Gamma World - 4e style
 

[I will foreword this with the following: I have not played previous versions of GW and am not terribly familiar with the nuances of their rules and/or story, so in the incredibly unlikely event that you find some minor error in my recollection of second-hand "facts", be sure and don't bother pointing it out to me. Thanks!]

So I get that names involving "Fourth" and "Edition" might not be the most popular right now, especially with a large group of people that outright can't stand D&D since a group of Wizards took over. That aside... well I'd actually have to side with those people in this case. Wizards is here to squeeze every last penny out of the TSR brands if they can, and by golly they could. At least from me. :(

Gamma World, the product of late 70's nerds not having enough zombies to occupy their post apocalyptic fantasies, was first produced by TSR in '78. It combined a then fresh RP concept with the familiar safety of D&D basic rules. One of the more entertaining parts about the system was the attention paid to humor and sheer absurdity (<-- maybe a word?), with random mutations and fantastic takes on twenty-fourth (?) century Earth. Seven editions, and plenty of shenanigans later, Wizards (re)dusted off the system to see what they could do with new 4e mechanics. To be fair, it's really good timing. Fallout: New Vegas was just around the corner when they released this, and I don't care what anyone says; after developing a alarmingly intimate knowledge of the Capital Wasteland, I had no trouble envisioning all sorts of wacky scenarios for my players to die upon explore and was totally excited about this.

The backstory itself is 4th ed vague: LHC happens, alternate universes collide. Like, all of them. Go. It seems pretty hard to immerse yourself in, initially, but they provide some good kickoff points (assuming you're in America) later on, and c'mon. It's the world as we know it, only totally freaky mutated and stuff. Use your imagination.

Anyway, the game itself is surprisingly strong, despite being super random. When I say super random, I mean the only thing you get to choose is what kind of weapon and armor you start with (assuming you're not a wimp). You roll your origin, your non-primary ability scores, skill bonuses, starting items; pretty much everything. It's actually loads of fun to just sit around, rolling up characters and determining how many canoes they start off with (though the somewhat small origin list makes it pretty likely that you will end up running out of random faster than you might think), but there's actually a game involved as well.

Combat wise, it's 4th ed plus. When I say 4th ed plus I mean 3 things: No action points, No healing surges (second wind heals half health), and special encounter power cards. The system that felt so detracting when applied to the well established D&D actually (IMO) runs a lot smoother when used to frame the complete chaos that is life on Gamma Terra. Of course, this is helped by those cards I mentioned, the Alpha Mutations. Between battles (and sometimes in them), your character manifests different randomly-drawn powers and abilities from alternate timelines, which can have hilarious consequences and usually break any routines your power gamer friends might have. Alpha Mutations change every encounter, but for those looking for (somewhat) lasting comforts in the wasteland, well there's something for you too: Omega Technology. These relics are unstable shadows of the past, with you until you use them, at which point they have an equal chance of sticking around or blowing up in your face (I don't care what the book says, it explodes!). These too are represented by cards, which brings me to an important point:

Gamma World is NOT Magic, despite what anyone may want to convince you. The current product is a box set that comes with the rules, 80 cards, cutout figures and even a few maps to get you started, everything you need to run a sizable campaign with (except dice and not terrible character sheets). It's all packaged really well and takes all of 3 minutes to set up. You do not need to buy any additional packs of cards to play (and quite frankly Wizards is surprisingly cool with a list of the cards and their effects being posted on their forums), so if you just want to play, your wallet is not holding you back. I mean, it is for the initial 40$, but following that you really don't need anything else. There's a small bestiary in the back and 4e monsters are transferable between D&D and GW, so as long as you can justify a beholder with psudo-science (you can), you'll have no shortage of battle fodder.

Now, no game system is perfect, and GW 7E is no exception. If you love twinking, you will HATE this game (the lack of feats was actually jarring for me at first) and for DMs that rely heavily on rules, it's pretty hands off, which can leave you at a loss sometimes mechanically (I have some good house rules that I might recommend if anyone wants to hear them). Half the fun is the blanks you fill in, but I can understand that's not for everyone. Overall, though, I've found it to be a good pick up and go system, and seriously who can say no to a game where you could play a swarm of mimiga, a telekinetic potted plant, a giant metal cockroach or a radioactive yeti? I'd recommend this, if only to give it a shot.

Also I wrote a different review on the actual wizards forums. You can view it here.

TL;DR: I liked it, and if you enjoy fun, you may like it too. At least check it out.