Love this book! An awesome little supplement that adds heaps of value. Not only will this serve you well during session zero but also as a DM it is a great tool for fleshing out NPCs. I wholeheartedly recommend!.

Monsters of Murka a well written game that manages to tackle a difficult topic in a fun way while creating mechanics and additions to the D&D 5e game that will live on beyond just campaigns set in this setting. I would recommend.

I don’t often find myself reading parody games and when I do, they are typically short and designed for tongue in cheek one off sessions. Monsters of Murka by newcomers Action Fiction is a very different take on the parody style of game. They have taken a topic that is close to many people (American Politics), created a parody setting and turned it in to a fully-fledged game utilising D&D 5e. Monsters of Murka was funded by a successful 2019 Kickstarter campaign and the game was published in 2020 during the global COVID-19 pandemic.

There are a lot of things to like about this game and not many things to dislike.

Action Fiction have produced a quality 217-page book that presents an alternate history with a rich setting that could fuel multiple levels of gameplay. Significant effort looks to have been expended to address content concerns through the use of sensitivity readers as well the appropriate content warnings. Given the addition of rules such as those that explore Human Privilege, I believe this was a good idea.

One of the few negatives I experienced while reading the book was I felt that the team could have done a slightly better job at explaining how the 'standard' D&D elements fit within the broader Monsters of Murka world context but other than a slight distraction during the initial reading this didn’t detract to much from the overall experience.

The numbers alone speak volumes to the amount of work put into this book. There are 3 backgrounds, 15 class options, 40 magic items, 14 spells, 15 monsters, 22 deities, an 8-piece artifact, 3 fully fledged locales and even a new condition.

This was a well written enjoyable read into a fantastical view of American politics and pop culture. Even as a non-American I found the references funny and as I read, I kept looking forward to the next section. There are some games that are good to read but may not be good to play. Monsters of Murka is a balanced game with thought put into playability and as such it would also make a great game to play.

There are elements of this game that stuck with me after I had finished reading. For example, the addition of optional rules for human privilege was thought provoking and I imagine this will influence my own game design in the future.

Full Review - https://joshboys.reviews/f/monsters-of-murka

Unlike some other reviews of this product I see it for what it is.. the first preview for the new game. The short story "Another Night, Another Run" is good at setting the scene for the new edition and I look forward to the probable drip feed of information and fluff. The new layout is also quite good and builds on something Shadowrun has always done well. The introduction section "Future Dystopia" is also well done and always an integral part of every new edition of SR as it is something new players will always read. I think this is a smart move including in the first preview as I see this edition bringing new players into the game, especially given the launch of the other game lines this year and the success of SR Returns and SR Online Kickstarters. Good work guys and I can't wait for the next instalment!