Official Adventure Time RPG Uses New 'Yes And' System

Fans of the popular Adventure Time cartoon will be pleased to hear that the official TTRPG is on its way--using a new game system called the 'Yes And' system, which features custom dice and a storytelling approach. It's coming to Kickstarter in late summer, and also includes an introductory adventure design to teach the system.

Publisher Cryptozoic Entertainment is also working with other publishers to bring the game to additional rule systems. There's no details yet on what those systems are.

Cryptozoic Entertainment, leading creator of tabletop games, trading cards, and collectibles, in collaboration with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products, today announced the upcoming Kickstarter campaign for the Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game. Fans can sign up to be notified upon launch.

Based on Cartoon Network’s Emmy and Peabody Award-winning animated series, Adventure Time, this innovative roleplaying game offers an immersive and accessible experience for both novice players and seasoned RPG enthusiasts ages 12 and up. At the heart of the Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game is the "Yes And" game mechanic, developed in partnership with Forever Stoked Creative. The “Yes And” system determines success and failure via a custom set of dice, while encouraging collaborative storytelling and ensuring that players are always engaged. The game’s intuitive storytelling approach will eliminate the need for complex calculations and allow players to focus on the narrative itself.

“Adventure Time is one of our favorite properties, so it was the perfect choice for our first roleplaying game,” said John Nee, CEO of Cryptozoic. “The series is rich with stories and characters with real heart, and we cannot wait to let players lose themselves in the world, whether they are RPG experts or this is their foray into the genre.”

The game allows players to get as silly or heartfelt as they please, offering a wealth of character customization options. Players can choose from a diverse range of abilities, mixing and matching to create unique characters that suit their playstyle. Alternatively, fans can step into the shoes of beloved Adventure Time characters like Marceline with ready-made character sheets.

The game launches with a variety of adventures, including a learn-by-playing introductory adventure that allows new players to dive into the world of Adventure Time in minutes. As they progress through the initial adventure arc, players will create and explore their own stories.

“We’re excited because the customization options make the possibilities endless,” said Matt Fantastic, Creative Director of Forever Stoked Creative. “Adventure Time fans will love it, but so will anyone who loves to dive headfirst into the world-building and problem-solving that comes with a quality RPG.”

As part of this ambitious project, Cryptozoic Entertainment has partnered with renowned designers and publishers to create zines and supplements that enable players to incorporate different core rule systems. This enables fans to explore Adventure Time using alternative popular roleplaying engines and play with an incredible array of optional rules.

The Kickstarter for the Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game will launch in late summer. Fans can sign up to be notified when the campaign launches. For the latest campaign news and sneak peaks, including reveals of some of the amazing talent that will be adding content to the campaign, fans can follow Cryptozoic on Facebook and Twitter.

https://cryptozoic.com/blogs/articles/adventure-time-rpg

 

[Anon Adderlan]

While improv may not involve math it can become creatively exhausting very quickly. There's a reason random tables are a thing. Rolls are essentially improv cues, and too many can overload the process. In fact many performances involve only one. So while it's great the dice tell you what to do, the system needs to actually help you do it.

The color coded dice are also an accessibility issue, which is especially ironic given Finn is colorblind.

Mod Note:
This thread is NOT going to become a Matt Fantastic / Jeff Hambly mud-slinging contest. I hope that's clear enough.

Then let me be clear now that I've verified the facts myself.

I do not give a damn who they stalked, identified, and attacked over an internet tiff, only that they did so in the first place. And warning people they are dealing with someone who seeks out and physically assaults their critics is more than justified.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Then let me be clear now that I've verified the facts myself.

Mod Note:

Let ME be clear. Talking back to a moderator in thread is a violation of ENWorld’s rules. You’ve earned a threadban and a WP.

Do not repeat your error. In the future, if you have problems with a moderator’s directions or actions, contact them via a PM.

 

[darjr]

Demo at GenCon.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Dry erase character sheets should be much more common than they are.

Good choice for a demo to attend, @darjr.

 

[overgeeked]

Demo at GenCon.

Sweet. So how’d it play?

 

[Matt Fantastic]

So happy to see people talking about the game! I'm so stoked to be able to start showing it to people and playing it in the wild!

Two big updates first:

• We've pushed the Kickstarter campaign itself back to early 2024, but we're still on the same pace of actually making the thing for a planned summer 2024 release.
• I convinced the squad to hire the amazing Elisa Teague to sorta be my boss, so she has come on as producer to not only kick me in the ass, but to help us make this as awesome as possible in a ton of ways.

A few brief answers/comments to some of the stuff already posted:

The reason for the custom dice with words is to very specifically keep people in narrative mode the entire time. I can ramble about why I think that's important (especially for people new to TTRPGs) a lot more, but yes, it's also very easy to replace the custom dice with 2d6 and a chart if you want to, so if you prefer that, totally cool. And said chart will be in the rules.

The dice are color coded, but that's just step one of differentiation. They will also have (not yet finalized) visual representations worked in as well so even with zero color differentiation you can still tell which is which.

Rules heavy AD&D vibes vs story game vibes is something we thought a lot about. And while I totally agree there is some big classic RPG energy going on and AT was so clearly inspired by D&D, the actual FEEL of how those things play out narratively in the show(s) very much pushes away from strictly constructed simulation sorta systems. "How much damage does Finn's sword do" is not something consistent throughout the show, or even the way the show would ask that question. If a head needs cutting off, a head gets cut off, vorpal or no.

And like, naughty word yeah it'd be cool to grab some cash and we have high hopes there (Avatar we're coming for you!), but this is very much a dream project being built by a team that loves both the source material and rpgs. There are quicker/easier ways to try and cash in the IP for a quick buck, but we really feel like what we're doing is going to result in the best possible game for Adventure Time, which we're betting will ultimately be more successful than the lower hanging fruit. (And building on this, we have plans for plenty more games using YA but I don't want to put the cart before the horse.) If what we make sucks, you can at least rest assured it's because I just naughty word it all up despite my best intentions, not because we didn't care!

 

[overgeeked]

So happy to see people talking about the game! I'm so stoked to be able to start showing it to people and playing it in the wild!

Two big updates first:

• We've pushed the Kickstarter campaign itself back to early 2024, but we're still on the same pace of actually making the thing for a planned summer 2024 release.
• I convinced the squad to hire the amazing Elisa Teague to sorta be my boss, so she has come on as producer to not only kick me in the ass, but to help us make this as awesome as possible in a ton of ways.

A few brief answers/comments to some of the stuff already posted:

The reason for the custom dice with words is to very specifically keep people in narrative mode the entire time. I can ramble about why I think that's important (especially for people new to TTRPGs) a lot more, but yes, it's also very easy to replace the custom dice with 2d6 and a chart if you want to, so if you prefer that, totally cool. And said chart will be in the rules.

The dice are color coded, but that's just step one of differentiation. They will also have (not yet finalized) visual representations worked in as well so even with zero color differentiation you can still tell which is which.

Rules heavy AD&D vibes vs story game vibes is something we thought a lot about. And while I totally agree there is some big classic RPG energy going on and AT was so clearly inspired by D&D, the actual FEEL of how those things play out narratively in the show(s) very much pushes away from strictly constructed simulation sorta systems. "How much damage does Finn's sword do" is not something consistent throughout the show, or even the way the show would ask that question. If a head needs cutting off, a head gets cut off, vorpal or no.

And like, naughty word yeah it'd be cool to grab some cash and we have high hopes there (Avatar we're coming for you!), but this is very much a dream project being built by a team that loves both the source material and rpgs. There are quicker/easier ways to try and cash in the IP for a quick buck, but we really feel like what we're doing is going to result in the best possible game for Adventure Time, which we're betting will ultimately be more successful than the lower hanging fruit. (And building on this, we have plans for plenty more games using YA but I don't want to put the cart before the horse.) If what we make sucks, you can at least rest assured it's because I just naughty word it all up despite my best intentions, not because we didn't care!

Awesome first post, Matt. Thanks for coming by and letting us know. Honestly very excited about seeing this in play.

 

[aramis erak]

• I convinced the squad to hire the amazing Elisa Teague to sorta be my boss, so she has come on as producer to not only kick me in the ass, but to help us make this as awesome as possible in a ton of ways.

It's nice to see a creator being self-aware enough to hire supervision. Seriously, good idea.

A few brief answers/comments to some of the stuff already posted:

The reason for the custom dice with words is to very specifically keep people in narrative mode the entire time. I can ramble about why I think that's important (especially for people new to TTRPGs) a lot more, but yes, it's also very easy to replace the custom dice with 2d6 and a chart if you want to, so if you prefer that, totally cool. And said chart will be in the rules.

The dice are color coded, but that's just step one of differentiation. They will also have (not yet finalized) visual representations worked in as well so even with zero color differentiation you can still tell which is which.

Nice to see some attention to colorblind players' issues.

On words on dice? disappointing - why? Because it means not being able to see them at table.

 

[overgeeked]

Well, balls.

"Has Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game changed since you announced it a few months ago?

Yes, we made the decision to make it a 5e experience, based on feedback from fans. That doesn’t mean the game shown at Gen Con earlier this year won’t be released too, but the main offering in the upcoming Kickstarter will be the 5e RPG."

That's me out.

 

[darjr]

Well, balls.

"Has Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game changed since you announced it a few months ago?

Yes, we made the decision to make it a 5e experience, based on feedback from fans. That doesn’t mean the game shown at Gen Con earlier this year won’t be released too, but the main offering in the upcoming Kickstarter will be the 5e RPG."

That's me out.

What?!? That game was a singular stupid fun experience! Gah. I love 5e but dangit the games were amazing!

I kept hearing people say “Oh thank you I kept bouncing off D&D”

Ah well.