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I'll admit it. There's only one CCG (Collectible Card Games for those of you who inhabit places underneath rocks) that I've ever been able to really get into, and that's (you can guess, I bet) Doomtown. I'll admit, I'm not very good at it. Still, it's very fun to play and it has the -most- important aspect of a good game I like: A great storyline.

Doomtown is one of the games where people other than me anxiously await for new expansion sets to come out, just so they can read the flavor text and and find out how the story's progressing. Like I said, I think Doomtown's got a good story and Doomtown or Bust! lays it all bare up to before Episode Nine of the original Doomtown episodes. Who's been doing what to whom, it's all here. Wondering what's up with some of the stuff on the cards? That's here, too. Some of it was to be expected, but some of it was most certainly not. You even get to find out just who has plans for the mining town of Gomorra, and it ain't too pretty, padnuh. It reveals a lot, and is done in Pinnacle's own inimitable style.

However, you'll ask yourself: do I need it? That's a very hard question to answer, though my gut-reaction is "Yes!"

First, at 25.00, it's pricey. Second, for Marshalls it's not going to be the easiest to work out how your player-created characters will mesh with the ongoing storyline of Doomtown. Rob Vaux offers several helpful hints on this regard, and it's only my being a stick-in-the-mud when it comes to established things that I'm probably having trouble figuring out how to integrate my characters. So, we'll just call price a 'con.'

On the other hand, if you like Doomtown you'll want this book. Just so you can sit there slack-jawed at what's really going on behind the scenes. If you want a very detailed city with which to run your hapless PCs in, you could certainly do worse than Gomorra. It's extremely well-written, with many interesting NPCs. Doomtown or Bust! is a great setting book, even if you don't like the game. My gut reaction is "Yes!" and even after I think about it some more, my thought-out reaction to getting the book is still "Yes!"

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)