ALIEN RPG Launches New Kickstarter

Free League Publishing has launched a Kickstarter for a new edition of ALIEN: The Roleplaying Game, complete with a new starter box and a box of miniatures. Launched today, the Kickstarter raises money for an Evolved edition of the popular licensed horror RPG, which uses the Year Zero Engine. The Evolved Edition contains improved version for stealth mode, stress and panic, and a new zero gravity system. The edition also includes content from ALIEN: Romulus, the hit 2023 movie, including a setting guide for Jackson's Star, and a solo mode.

The ALIEN RPG uses a dice-pool system where rolling a 6 guarantees a success. Players can add stress for additional rolls with specially-colored dice, although rolling a 1 on these dice causes the chance of panic setting in. The game comes with a campaign mode and a cinematic mode in which players are more likely to get killed by an alien or a different terror in space.

As of the time of this writing, the Kickstarter has already raised over $650,000, putting it well on the pathway to the fabled $1 million mark.

 

[Bae'zel]

Agreed on the readability issue: I wish I hadn't bought the 1e books. Maybe I should ALWAYS wait for a 2e of games, considering how soon they come out after the first.

That said, I've spent enough money on games and the 1e books are still usable (and haven't even been used yet by my group), so I'll have to pass on this KS. Oh well.

 

[Fredrix]

I love running this at cons, great for people who have never played, and the callouts to the movie are excellent for people who have seen the movie but aren't up on their alien lore. (the donut, other scenes from the movie). at it's heart, it's a great sandbox mod, every time I run it it's different

Yeah, speaking as one of the co-authors, that’s exactly what it was designed for. Indeed, before it became the core book adventure, we had been asked to write it for UK Games Expo, where Free League had taken a stand partly to promote the pre-order. We chose Hadley’s Hope precisely because everyone (mostly) would have seen Aliens and could fall right into the setting, so that we didn't have to explain too much backstory in the 90 minute (!) slots each game had. It proved so popular (and so concise) that Free League asked us to edit it for the Core book, and since then had proved a perennially popular starter adventure. (Interesting note though, when we edited it for the book, there was pressure to set it somewhere else, as Hadley’s Hope’s story had already been told. But we resisted that has the whole point is new players familiarity with the setting. Personally I think we were right not to succumb, but I see some posters here disagree.)

Dave and I have nothing to do with this "expanded" version though. I hope we still get our name in the credits.

 

[stadi]

I'm a bit said that they expect everyone to buy minis. I don't need and even dislike minis, and there is no relevant bundle that does not include minis. I had to add everything as addons, which took quite long, and I don't even get bundle discounts this way. I hope that this is not a sign that they start focusing on minis from now on.

 

[Arnie_Wan_Kenobi]

I'm a bit said that they expect everyone to buy minis. I don't need and even dislike minis, and there is no relevant bundle that does not include minis. I had to add everything as addons, which took quite long, and I don't even get bundle discounts this way. I hope that this is not a sign that they start focusing on minis from now on.

I didn't see a "need" for minis in 1st edition, and I ended up with a bunch of The Loyal Subjects "Easter Egg" Aliens I found on clearance, so if I'm running Alien, I'll be using those guys and little green army men. My PCs can deal with the fact they're neon. We'll just pretend it's Kenner-in-the-90s.

 

[jhallum]

I'm a bit said that they expect everyone to buy minis. I don't need and even dislike minis, and there is no relevant bundle that does not include minis. I had to add everything as addons, which took quite long, and I don't even get bundle discounts this way. I hope that this is not a sign that they start focusing on minis from now on.

I'm pretty sure they saw the success of the minis board game and people buying tons of minis separate from the RPG (I know I bought almost all of the boxes separate from the board game, and I rarely play/paint).

 

[Reynard]

Agreed on the readability issue: I wish I hadn't bought the 1e books. Maybe I should ALWAYS wait for a 2e of games, considering how soon they come out after the first.

It will have been 6 years by the time the new one ships.

 

[dioramic_life]

I backed the original Alien, and bought the colonial marines book, but have never actually played it, and honestly it's hard to foresee me playing it in the future.

And I'm STILL tempted to get at least the new core rulebook....

I put down for COLONIAL MARINES. Could you summarize what the content was, and how it fit into the game system?

 

[jhallum]

I put down for COLONIAL MARINES. Could you summarize what the content was, and how it fit into the game system?

Colonial Marines has content to play a more combat oriented game, less about fighting aliens and more about fighting humans.
It lays out more of the universe that the game is set in, the organization of the Colonial Marines, the fighting arm of the UA, plus the militaries of the UPP, the 3WE and other organizations. It talks about some of the arms of space under contention between the groups, and has stats for equipment and arms for the other organizations. It also discusses ideas on running Marine focused games and has some scenarios/missions for your crew of Marines to fight. It was one of my favorite books in the 1st edition run and worth it.

 

[Nebulous]

Agreed on the readability issue: I wish I hadn't bought the 1e books. Maybe I should ALWAYS wait for a 2e of games, considering how soon they come out after the first.

That said, I've spent enough money on games and the 1e books are still usable (and haven't even been used yet by my group), so I'll have to pass on this KS. Oh well.

I bought 1e too. They're good, but the game was a little more complex than what we wanted. Mothership would probably tell the same kind of story just as well if not better. I won't be getting 2nd edition, but from the little I've seen it looks better.

 

[sevenbastard]

Maybe I should ALWAYS wait for a 2e of games, considering how soon they come out after the first.

That's the philosophy I've adopted. If it's good enough it will get a 2nd edition. The problem is if everyone does this no one will buy the first edition.