To sum it all up fast: This is an excellent product, with one caveat- it?s like a membership to a Gym. The value of it is dependent on if and how much you actually use it.
I bought this product when one of the authors got involved on bulletin board discussion about how to better promote this product. After he clarified that it was, indeed, for Second Edition M&M, I suggested that the RPG Now product description should reflect that. He replied immediately that he would get right on that, and then did just that. I thought after that sort of conscientious interaction with a potential customer that I owed it to him to try his product out. So, here we are.
The planner is approximately 27 different forms (some with multiple pages) in a PDF format. At the time of my purchase the product came in two versions. One is a straight printable form, and the other has fields which can be typed into and then printed (you can not save with the data, only print the document).
The whole Planner is set up with one primary intent; to organize and document information necessary or helpful in running an ongoing campaign. The first few forms are intended only to be used at the start of the campaign and establish the tone, color, and framework of the campaign. After that the Planner provides a means of keep track of relevant campaign information as well as plan and organize adventures.
Briefly, some of the forms include sheets for developing cities, while others home in on buildings and special locations. Other forms provide a template for developing an adventure outline, while a companion form allows you to sketch out a scene within that adventure. Other documents keep track of player drawbacks and complications, while others document villains and secret societies. Honestly, there is a real broad range of applications here which touch upon many of the more critical elements of a superhero campaign. With 27 different forms, you?re going to have to trust me on that.
A few of my fellow colleagues have graded this product quite harshly because it didn?t include fill-able forms. I feel that was a little harsh, but in response Ronin Arts has changed the product to accommodate that request. Regrettably they report no increase in sales because of that fact and suggest that the sales generated from doing it did not justify the extra work to do it. That is unfortunate because as a reviewer, I have to say, I like the fill-able forms version. My handwriting is for crap and I appreciate that I can type my notes and print them. I would not have refused to buy the product if it didn?t have these fill-able forms, but nonetheless, I?m glad they?re there.
Lastly, I need to point out that this product is not for your ?fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants-GM?, whose idea of a campaign is one sidewalk slugfest on a street corner of the local bank. This is for the GM who plans ahead and puts some real effort into the session ahead of time. Now this could be an excellent tool for this who want to take running a campaign a whole lot more seriously than they do now; as it will point out what small details might be important to save for another session in the future. If you?re a lazy GM (as opposed to an inexperienced one), you might want to save your money however; to get an honest value from this product you?re going to have to knuckle down and use it
<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: I liked the thoroughness of Planner. Some have remarked that you could do this yourself with some lined notebook paper. You can, but I would challenge those statements as being rather trite. I doubt for the price Ronin Arts is charging that most people really would think to cover all the varying subjects that the Planner encompasses. They might take copious notes on some narrow topics, but they might not capture as broad an overview. A lot of thought went into developing what forms would be useful.
It also has a nice professional appearance. It does not look like someone put it together one Saturday afternoon and called it a PDF.
<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Very few dislikes. I wouldn?t like to see the price point any higher than what it is now. (Though, again, I would refute a claim that anyone could do just as well with a sheet of paper and a pencil).
There are a few sections blocks I would have made smaller and a few others larger, but not everyone has the same priorities, so in that regard I count that as a personal preference rather an overall critique.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br><BR>[THIS REVIEW WAS EDITED]<BR>
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