In the genre of dystopian futures controlled by sinister mega-corporations, Blade Runner is a quintessential classic. The original movie is an adaption of Phillip K. Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? published in 1968. While Blade Runner underperformed in cinemas at the time of its release, it garnered a strong cult following over the years and eventually inspired a critically acclaimed sequel made by Denis Villeneuve, the director of 2021's Dune.
Tabletop role-playing games set in this genre are surprisingly plentiful, but the two most popular and accomplished settings have undeniably been Shadowrun and Cyberpunk. Each spawned game adaptations of their bleak, futuristic worlds – with the Shadowrun Trilogy having its roots as a crowdfunded project on Kickstarter. This time, Free League Publishing and Alcon Entertainment have utilized the crowdfunding platform to bring Blade Runner to the fold as an official tabletop role-playing game.
Titled Blade Runner: The Roleplaying Game, the setting takes place in the neon-noir streets of Los Angeles in 2037, approximately twelve years before the events of the second movie. The excitement for the project has been unquestionably high, as the Kickstarter entry met its budget goal of $10,124 merely three minutes after launch. As of this article's publication, the project has amassed over a million dollars in funding, with 21 days left for backers to pledge their money to the Kickstarter project.
The idea behind the project is to create a tabletop roleplaying game that focuses on the casework, including (but not limited to) retiring Replicants, as corporate intrigue, existential drama, and moral conflict get interwoven throughout. The ruleset for the role-playing game is based around the Year Zero Engine but uniquely tailored to fit the world and setting of Blade Runner.
The starter set for the Blade Runner role-playing game comes with a condensed rulebook, pre-generated characters, and Electric Dreams, the first full-length Case File for Blade Runners to crack. Depending on how many stretch goals the Kickstarter project meets by the end of the funding period, the starter set will gain many additions, such as a set of custom dice, printed map handouts, and initiative cards.
The greatest benefit in terms of stretch goals comes in expanding the Core Ruleset – with rewards offering aspiring players case generator tables that would allow them to create new Case Files through dice rolls – as well as bonus character archetypes. Only one stretch goal has yet to be met, but given the lightning pace of the project's funding, the Blade Runner role-playing game is expected to be fully funded in terms of potential features by the end of the night.
Source: Kickstarter