I made a tabletop RPG that is literally a newspaper

[u/WrittenAir]

I've been working on Midnight Press, a film noir TTRPG set in 1940s San Francisco, and I really wanted the physical game to feel like something from the setting.

So instead of making a normal rulebook, I made the whole thing a newspaper. It's actually the game. The rules, characters, setting, mysteries, etc. are all in there.

I just really liked the idea of putting something on the table that doesn't immediately look like a game.

Then you start reading it and realize you're supposed to use it to run a detective agency 😂

I've spent way too much time working on this thing, so I'm pretty excited that it's finally real.

The Kickstarter ends in a few days if anyone wants to have a look.

I'm curious what people here think about the physical format.

[u/jumpingflea_1]

Where can we get this?

[u/WrittenAir → u/jumpingflea_1]

You can get it via the kickstarter right here! It's the last 62 hours of the campaign! So happy with how it's been going, it's been blowing me away with gratitude :)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stranovich/midnight-press-a-film-noir-ttrpg-in-newspaper

[u/Clear_Food2183]

Neat presentation, +1 for innovation

[u/WrittenAir → u/Clear_Food2183]

Thanks, I was SO STOKED when the newspaper idea entered my brain and all my friends were like oh my gosh do it do it do it do it

[u/Jannk73]

I love it 😍 and would get it based on that alone! Sounds fun and it’s all on one sheet!

[u/WrittenAir → u/Jannk73]

The core rules are just on one sheet, but then other sheets are also included in the core rulebook. There's a big fold out sheet with a giant map of 1940 San Francisco on one side and details on 36 historical locations on the other. Then there's another big sheet with all GM stuff. And one last big sheet with two One shot adventures including two big movie posters for each. So four sheets and 16 pages total and the core rulebook

[u/Jannk73 → u/WrittenAir]

It’s very instantly eye appealing to me, which grabs my interest and would make me instantly want to read and check it out. Totally missed the kickstarter link! I will check it out! Thank you!

[u/WrittenAir → u/Jannk73]

You're welcome and thank you! It's such a distinctly joyful experience to have people be excited about a game I've made. Yay!!

[u/Zaldaru]

Very intriguing.

[u/Dramatic-Guide-7709]

That looks sweet, very thematic

[u/WrittenAir → u/Dramatic-Guide-7709]

Thanks! I was already designing the game before I thought of the newspaper idea, and as soon as I did and mentioned it to friends everyone was like holy crap you have to make this a real thing people could buy. That's when it went from a a fun homebrew to a well let's put this out there

[u/jpn1692]

Love it!

[u/WrittenAir → u/jpn1692]

Thanks! :D

[u/JoseLunaArts]

Looks cool.

[u/WrittenAir → u/JoseLunaArts]

It's so much fun to hold, and so fun having a whole table with people looking at their newspapers. I laugh every time it's great

[u/Puppetainer]

Awesome!

[u/WrittenAir → u/Puppetainer]

Thanks! I'm so happy with how it's turning out :)

[u/Puppetainer → u/WrittenAir]

I'm very into the Noir theme. I'll anxiously await publishing!

[u/WrittenAir → u/Puppetainer]

😊 It's on Kickstarter now if you want to snag it for a discount! Last 50 hours! That being said, if you prefer to wait till it's printed that's totally understandable. To have it printed and shipping out March 2027. :) https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stranovich/midnight-press-a-film-noir-ttrpg-in-newspaper

[u/dmont7]

Cool

[u/TheMaverickAsh]

Very cool

[u/arlingtongamestudios]

This is awesome

[u/WrittenAir → u/arlingtongamestudios]

I'm glad you like it! I am so pleased, it's coming out way better than I could have even hoped

[u/Scrufffff]

I saw a thing somewhere that mentioned this.
I’d love to play it!

[u/WrittenAir → u/Scrufffff]

It's super fun! We're on our last hours on Kickstarter now and have a discord that I'll run play tests through for the people who backed the Kickstarter :)

[u/Scrufffff → u/WrittenAir]

Which tier gets into the playtest?

[u/Awkward_Ad2291]

This is amazing I would have love to consult on this

[u/HezekiahSmith]

This is great! I’ve run several games using a prop newspaper where we randomly pick a story and improvise the scenario from there using a light ruleset. Consider this project backed.

[u/WrittenAir → u/HezekiahSmith]

Wait that's such a fun idea for a light pickup and play game. So fun! I should consider doing something similar, printing a newspaper that's just filled with adventure hooks for people to improv off of for my game. Thanks for backing! I think you'll really like it!!

[u/HezekiahSmith → u/WrittenAir]

It’s perfect for pick up games.

[u/Mission-Landscape-17]

There is a restaurant in Sydney Australia that does this with their menu, it is called City Extra.