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Although Cold & Dark has been around for over five years, probably more, I only found out about it a few months ago, by mere chance, when I was trying (and failing) to wrap my head around the 2d20 rules for the 3rd edition of Mutant Chronicles. As it happens, Mischa L. Thomas, author of Cold & Dark, did some work for Mutant Chronicles and, as I was googling some information about the game, I discovered the science fiction game I had been expecting (unknowingly) for all my gaming life: a crossover between movies like Alien and Event Horizon and videogames such as Dead Space and Mass Effect. Space horror at it's best.

I must say I'm not really a fan of science fiction, not novels, at least. Other than William Gibson, Ray Bradbury and, to some, extent, some of the works by Kurt Vonnegut, I have been more of a movie fan of sci-fi. And that's one of the reasons Cold & Dark captured my attention. It is cinematic and does not try to be hard sci-fi, no matter the industrial and gritty dark feeling that oozes from every page. It's not bright and glamourous, like most space operas, but it doesn't bother you with scientific details. So, if you want to smoke a cigar aboard a spaceship, well, why not?

So, now, let's talk about mechanics. The only dice needed are eigh-sided ones. A dozen or so because there will be pools to be rolled. Basically the rolls made are Aptitude (there are eight of those: Attention, Brains, Brawn, Clout, Cool, Gut Feeling, Quickness and Reaction) plus an Ability (the learned stuff, as opposed to the Aptitudes, which are what defines the character on general lines). Some abilities might be rolled even if untrained, and in that case occurs an Aptitude roll (rolling an Aptitude multiplied by two). The rules are simple, easy to learn - at least the basics are easy - and very flexible. It only gets a bit complicated when you are customizing the multi-task-armour-thing called the "COG". That takes a bit more time than it should, but it feels a lot like customizing armours in computer RPGs like the Mass Effect trilogy. For those who like those games and the kind of customization they allow, it's probably a plus, not a down side. There are other things about the game that sound like they were (and they really were) inspired by videogames: for example, the characters are named "Avatars" and the Game Master is called the "A.I.". Or you can just ignore that, as I did. It does not interfere with gameplay in any way.

The setting offers exactly what it promisses, a fertile ground for a space thriller/horror campaign, inspired, as mentioned above, by movies such as the Alien franchise, Pandorum and John Carpenter's The Thing or videogames like Dead Space and Doom. For those who like a more military approach, there's the alien fighting trope (in the vein of Starship Troopers - the movie, not the book), or something a little more bizarre, almost supernatural, like Event Horizon. Or even a spacefaring adventurous kind of scenario, like Firefly or even the Mass Effect trilogy. All these options are obvious (and all these films and games are advised as inspiration by the author), but the game is flexible enough to allow the Game Master (or A.I.) to choose other storytelling paths: political intrigue in the new homeworlds of the human race, the Sirius galaxy (where the setting of the game takes place), corporate espionage, hunting down humans crazed by the effects of the Void Psychosis Syndrome (basically a sort of mental disease caused by travelling the space lanes) or plain planet exploration. Though they are not mentioned in the core book as inspirations, I would recomend the game to people who like science fiction movies, such as Rollerball, Outland or Soylent Green. In general it's all very gritty, with a heavy industrial feeling, which is quite alright, specially when there's no official Alien game, nor any of those other movies, as far as I know...

The setting as it is lacks something, though. There's little information on everyday life, futuristic sports, the media and entertainment, the "who's who" of showbiz, be it music, movies or other arts, but most science fiction games lack all that stuff and it's not that difficult to add it, for the few game masters, myself included, that really like that kind of information. Not to say that this is a game without setting, far from that. You have a thorough timeline that describes the events from the "right now" up untill about 800 years in the future. There's a whole chapter detailing the structure of the Governmental Industrial Complex, or GIC, the interplanetary mix of government and megacorportations and theirs rivals, a couple of splinter organizations that defy the control of the Sirius galaxy - Earth is a long, long way from here, and, because some bizarre happening made the interstellar travel much slower, Humanity is stranded in Sirius. Earth-based campaings aren't advised, unless the Game Master likes to prepare a lot of unofficial fluff. There's also a chapter detailing the systems and important planets of the Sirius Galaxy, and there is also a planed sourcebook, called Better Worlds, which will detail even more those places. Still, I find that the game would gain a lot by addressing some of those, already mentioned, more "domestic" affairs. I must say I was a great admirer of Aeon Trinity, and they spoiled me with all that detailed discussion of holoshows, futuristic hobbies and new genres of music, so I am a suspect when asking for more social and media stuff.

All in all, it's quite an interesting game, with a nice price tag, but it does seem to have been neglected, apparently a victim of lack of marketing, and that's quite sad because it's a gem - although somewhat unpolished - that could (and still can, given a fair opportunity) get much better with future supplements. It would be a shame no to continue developing this game, because, I for one, would like to see more from Cold & Dark. More information, maybe adventures or sourcebooks on what is lacking on the core rules. Oh, and the artwork is excellent, really, really a mood setter (don't judge it by the cover alone, the interior art is much better).