Batman Role-Playing Game Explained

The Batman Role-Playing Game is a role-playing game published by Mayfair Games in 1989.

Description

The Batman Role-Playing Game is a superhero system, a version of the second edition DC Heroes rules abbreviated for novice players and focusing on Batman and Gotham City.[1] In addition to game rules and game-mastering advice, it includes statistics for Batman and all his friends and enemies, and a description and map of Gotham City.[1] There are two scenarios: an introductory solo and a full scenario for a group of players featuring the Joker.[1]

Publication history

The Batman Role-Playing Game was designed by Jack A. Barker, Greg Gorden, and Ray Winninger, and was published by Mayfair Games in 1989 as a 192-page book.[1] The game, a simplified version of DC Heroes, was released in 1989 to coincide with the Batman film.[2] The second edition of the DC Heroes rules, published in 1989, incorporated material from the Batman Role-Playing Game and the Superman Sourcebook. These materials also included rules for advantages, drawbacks, and gadgetry.[3]

Reception

Paul Mason reviewed Batman Role-Playing Game for Games International magazine, and gave it 3 stars out of 5, and wrote that "it's not the perfect medium to simulate the better Batman comics, but it has potential".[4]

Ken Cliffe reviewed The Batman Role-Playing Game for White Wolf #20, rating it 4 out of 5 overall, and wrote that "although there is no desperate need for the Batman RPG, the game still finds a niche in the game industry. I recommend it to all Batfans, whether you own DC Heroes [or] not".[5]

In his 1990 book The Complete Guide to Role-Playing Games, game critic Rick Swan liked the game, saying, "Batman is both a nice introduction to role-playing and a competent simulation of the Caped Crusader's adventures." But although Swan gave this game a rating of 3 out of 4, he noted that Batman was essentially a stripped down DC Heroes game, and suggested "I can't think of a single reason anyone shouldn't skip this and go directly to DC Heroes, with the exception of collectors who need to own every last product with a bat emblem on it."[6]

Reviews

Notes and References

  1. Book: Schick, Lawrence. Lawrence Schick. Heroic Worlds: A History and Guide to Role-Playing Games. Prometheus Books . 1991. 0-87975-653-5. 44.
  2. Roberta E. Pearson and William Uricchio. The Many lives of the Batman: critical approaches to a superhero and his media. Routledge: London, 1991., (p.58).
  3. [Allen Varney]
  4. Mason . Paul . Roll Call . . 8 . 43–44 . August 1989.
  5. Cliffe . Ken . April–May 1990 . Superhero Game Reviews. . 20 . 16.
  6. Book: Swan, Rick . Rick Swan . . St. Martin’s Press . 1990 . New York . 36–37.
  7. Web site: Casus Belli #054 . 1989 .