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This is review has been slightly modified from the original which stated that was licensed after Cowboy Bebop anime series – clearly this was not a product licensed but ultimately rooted in the sensibility of the anime series and a few other anime/manga serials. The vibe is so good and fit near perfect, that one feels that it could easily stand-in for the series – hence my original error. My apologies to JP deHenault who has done a crackerjack job in capturing a vibe and presenting a set of rules that make that universe one step closer but as the review will point out - not close enough.

The Good

This is an exciting fast paced game that molds well with the anime series that shares a similar title. The rules while complex, stitch together for a nice tight fit around which expeditious and infuriated (i.e. fast & furious) gaming can commence. The basic premise of the rules it is powered by an inverted d20 game which takes elements from the d20 OGL and morphs them into something quite different, in that one must roll over a designated target number on a d20; the kicker that I found most interesting is that both a natural 1 and 20 both equate failure (albeit with different results). These target numbers work out to be on a percentile system with each one incrementing by 5% or so. Thus, tasks viewed as nigh high impossible can be accomplished if the player has skills. Thus the inverted 20 system, which uses a single d20 for all rolls and suggests a speedy and straightforward resolution, although it's not rules lite. Rather, one could say it is rules speedy.

Character Generation (Chargen) is handled through a points/build system which allows you build and customize your characters from choosing one’s strengths which take away points one can add flaws or weaknesses to gain more points. This very much in tune with the anime property that it is based upon that characters may rise to heroic status but are largely human. I found the skills set that characters can purchase comprehensive and near-exhaustive, and if there was not a skill present, one could always find another skill to jimmy-rig to perform a similar task. Similarly, skill resolution is easy and fast-paced based upon a simple math formula of adding and matching or going under said skill (with the caveat that a 1 equates failure).

There are rules for psionics (spilt between the more naturalistic approach – Feng-Shui powers & magical – Psychic Powers) which I found to be good, as far as rules go…but really question their inclusion but this is anime – if there were not some sort of quasi-magical power then it would not be part of the larger genre. Just when I was watching the series, I sort of bypassed those references and focused more intently on a Hard SF premise (although, they did have interplanetary jump gates and terraforming that I found annoying). Looking forward to a near future RPG that is truly Hard SF without too much handwavium, I think that I will have end up writing it.

Combat is comprehensive and allows for all sorts of crazy moves that only can be done with an anime production or Chinese action film. So, the rules are solid and allow for all sorts of variation and fast paced enough not to allow one to get bogged down in inscrutable detail, instead, it focuses upon action. And, once you know your action, it is easy enough to map on the correct skill set.

Money and Equipment – nuff said, true, this section does not have rules for use and acquisition of thermonuclear devices but has everything that players might need short of that…leaving that for criminal masterminds to acquire and utilize with horrific results.

Doing things – found this chapter useful but it tries to codify too much. Rather a simple set of task rules would have been sufficient. So, while not as onerous as what I have seen in some games – just this chapter seemed to rob the players of stating what they would like to do and thus provide a simple set of suggested increments how the players may actually perform those tasks.

Background/Setting Notes – I admit I like fluff and chrome; therefore, a good RPG must contain lots of this – for no other reason that it makes the rules alive. This provides a brief orientation to the Cowboy Bebop universe and its late inclusion and lack really of diffusing the content throughout the rules is a serious drawback of this rulebook. Prior to the adventure is an index which lists all the major locations for much of the rules.

The Index is very nicely done and is quite comprehensive. In many ways, it could serve as alternative to the rather diminutive Table of Contents. So, bravo, to whoever compiled the Index, however, I just wish that the rules were not such a jumble that necessitated me using this as my prime means of locating information.

Appendixes – not since AD&D 1e have there been a more useful set of appendices, as it takes the enormous amount of rules and distills them into easy to digest checklists.

Module/Adventure – this was perhaps the most enjoyable part of the whole game – thus, I hope others will pick up where this adventure leaves off. It magnificently captured the vibe of the original series – in which ordinary people are usually outshines by those with friends in high places but does not stop the players/characters from doing the right thing away and migrate to being heroes. Essentially, it is a bag job for bounty hunters composed of rivals going after the same prize and trouble soon ensures – as the prize has motives that the employer has not disclosed. It is filled with colour and best handled with a mature Gamemaster but at the same time enough whimsy in it so that it does not take itself terribly seriously. Much like the series and the game itself, as the introduction states, it is meant to be speedy rather than lite.

The Bad

The rules. It is not the rules themselves that are bad, but, just the overwhelming sense that rules dominate over fluff. So, I know that they wanted to do the skeleton first, but, a skeleton needs muscles and flesh to cover it. Unless, you like to play with Tables and Charts – the rules are hard to slough through until you get to the Appendixes which then neatly summarize all those rules for you. And, as noted above, rules need the background to be woven together that way the reader gets a reprieve but also makes reading a joy – for most of us did not get into RPGs to read technical manuals.

The art, while good, and in keeping with Cowboy Bebop vibe is sparse and ends up being repetitive. And, the latter, I consider a serious design flaw in any rulebook. And, sadly they could not get the rights to using Cowboy Bebop images – thus, we are left with a mood conveyed in the pieces – but seeing Spike, Faye, etc. would have been welcome eye candy.

The Ugly

I am still no closer to running Bounty Head Bebop – other than the one-off scenario that was included in the rulebook. I could run a campaign off the episodes, assuming that my players have not watched the series. But, there is not the feeling on how to expand beyond the boundary set out by series, and any good RPG is about expanding the boundaries not closing them. So, sadly, this RPG does not live up to the expectations that I had when I initially saw it. I had hoped for a rules lite, background heavy imaginative reimaging of the Cowboy Bebop universe. Sadly, this was not it.

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