

The latter will determine how the last stronghold of mankind will thrive. Sessions start with setting up new threats against The Ark and projects within it. It might be worth a shot, you need to venture forth anyway. The stories, which might well be bedtime stories, mention that Eden is “where salvation and truth await”. However, with dwindling resources within The Ark and rising tensions among groups, you, the players, will be forced to venture into the Zone to ensure your survival but also to try and find other groups of mutants and possibly learn more about the fabled Eden. Firstly you have The Ark, a safe haven with fellow mutants and the surrounding perilous and mostly unexplored area, the Zone, infested with the lethal Rot. The world of Mutant: Year Zero is divided into two equally important areas. Nevertheless, by playing through a few sessions (and lots of trials and errors and even more of flipping back and forth through the book), even beginners will get the hang of Mutant: Year Zero, as did my players and I. PCs have an easier time by having a quick recap of how to create their character. Reading though 272 pages might not sound particularly a lot but when you consider all of the rules that the GM has to memorize, at least be familiar with, then it becomes quite a considerable task. Moreover, the Game Master (GM) will have the tough task of getting acquainted with all of his/her roles, that of the Player Characters (PC) and with the specifics of the game and read through the whole book before beginning the first session. There are some pre-made scenarios but these come into play only after progressing for a bit.

For such an audience, a game with more strict instructions might be better.

However, this might feel daunting for newcomers to the genre or to tabletop games as a whole. While the core book provides all the necessary information and a couple of scenarios, what goes on and how, the description of locations and events is really done while you play. As such, even if the board game isn't particularly new, it is still getting expansions and when I got in contact with Free League Publishing, I was happy to dive into the world of Mutant Year Zero and explore its universe. While the game offers a set number of playable characters, makes you face off other types of mutants and explore vast derelict areas, the tabletop RPG from which it is based allows you to do much more. Rather than deliver yet another all too common post-apocalyptic scenario with zombies and what not, the game added mutants as playable characters from the get-go. When I previewed the video game Mutant Year Zero: Road To Eden on PC, I was sold on its plot with its twist on the post-apocalypse trope.
