This is the best super heroes RPG I have ever played bar none and I've seen (and bought) a few for much higher prices and much less value. Simple Superheroes was worth every penny. I feel privaleged to have bought one of the first copies. The system is amazingly simple and flexible. It requires a good GM to control the power levels amongst the players, but as long as you have that it encourages a lot of creativity and out-of-the-box thinking.
I created a PC called the Black Knight to get a feeling for the system and my players created a Sonic/Plant/Time controller and an Energy Control master. The adventure played out smoothly with a lot of action and drama and the mechanics perfectly suited what was going on in the story. I did increase the power level intended in the rules somewhat but everyone had a blast. It was generally agreed it was a great game and the best we'd played in a while. The only difference I can see is the amazing system and great ideas it espouses. I particularly like the relations idea. It adds a lot of depth to the game and tying in the superheroes relationships into the game mechanics is a brilliant idea as, often, the PCs ignore anything without an in-game benefit for their characters. Strain points work well and the rules for pooling dice are excellent.
In short: Simple Superheroes exceeds my expectations. It is the 'best' superheroes RPG I have ever played including all the major commercial competion such as: Mutants and Masterminds, Wild Talents, DC Heroes, and Champions. It is an amazing game. Fast, flexible, simple, fun, and creative. It lives up to it's name, and delivers more than it promises in the title. This game deserves 5 out of 5 stars and is easily worth triple the cover price. I'd recommend this game to anyone who plays RPGs, not just superhero RPGs. It's rules on Relations, Strainpoints, Dice Mechanics, and GM creativity are well worth looking into for any serious gamer. I highly recommend this fine product.
The session itself involved a band of down on their luck rockers who needed a place to stay. One of the PCs took them in and let them practice in her sound proof shed. The plot escalated when a former member of the ban took revenge on her former band-mates for kicking her out. Eventually the PCs figured things out and patched the bond between the band leader and the woman he'd kicked out of the band (who loved him). True love and music triumphed with a zany super hero rock out at the end of the game.It was great fun and everyone had a blast. This game was only possible with Simple Superheroes, so thanks so much for making such a great game! David L. Dostaler, Proud Purchaser of Simple Superheroes
Mechanics:
The general game mechanics function on a d6 dice pool system with a general leaning toward the combat resolution of the RISK game system. There are about 3 different challenge resolution systems with no clear one used in any particular situation so it's really a case of precedent and having a good GM.
The system is simple and flexible with some good guidelines on the more dangerous powers and powergaming techniques. It's light but effective.
I would have liked to see some more rules, but the whole appeal of the game is that it's so simple and really that's what it says in the title anyway.
Layout:
There are a few typos (or there were in my copy of the book, the company may have corrected them by this point) and initially a few things at the start of the book confused me. But it's only 38 pages long and by the time I read the first 20 I was familiar enough with the game system that everything was pretty clear.
There are no pictures which I sadly missed but I can understand that it wasn't a top priorty and that not all companies have access to stupendous artists.
The fonts are appropriate and well sized and the table of contents is well laid out. Aesthetifcally I'd rate the game at about a 3.
Gameplay:
You definately need a good GM for this game or everything can spiral completely out of control. The game is so open-ended and the fact that you can design any power you want whatsover means that it's really up to the GM to impose some kind of balance between the players.
Luckily the game covers some of the more common (and abused) powers with general guidelines on power level and how to balance things out.
Section-by-Section Breakdown:
The first part of the book is the rules of the game in one page. A few of the things on the one page confused me but by the time I read the rest of the rules it all made sense.
The next section is on creating characters, stats, abilities, and an example of play which is infinately helpful to someone just starting out.
The third section of the book is a list of powers and equivalents/balance rules. They can't possibly cover everything a crafty player can come up with but they give a good GM some superb guidelines on what exactly a 4 str means and suchlike.
The fourth section of the book mostly deals with mechanical procedures, and a brief GM section.
The fifth section of the book is an extensive list of example super heroe characters. They are useful as flavour and demonstrating what the game system can do (stats on thugs and such) but I didn't find them as useful as the rest of the book. Possibly this is because I like making up my own monsters/NPCs.
In Summary:
This is the best superheroes RPG I've ever played and I highly recommend it. It's light, fast, and simple and it requires a superb GM, but if you're reading this you're most likely a superb GM anyway.
If you're looking for a lot of rules go elsewhere, if you're looking for a crazy mish-mash of creativity and a very interesting game session then look into this book.
Thanks for taking the time to read this review, I promised the Author (when I bought his book and loved it) that I'd write something up for him. I hope I've made it complimentary (and truthful) enough for him and you.
Thanks,
The Author Challenger RPG
