Congratulations! Humanity is dead! The bad news is that all they left behind is their garbage and a broken gig economy. That's why we need freelancers like you who are ready to take any job, no matter how loathsome. As a freelancer, you will delve into ruins, brave the wilds, and slay the hordes of hideous creatures that litter the dark forgotten corners of the world. All so you can gather loot and return home, ready to blow it all and start over again the next day. It's a lousy gig, so it's perfect for the likes of you.
Freelancers: A Crossroads Game condenses the fantasy RPG campaign experience into a single night of fun and mayhem. Create a character, roll funky dice, and blaze your way through multiple stories set in a world of magic, monsters, and murder. Better yet, no game master is required, as a magical companion app does all the storytelling for you! Immerse yourself in fully-voiced, industry-leading audio as you play. Explore hundreds of branching paths in five highly replayable campaigns. Mix and match a multitude of species and jobs to build your own unique character. Pick up and play, simple rules, low commitment and no prep.
—description from the publisher
- Cooperative gameplay with meaningful personal incentives
- Strong character customization and distinct roles
- Web app integration provides guided, streamlined play
- Five replayable campaigns add longevity
- Tension from planning phase and timed actions
- Complex setup and learning curve due to app integration
- Some actions require careful attention to app/web flow
- Spoiler risk during preview; full experience requires playing the game
- cooperative adventure with personal incentives and individual endings
- A fringe-world setting centered on a hub marketplace with travel to the rim across five campaigns
- app-guided, campaign-driven narrative
- Forgotten Waters
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Camp actions and rest — Camping actions to heal stress/HP and manage risk
- campaign structure — Five replayable campaigns, each playable in a single night
- Character creation — Choose species and job, generate backstory
- End-of-round codes and endings — Codes mark round ends; endings depend on influence and XP
- Influence-based turn order — Turn order determined by influence; can gain/lose influence over the campaign
- Location book actions and map — Location actions with blue single-use vs green multi-use options; map-based travel
- Planning phase with timer — 45-second planning phase with actions selected in influence order
- Role-based cooperative play — Distinct roles with unique duties (GM, Bookkeeper, Cartographer, Medic, Influencer, Lookout, Scout)
- Skill checks and dice — Skills with bonuses; dice rolls (20-sided plus bonus dice) and app-entered codes
- Story deck and Hermit/dragon quest — Story deck provides events; final quest involves dragon on the map
- Treasure deck and equipment — Treasure cards, armor, trinkets, and weapon augmentations; top treasure card drawn
- Web app integration — App guides setup, maps, and events; fully audio narrated
- Wounds and risk — HP, wounds tracked; risk tokens and a bag draw that cascades effects
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- Welcome to our three player game of Freelancers a Crossroads game
- we are Freelancers and we're trying to make some money
- it's a fully Cooperative campaign style game
- the app guides you through each of the five different campaigns
- each campaign is replayable