Damn this game is good!

There are a host of good "fairy/faerie tale" products on the market, but this is the first one that has grabbed me enough to want to begin an immediate campaign.

There are really three key elements to Zo -- the game system, the game advice on running (and playing) the fairy tale genre and the written history of the first Zo campaign.

Each element is excellent.

While I like the basic PDQ system, Zo accurately states that it just uses the "Good Parts" of PDQ. This makes for a fast paced, fun and flexible game system that suits the genre.

The advice on running fairy tales is spot on. While there are other good systems that address this topic, I like Zo's green eggs and ham approach the best so far.

Finally (and maybe I'm strange in this regard), I like reading other GMs' campaign histories. In this case, the history, play notes and player comments really provide a road map for running a successful Zo campaign. <br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: I feel ready to run a campaign after just reading the game.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Us Old Guys need a bigger font.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

I really wanted to like this game. The mechanic is fresh, and the pdf presentation itself is pretty.

Unfortunately, the game itself (or at least as presented in the pdf) is half-baked. There are few examples (and no good examples)of how the game actually works, and it's far from intuitive. For example, in the one actual play example provided, the descritpion doesn't list the characters relevent abilities or even tell us which tile they drew.

Maybe the mahjong mechanic is obvious, but not to me.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: I like the less-than-crunchy approach to cinematic gaming. This game is probably five good pages of examples and explanation from being a good-to-great game. The low price tag helps.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Seems unfinished and rushed to production. Not easy to pick up. A few typos.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Disappointing<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

I run a True 20 campaign, so I thought that I'd check this out. Not very different from the D20 Campaign Planner.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: True 20 specific--some helpful pages and easy to use.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Useful forms are still just forms.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

I've been considering this game since it first came out--it was the PDF availability and another Green Ronin product (True 20) that finally sold me. I was not disappointed. Although I'm a long-in-the-tooth Champions player, if I ever dabble in the superhero genre again, I think that it will be M&M.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: Well organized, good mechanics.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: More villians would have been nice.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

It may sound cliched, but it's the game I have been waiting for--finally, a usable varient of D20. Innovative, yet familiar.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Extreme flexibility in the base classes, the wounding and fatigue rules.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Not-quite-ready for release--not proofread enough and too hard to get the update.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

Probably the best take on a d20 product I have seen--almost sufficient to lure me back. A good, innovative character class/creation system with a lot of variety--and, the first viable system I have seen that lets you play a wolf/horse, etc. on a par with human characters. I won't play it, but I don't regret the purchase. The magic system was a particular gem.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: A fresh take on d20 that actually works--good combat injury system.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: A tad pricey and a little too gothic.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

Talk about crunching some numbers! A solid reverse-engineering of Third Edition Dungeons and Dragons for those who want to understand the balance (and lack thereof).<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Right on the money (mathematically speaking). A tool to build your own custom class.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: A trifle hard to use for us non-engineers.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Acceptable<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

This is an outstanding product. While I have yet to run or play DERG, this book captures the flavor of the books. Both detailed and usable--a good read, too.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Usable for a decadent city for any fantasy RPG.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: A bigger map would have been nice.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

Good set of tiles for a base. They print beautifully and fit together well. However, I had a hard time using all of the tiles to assemble a single base and was left with "spares" that I would have liked to use. Maybe I'm no good at puzzles, but I couldn't figure out how the whole thing fit together.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Fits to scale with my Star Wars minis.Very clean.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: I still haven't figured out if there is a single, optimal arrangement that would use all tiles and my email to customer service went unanswered.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

Interesting book. Useful for all systems, but having other system stats would be better.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Good description.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Should have been bundled with the E-Tiles for the Star Freighter for best value.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Acceptable<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

Nice product-- good visual appeal, easy to put together. Very useful for my SF game, and just to scale for minis.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Clean lines, logical flow, expandable.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: A little pricey. Would have been nice to have in grey scale, too.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

Not being a mecha fan, I was reluctant to purchase this product. However, the high degree of quality that I've seen in other PIG products ultimately overcame my reticence and I took the plunge.

I'm glad that I did.

While it is unlikely that I'll ever use the various fantasy mecha (Rune Stryders) in one of my campaigns, there are a lot of gems in this product that make it worth buying. The world setting is nifty, the system resolution engine works surprisingly well, and I loved the innovative magic system.

Hopefully, we'll see some tweaks and add-ons--keep an eye on www.digitalrpg.org .<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Far and away, my favorite part of this game is the rune magic system. Flexible and workable, it alone may convince me to run this game (or at least adapt the magic system for my games).<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Like I said, I'm just not a mecha fan.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

(WARNING--Contains ancient history!)

For those who remember, Mythus was one of the most over-hyped role-playing products of the early 1990's. Touted as a "breakthough" product by GDW with an all-star production team (Gygax,Lester Smith, Elmore [cover]), many of us who eagerly awaited this product were sort of disappointed when it finally came out--sure, it had some crunchy mechanics, but it was hardly the promised breakthrough in roleplaying.

Then the lawyers got involved.

In those days, the joke was that TSR stood for "They Sue Regularly." As the (unverified) story goes, TSR unleashed its hungry attorneys on GDW, and when the smoke cleared TSR owned Dangerous Journeys, which promptly died a slow, twisting death. Rumor also has it that the fight was the swan song for GDW.

Can't we all just get along?<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: This game system works! Kind of a middle ground between old Runequest and Harnmaster, this game is a fine alternative for old school fantasy gamers. If you prefer crunchy to elegant, this game is for you.

A fun blast from the past.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Not the clearest scanned PDF. <br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

While a nice and tight product with plenty of the clever writing that is the hallmark of Dying Earth products, Cugel's Compendium is not "Indispensable." It's a good read and a helpful product, but not a necessity.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Adds a lot of Dying Earth flavor.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: A little more fluff than the average DE product.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Acceptable<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

I considered buying this game in hardback for a while, but only succumbed to the urge after it was available in PDF. I'm mad at myself for waiting. This game is great! Definitely a fresh take on fantasy that emphasizes verbal interaction over hacking with an innovative skill pool/bidding mechanic. It's a winner.

On a side note, I never really understood how much of AD&D was "inspired"{ (read-cribbed) from Vance.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Both innovative and playable.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Magic system is well defined, but spells way too powerful to permit non-mage characters to hold a candle to mages. It fits the setting, but tends to homogenize the characters.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>