First of all, thanks to Two Little Mice, for the gift of the new seasons of Broken Compass that made us write this review. This is the result of the excellent Kickstarter campaign which obtained almost € 200,000 allowing the financing of many new contents. If you need to refresh your memory you can read our article on Broken Compass. If you want a recap, Broken Compass is a fast-paced and dynamic RPG that tells adventure stories in the style of Indiana Jones, Tomb Raider or Uncharted. The cut is cinematic, with real episodes divided into seasons. The seasons available so far were the Modern Era, 1999 and Golden Age, set in the early 20th century.
Thanks to the new Kickstarter, two new seasons have been funded. Jolly Roger, clearly a pirate setting, and Voyages Extraordinaires, centered on the late nineteenth-century atmospheres of Jules Verne’s novels. Along with them a whole bunch of items, including cards, new dice and a new screen. In addition, a fifth manual was born, announced as a spin-off, entitled What If, full of interesting surprises that we will see soon, but first, I have to make an apology.
My Apologis, I Understimated You
I liked Broken Compass at first glance, but I didn’t fully understand its potential. I thought it was a good game to tell a certain type of adventure story, but locked in a limited context and therefore lacking in variety. The two new seasons already demonstrate how it would take years at the table to get bored with pirates, airships and submarines. Then What If came with all its possibilities. Cosmic horrors, time travel, dystopian futures, apocalypses, high school adventures, animal characters …
Simone, Rico and Daniela, aka Two Little Mice, have confirmed themselves as a mine of excellent ideas. And I finally see Broken Compass for what it is: a game engine with immense potential.
Let’s Go Back to the Review of the New Seasons of Broken Compass: Art and Materials
A short paragraph to reiterate the obvious: both the illustrations and the materials are simply great. The hard covers, the scent and quality of the paper, together with a clear and functional layout, make reading comfortable and enjoyable. As for the illustrations, I have already stated several times how much I admire Daniela Giubellini’s works. In this new series of manuals she had the opportunity to try various different concepts given the variety of possibilities we have just talked about. Needless to say, Daniela did very well and leafing through the Broken Compass manuals for this review was an absolute pleasure. The setting of the work does not involve a great use of images compared to other products, unfortunately.
Jolly Roger
Jolly Roger wants to tell the golden age of piracy, the first quarter 18th century, in a romantic and, as always, cinematic way. The manual helps to center the focus of the setting and then provides new tags and permanent wounds. Everybody want a few wooden legs and a few glass eyes, right? I hope not the other way around!
The following pages give information on the era and on the game world, or the Caribbean Sea, of which an excellent map in A3 format was also created. Technology and equipment were contextualized at the time. A very interesting list of possible treasures and extras, sources of great inspiration, is then provided.
Then it is the turn of the gist of the speech: a focus on pirates, with also a roundup of “historical” examples. Then new rules, very captivating, for the management of naval battles, for very probable amenities such as shipwrecks or the need to hold your breath, gambling and finally for duels.
Finally, the last substantial part of Jolly Roger is dedicated to a season and episodes on demand. Many ideas for countless games.
Voyages Extraordinaires
Voyages Extraordinaires instead is primarily a tribute to Jules Verne’s science fiction. The adventure here is set in a 19th century full of mystery and full of extraordinary inventions. The structure of the manual recalls the others. It starts with a contextualization of the setting and the presentation of new tags. Then there is an excursus of the game world, among new technologies, mysteries and universal exhibitions. Obviously, instead of pirates we are dealing with a very interesting list of adventurer companies, a forge of ideas and characterizations.
The manual continues with the new rules and situations: a new tool, the expedition diary, rules and ideas for betting and time management. But above all we talk about the encounter with the “extraordinaire”, in particular the extraordinary creatures, of which a remarkable and appetizing overview is provided. The fourth part of Voyages Extraordinaires focuses on extraordinary technology and inventions, especially extraordinary vehicles. Leafing through these pages generates a constant desire to experience adventures!
This manual also ends with a season and episodes on demand. Again many ideas!
What if
Ladies and gentlemen, hats off. I struggle to find the words to explain this manual to you fully. We are talking about a collection of little hacks of Broken Compass that allows to transform the system and carry it in a new series of amazing possibilities. Each hack has new tags, new rules to adapt the system to the setting. In addition, at the end of the manual there are instructions for creating your own what if, rules for time travel and a prefect setting to explore.
What if has two incredible added values: the first is to expand Broken Compass beyond the boundaries we were used to and allow us to experience a universe of new possibilities through it. And for this I have already stated my apologies at the beginning of the article. The second value is the incredible variety and imagination of the hacks presented. It is also always possible to mix the elements provided to create new fantastic stories. The Broken Compass characters are designed to be generated with the union of two tags and each hack and each season has its own rules, but there are no limits to the experiments that can be done at the game table.
A Paragraph of the Review of the New Seasons of Broken Compass is not enough for What If
What If is truly outstanding. I think the best way to let you know is to share with you the list of all the hacks presented in the manual:
- Cosmic Horrors: lovecraftian horrors and madness mechanic
- Space Opera: adventures in galaxies far away and Energy Mechanics
- Gods and Men: ancient heroes age, Mythological Hero and Mythological Adventures.
- Good Boys: where pets are the adventurers in a big city. 12 new animal tags.
- Fantasy Quest: fantasy medieval world and Magic mechanics.
- High School: high school teenagers seeking mysteries and School Dangers mechanics.
- Last on Earth: post-apocaliptic setting with Danger Clock mechanichs.
- Black Light: dystopian future and cyberpunk adventurers
- Toon City: cartoon world with cartoon or plush adventurers.
- Urban Legends: unexplicable events and supernatural adventurers.
- Leaving Wonderland: where you can run away from a table-generated Wonderland.
- High Noon: western setting with Quick Draw Duels mechanich.
Was I clear? So why don’t try Animal Adventurers in a post apocalyptic context? Or some high school students in a school with the mechanics of Magic? Or Animated Adventurers in a Space Opera facing Lovecraftian Horrors or the Extraordinary Creatures of Voyages Extraordinaires?
Welcome to the worlds of What If.
Final Considerations of the Review of the New Seasons of Broken Compass
This review obviously promotes the new seasons of Broken Compass with flying colors. Excellent materials, excellent illustrations, practical and comfortable handling and layout. Contents full of ideas, mechanics, possibilities. The new seasons of Broken Compass represent the definitive affirmation of Daniela, Rico and Simone and are a proof of the talent of the Two Little Mice team. CMON Limited, which acquired them, also noticed this.
The only exception is if you don’t love the stories of adventure and action, their adrenaline and the typical cinematic cut according to the paradigms of Broken Compass. Otherwise we are talking about a must-have in all RPG enthusiast libraries.