‘The Walking Dead Universe’ TTRPG Is Set To Release November 28
by Anton Kromoff
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I dig this. Not only is it Free League, one of my all-time favorite publishers and easily one of the best TTRPG companies in the game right now, but it’s also The Walking Dead. Except, free from the weight of the show and the comics, so it can be more about the world and exploration and less about book sales and fan speculation that I think really bogs the franchise down.
I get it. At this point, it’s a cultural phenomenon, and from candy at the 7-11, to statues of the main characters that cost thousands of dollars, there is so much Walking Dead out there. There’s such a large fan base that, as it seems with stuff that grows to this size, it becomes hard to see anything new without wave after wave of criticism and expectation and fan theories that sour me a bit on the IP and make trying to enjoy it not fun.
This new TTRPG from Free League, though, is going to let anyone tell whatever story they want in the Walking Dead world. Do you want Rick to take Negan’s bat and fight undead versions of the kids from Fear The Walking Dead, season 1? It’s your make believe, let it rip!
In The Walking Dead Universe RPG, you are going to be playing as people who are struggling to survive in a hostile world full of the undead and other survivors who more often than not are not going to want to be friends with you.
What’s cool is there are two ways to play the game out of the box. In campaign mode, it is your goals and choices, and the result of your group efforts, that create the storyline in a very traditional TTRPG sort of way.
In survival mode, you are faced with a dangerous situation that needs to be handled immediately. Survival mode scenarios often feature locations and characters from the TV series so that fans of the show and those who want to do something that is quick pick up and play will already have that past knowledge of what they have seen in the show and can just dive right into the action.
The rules are based on the Year Zero Engine, used in many of Free League’s award-winning games like Alien, Blade Runner, Tales From the Loop, and Forbidden Lands, but uniquely tailored for The Walking Dead Universe and those who want to play within it.
You can learn more at this link and get involved when the game launches on Nov 28th.
