Overview

Fiasco is a role-playing game

Role-playing game

A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...

 by Jason Morningstar, independently published

Indie role-playing game

An indie role-playing game is a role-playing game published outside of traditional, "mainstream" means. Varying definitions require that commercial, design, or conceptual elements of the game stay under the control of the creator, or that the game should just be produced outside of a corporate...

 by Bully Pulpit Games

Bully Pulpit Games

Bully Pulpit Games, based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, is a small publisher of indie role-playing games. Their games include The Shab-al-Hiri Roach, Grey Ranks, and Fiasco...

. It is a GM

Gamemaster

A gamemaster is a person who acts as an organizer, officiant for questions regarding rules, arbitrator, and moderator for a multiplayer game...

-less game for 3-5 players, designed to be played in a few hours with six-sided dice and no preparation. Fiasco is inspired by cinematic tales of small time capers gone disastrously wrong - inspired by films like Blood Simple

Blood Simple

Blood Simple is a 1984 neo-noir crime film. It was the directorial debut of Joel Coen and the first major film of cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld, who later became a noted director...

, Fargo

Fargo (film)

Fargo is a 1996 American dark comedy-crime film produced, directed and written by brothers Joel and Ethan Coen. It stars Frances McDormand as a pregnant police chief who investigates a series of homicides, William H...

, The Way of the Gun

The Way of the Gun

The Way of the Gun is a 2000 American film produced by Kenneth Kokin, written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie and starring Ryan Phillippe, Benicio del Toro, Juliette Lewis, Taye Diggs, Nicky Katt, and James Caan. It is considered a cult film. To date, this is the only film that McQuarrie has...

, Burn After Reading

Burn After Reading

Burn After Reading is a 2008 black comedy film written, produced, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. The film stars George Clooney, John Malkovich, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, and Brad Pitt. It was released in the United States on September 12, 2008, and it was released on October 17, 2008...

, and A Simple Plan

A Simple Plan (film)

A Simple Plan is a 1998 drama film directed by Sam Raimi, based on the novel of the same name by Scott Smith, who also wrote the screenplay of the film. It was shot in Delano, Minnesota and Ashland and Saxon, Wisconsin. Billy Bob Thornton was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor...

.

Game play

During the game players select a "playset" package that determines the setting elements for the story, such as "a small Southern town." They then take turns selecting elements and building a web of relationships and details. Once the setup is established, the game proceeds with players setting up and role-playing scenes and conflicts in two acts. In between these acts is the Tilt, which introduces new unbalancing elements to the story. Play ends after act two when points are counted and the Aftermath unfolds, with each player determining what unfortunate end they will narrate for their character.

External links

• Official homepage of the Fiasco role-playing game.