Ever Hear of "Weird Detective Mystery Adventures"? Well, Neither Had I!

One of the fun things about going to conventions is that it allows you to discover unique things you would never come across in your day-to-day experience. Even though I spend most of any given day up to my elbows in RPG content, I never would have come across Weird Detective Mystery Adventures, and I feel confident in saying the same for all my readers out there.

So if you've been looking for a game with gangsters, gun mals, masked vigilantes, super heroes, mad scientists, and more, this is a game you could use to scratch that itch.

An offer that might be tough to refuse.

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Let's Start With The Good

The best part of any proposal.

Right off the bat, what is Weird Detective Mystery Adventures? Well, it's an RPG that uses 2d6 and a lot of charts to help you tell stories that are just what it says on the tin. If a story can be found in the canon of weird or pulp fiction, then you could emulate it with this RPG. Whether you want to do gritty private eyes digging into gangland deals, masked vigilantes stopping bank robbers, or superheroes fighting supernatural cultists and their dark gods, all of that is possible within this system.

Aside from power scaling, which is quite important for any game, the rule book is pretty thorough when it comes to all your options. Everything from contacts you can call on, to a superhuman accuracy with firearms, to mastery of disguises, to being filthy rich, or being bulletproof and able to fly is covered in here. And while there are sequels and extra content planned for future installments, the core book is all you need to play the game.

As to the system itself, it has a decidedly old-school feel to it. A single chart is used to determine success or failure for a majority of actions, ranging from stunts and tricks with metahuman abilities, to standard punch-ups with goons in a bar. The base stats all have their own unique names one needs to get used to, but once you get in the groove figuring out success, failure, and your odds of either, the game becomes pretty easy to manage.

Now Onto The Bad

You didn't see nuthin', got it smart guy?

Nothing is perfect, and I wouldn't want anyone tracking this game down without making them aware of the flaws it has, as well as its benefits.

First and foremost, if you came into gaming via d20 games, this is going to be like learning a whole new language for you. While I've seen games with similar systems before, if you're more used to various editions of DND, or even the World of Darkness, this will be something of a rough start for you. Additionally, this book is thick... we're talking old-fashioned Yellow Pages thick. While you may not need to read all of it depending on the game you want to play, there's a lot of material in there, which will not be to a lot of players' tastes. Particularly in this age of short rulebooks and minimal mechanics gaming. Lastly, for all of the material the book does give you, this game isn't meant to take place in a particular setting or world; details like that are left largely up to the storyteller to figure out for themselves. So while you have a big skeleton with a lot of moving parts, everything from the era, to the lore, to the world is on you to figure out.

Lastly, and this is the one that struck me strange, this book is damn near impossible to come across. To get yourself a copy you must go to the Weird Detective Mystery Adventures website and buy one, or come across the game's booth at a convention. You can't find copies of it on DTRPG, nor can you locate it on Amazon. Even stranger, there is no PDF version of the game available at time of writing, and the physical copy is rather large at just under $50 for a paperback version. For someone who hasn't played the game themselves and is only curious to check it out, that is a rather large risk to take.

The Ugly

You knew this was coming.

I want to start this section by making one thing clear; I didn't dislike my read-through of this game system. While it's certainly a heavy game in terms of options, it has a certain nostalgic quality that will draw you in a bit, and it presents a lot of interesting ideas that would be fun to play with.

However, this game is definitely not going to be for everyone. Worse, though, it feels like this game is attempting to re-invent the wheel in a lot of ways.

As a for instance, everything I mentioned about different game styles, scaling power, power sets and abilities, etc., could also be said of Mutants & Masterminds. Also, while not a simple game, M&M was far easier for me to grasp when I was presented with it, and it has a great deal of supporting material one can choose to use if they want, like the Player's Guide To Emerald City, Hero High, or the Supernatural Handbook, depending on the needs of your game. And if one wanted a simpler game with easier-to-digest mechanics, but which still boasted all of those positive aspects already mentioned, then Savage Worlds Adventurer Edition would work just as well. Especially since one could add in all the other material they want for their game piecemeal, such as hunting monsters with the Rippers Resurrected player guide, Weird War I player's guide, Arcana and Mysticism, or any of a dozen other books and supplements that are available to customize one's playing experience.

Both of these other options are available as digital copies, they're easier to learn, and they're easier on your wallet if you're looking for a game of pulpy adventure that's all over the board in terms of what you can bring to the table.

Again, WDMA isn't a bad game. But if you're interested in giving it a closer look, I would definitely recommend looking through the homepage to make sure it's going to appeal to you and your play style. Because as of this moment there isn't a free sample or a starter's guide to let you try before you buy, and it's got a pretty hefty price tag attached to it.

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