At the Knights of Trinity, we rate the complexity and content of our games, to ensure that you know what kind of game we are advertising, and what you can expect when you sit down to play.
System Ratings
Some games are “crunchier” than others – more complex, or requiring some background knowledge to get the most of them. Whilst these should never be considered a barrier to playing a game, it’ll give you some idea of what you’re in for!
System Mechanics
How complicated is it to work out if your character has succeeded at something?
The higher the rating, the more complicated the process is.
System Rules
Are there lots of extra rules that you need to know to get the most out of your character?
Things like magic, superpowers or special weapons can add chapters of rules to the game book.
They’re not essential by any means, but they can be very cool and helpful!
System Setting
How complicated is the world? Are there lots of races, or many different factions?
Are there thousands of years of history?
Again, not necessarily essential knowledge, but it can be very useful.
Each category is rated using the following scale:
Anyone – Straight-forward / no experience required
Basic – Some knowledge or experience is helpful
Complicated – experience or knowledge is essential to get the best results
Deep – Not for the faint of heart! Deep knowledge will be essential!
Sometimes, the gamesmaster may not be using the whole setting, and so may limit the setting. We represent that on the rating with a “notch” at the appropriate level, thus:
Although the setting is “Deep”, the gamesmaster will be using limited information, making it “Basic”
Game Content
The gamesmaster will start with a general idea of the sort of game that they are intending to run. Much like a video game, that content can be broken out into categories. We use the following ones, taken from the PEGI system:
Violence
What level of violence will there be in the game? How realistic will it be?
Language
Is the game likely to feature language that some people might consider offensive? How regularly will it be used?
Fear
Are there parts of this game that are designed to scare players? How terrifying will they be?
Gambling
Are there games of chance in the story? How realistic are they?
Sex
Is there sexual content in the game? How realistic or explicit is it going to be?
Drugs
Is there drug use in the game? How realistic is it going to be?
Discrimination
Is there discrimination against one or more groups of individuals in the game? How little tolerance is there?
Once again, there is a scale:
Everyone – very mild / non-realistic
Teen – mild / implied / innuendo
Mature – strong / realistic
Adult – geatuitous / explicit / glorified
In addition to these ratings, if there are any specific elements of the game that the gamesmaster might have a concern about, then they will be listed as well.
And that’s all there is to it!