The Bladerunner Kickstarter Date Is... May 3rd!

Free League has announced the launch date for its Blade Runner RPG. It's May 3rd. Here's the link.

Walk the neon-noir streets of Los Angeles 2037 in the official BLADE RUNNER RPG from Free League Publishing and Alcon Entertainment.

The game was originally announced in September 2021.

 

[payn]

In the 1982 movie, Bryant tells Deckard that six replicants escaped killing 23 people in the process. We only see four in the movie because two of them were killed trying to break into Tyrell before the start. And, yeah, they're not too shy about killing people. Even poor Sebastian. Though if I were created to be slave and given 4 years to live I'd probably be pretty pissed off about it.

Two wrongs dont make a right. Though, I love this kind of morally grey type of RP. I understand why that's not desirable for many folks.

 

[timbannock]

Yeah, keep in mind one of the key components of game play in ALIEN is that the characters have competing agendas, and (usually) one of them is playing a company agent that is almost guaranteed to betray the entire party by the end of the scenario. And/or a robot that will do the same.

...which is kinda fitting for Bladerunner, too, I'd think. I feel like it'd be a miss if the game didn't have adversarial play. It's very much a setting where I'd think "teamwork" is hardly the focus of the characters' agendas.

 

[Blue Orange]

Any evidence this won't just be another licensed RPG that'll be lost in time like, y'know, tears in rain?

 

[MGibster]

Yeah, keep in mind one of the key components of game play in ALIEN is that the characters have competing agendas, and (usually) one of them is playing a company agent that is almost guaranteed to betray the entire party by the end of the scenario. And/or a robot that will do the same.

While agendas can certainly put player characters at odds with one another, what I like most about them is they're designed to help move the plot forward. At least for Alien, the goals are designed to give the character a good reason why they're doing horror movie stuff. Why not just cut and run? Because your goal is to explore this derelict vessel as required by regulations or you and your crew forfeit your pay.

 

[schneeland]

Any evidence this won't just be another licensed RPG that'll be lost in time like, y'know, tears in rain?

Based on how they handle the Alien RPG, there seems to be a slow, but steady flow of additional material. Hopefully Blade Runner will receive a similar treatment.

(still a nice one, though)

 

[dragoner]

It's messy for sure and if you cant rationalize then might as well not pick it up. Though, they may have their reasons, runaway replicants have a tendency to be homicidal maniacs'. BR2049 was trying to move away from that, which doesnt make it any less messy.

Honestly it feels like people are grabbing up popular IP's without examining them closely. I mean I can practically quote Blade Runner, I owned the VHS cassette, and I have used elements in games, I ran a long term Traveller campaign called "Questionable Things" such as from Roy Batty talking to Tyrell, and saying he had done Questionable Things. Though on the whole, the milieu is awful; and are they going to make Deckard a replicant too? Scott said that is how Gaff knew to make and leave the origami unicorn on the landing, he knew his dreams, because full circle with BR2049, they are making memories. In fact there are creative things that could be done with the setting, it is that hunting down replicants makes it sort of one trick pony.

 

[payn]

Honestly it feels like people are grabbing up popular IP's without examining them closely. I mean I can practically quote Blade Runner, I owned the VHS cassette, and I have used elements in games, I ran a long term Traveller campaign called "Questionable Things" such as from Roy Batty talking to Tyrell, and saying he had done Questionable Things. Though on the whole, the milieu is awful; and are they going to make Deckard a replicant too? Scott said that is how Gaff knew to make and leave the origami unicorn on the landing, he knew his dreams, because full circle with BR2049, they are making memories. In fact there are creative things that could be done with the setting, it is that hunting down replicants makes it sort of one trick pony.

I find lately I have been really soaking up one trick pony settings. If the bespoke system hits the nail directly on the head, I'm having a great time with it. Though, I get what you are saying.

 

[dragoner]

I find lately I have been really soaking up one trick pony settings. If the bespoke system hits the nail directly on the head, I'm having a great time with it. Though, I get what you are saying.

I generally like to run campaigns, though one of the other GM's in my group likes one shots, which he usually does with pbta, or similar, like he's the one who ran Scum and Villainy first, though he also likes the weird, such as Shab-Al-Hiri Roach or Paranoia.

 

[CubicsRube]

I find lately I have been really soaking up one trick pony settings. If the bespoke system hits the nail directly on the head, I'm having a great time with it. Though, I get what you are saying.

I have a lot of systems i still want to run, so if I can get a short campaign out of a system, that's all I need and I'm happy.

Like I would be happy to run a mini campaign of Alien and then move onto something else, like blade runner.

 

[Grendel_Khan]

Yeah, keep in mind one of the key components of game play in ALIEN is that the characters have competing agendas, and (usually) one of them is playing a company agent that is almost guaranteed to betray the entire party by the end of the scenario. And/or a robot that will do the same.

...which is kinda fitting for Bladerunner, too, I'd think. I feel like it'd be a miss if the game didn't have adversarial play. It's very much a setting where I'd think "teamwork" is hardly the focus of the characters' agendas.

The competing agendas element is definitely true of cinematic play in Alien, but not campaign mode. There's an argument to be made that Alien doesn't actually work that well for a long campaign, but just like how I wouldn't really set players against each other the same way during a colonial marines campaign, I could imagine trying a longer BR campaign that eventually had the PCs joining the resistance, or going to a different city (or planet?), and basically working together the whole time.

My biggest question about this game is whether it'll feel like Blade Runner with more than one or two PCs. There are all sorts of ways to narratively justify more--you're part of a whole unit--but BR is very lonely and film-noir. A pair of partners could still maintain that. But five people bopping around a case, NCIS-style? That feels like something else entirely.

Free League is obviously very good at what they do, so I don't doubt they've put some thought into it. So I'm mostly just interested to see how they address it without dropping the mood, or changing the core YZE mechanics in a big way.