It has been a while since I read through my copy of Noir, and I’m the type of GM that (over?) think a lot of a setting. So what is my own additions and whats actually in the book have started to be a bit fuzzy. As I read through it all again I’m going to give writing a “Where I read” a try
To my knowledge, there is currently no English version of the game, and I don’t think there is any plan at the moment to translate it. However, there have been plans for an English version of Noir, and they are involved in KULT: Divinity Lost. So depending on their experiences from that game, and potential interest for Noir, I think they might pick up their old plans or create new ones.
Noir is a Swedish dystopian rpg from 2006 by Marco Behrmann and Petter Nallo, and the book comes in at just over 350 pages. Thumbnails of each page of the book can be found here, and it can be considered NSFW.
An English text about the game from the creators can be found here.
While it certainly is possible to use it for classic production era Film Noir, it is more focused on Neo Noir like Sin City, Dark City, Se7en, and Gotham. The mechanics would most likely fit Sin City without even having to tweak anything, and the GM might actually have to control the char-gen a bit if a character like Marv isn’t fitting the current game.
The setting in the book, The Empire and its capitol Sandukar is more inspired by central and eastern Europe than the US. So on top of a lot of Noir tropes one would expect, there is also a bureaucratic dictatorship oppressing the population.
In a way, Noir can be seen as a few different but on the surface similar settings. It can be used as fairly realistic, but put in a made up world to avoid real world biases on how things work and what things meant in history. It can be used as a crap-sack world that is hell because, well, it is located in hell. The setting can be a feverish dream world-esque world, where things isn’t as static or solid as our world is. It can also be used for a horror noir setting.
The system is actually more Neo Trad, but in my opinion it is just a matter of a minor tweak of when “plot points” can be used, removing the GM’s pile of “plot points”, and change whom describes what, and the game is pushed right into a more traditional way of running a RPG (which I prefer myself).
As the book is in Swedish, even quotes will be a translation.
The back of the book has the text:
It is a time of worldly decay, mysteries, violence and dark eroticism. The scene is the multi-million city Sandukar, the heart of the giant Empire. It is a place for hardboiled men, dangerous women and fallen fighters — individuals creating their own rules and by their own actions shows what is right or wrong.
It is a journey into an existence where strong and destructive emotions like desire, aggression and vindictiveness rules over the dark backstreets. Egoism, greed and vanity overshadow forgotten virtues like love, justice and generosity. In the State’s ministries faceless bureaucrats rule through contradicting forms and regulations. In assembly rooms do the highborn plan new conspiracies and intrigues to increase their power and prosperity. On the streets do ordinary citizen struggle against brutal gangsters, corrupted police officers and sadist employers, in a fight to see the next day.
It is a time for unwilling heroes.
Noir is a dystopian roleplaying game written by two veterans of Swedish roleplaying game development, Marco Behrmann and Petter Nallo. Between themselves they have close to 30 years of experience of roleplaying games and are behind titles like Eon, Neotech and Viking.
The first page with actual text in the book has a list of the people involved developing and designing the game, artists, game testers, etc. It also contain a warning stating it is not suitable for sensitive people or those under the age of 15. Then there is a table of content taking a full page, with the opposite page having the symbol of Sandukar and a single quote.
“This must be the place I always wanted to leave. -Talia Navarre”
The actual meat of the book will start in the next post, and first up is a five page fiction introducing one of the signature characters; the private detective Gabriel Jandaran.
To my knowledge, there is currently no English version of the game, and I don’t think there is any plan at the moment to translate it. However, there have been plans for an English version of Noir, and they are involved in KULT: Divinity Lost. So depending on their experiences from that game, and potential interest for Noir, I think they might pick up their old plans or create new ones.
Noir is a Swedish dystopian rpg from 2006 by Marco Behrmann and Petter Nallo, and the book comes in at just over 350 pages. Thumbnails of each page of the book can be found here, and it can be considered NSFW.
An English text about the game from the creators can be found here.
While it certainly is possible to use it for classic production era Film Noir, it is more focused on Neo Noir like Sin City, Dark City, Se7en, and Gotham. The mechanics would most likely fit Sin City without even having to tweak anything, and the GM might actually have to control the char-gen a bit if a character like Marv isn’t fitting the current game.
The setting in the book, The Empire and its capitol Sandukar is more inspired by central and eastern Europe than the US. So on top of a lot of Noir tropes one would expect, there is also a bureaucratic dictatorship oppressing the population.
In a way, Noir can be seen as a few different but on the surface similar settings. It can be used as fairly realistic, but put in a made up world to avoid real world biases on how things work and what things meant in history. It can be used as a crap-sack world that is hell because, well, it is located in hell. The setting can be a feverish dream world-esque world, where things isn’t as static or solid as our world is. It can also be used for a horror noir setting.
The system is actually more Neo Trad, but in my opinion it is just a matter of a minor tweak of when “plot points” can be used, removing the GM’s pile of “plot points”, and change whom describes what, and the game is pushed right into a more traditional way of running a RPG (which I prefer myself).
As the book is in Swedish, even quotes will be a translation.
The back of the book has the text:
It is a time of worldly decay, mysteries, violence and dark eroticism. The scene is the multi-million city Sandukar, the heart of the giant Empire. It is a place for hardboiled men, dangerous women and fallen fighters — individuals creating their own rules and by their own actions shows what is right or wrong.
It is a journey into an existence where strong and destructive emotions like desire, aggression and vindictiveness rules over the dark backstreets. Egoism, greed and vanity overshadow forgotten virtues like love, justice and generosity. In the State’s ministries faceless bureaucrats rule through contradicting forms and regulations. In assembly rooms do the highborn plan new conspiracies and intrigues to increase their power and prosperity. On the streets do ordinary citizen struggle against brutal gangsters, corrupted police officers and sadist employers, in a fight to see the next day.
It is a time for unwilling heroes.
Noir is a dystopian roleplaying game written by two veterans of Swedish roleplaying game development, Marco Behrmann and Petter Nallo. Between themselves they have close to 30 years of experience of roleplaying games and are behind titles like Eon, Neotech and Viking.
The first page with actual text in the book has a list of the people involved developing and designing the game, artists, game testers, etc. It also contain a warning stating it is not suitable for sensitive people or those under the age of 15. Then there is a table of content taking a full page, with the opposite page having the symbol of Sandukar and a single quote.
“This must be the place I always wanted to leave. -Talia Navarre”
The actual meat of the book will start in the next post, and first up is a five page fiction introducing one of the signature characters; the private detective Gabriel Jandaran.
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