Get Some Cards for Your Spokes: A Kids on Bikes Review
On first instinct I was going to make a Stranger Things reference and link game and show in a rather obvious way. Then I got to reading in depth Kids On Bikes from Renegade Game Studios and I knew that would be too simplistic. So grab your BMX and let’s take a little ride down to the spooky side of town.
The terms collaborative storytelling and narrative are used quite a bit these days in role playing discussions. Many games are designed with both of these in mind while others suggest their use even when the mechanics don’t support them. KoB absolutely falls into the category of getting how to create a collaborative storytelling role playing game. From character creation to conflict resolution, the players and the game master are encouraged to work things out together, to narrate outcomes, and to fail forward when it comes to tests. Players receive Adversity Tokens that they can use for tests later in games and the KoB suggests some early failures in a session may be of some benefit. I also think this fits well into the narrative approach to the game, where drama is derived from the growing tension. So failure is an option.
One process I enjoyed was how in character creation, the players built actual relationships with one another. Questions are asked of one another and having a negative view of another character is not discouraged. Again we see a subtle nod to tension as a tool. Of course your players need to buy into it, but the process seems to favor an easy buy in. No one should have any issue figuring out character creation since it is done together as a group. Each player has a stake in some aspect of their characters of their fellow players. There is even an option for creating a powered character controlled by all the players. Regular characters are just that: normal everyday people taking on the weirdness.
A sizable portion of the book is dedicated to creating what can only be called a safe place for the players. It offers brief discussions of race and gender and devotes time to setting boundaries in the game. This is good advice at any time but seeing these integrated into the game’s canon and mechanics reinforces the idea. Although one can play adults in Kids on Bikes, clearly you are encouraged not to. Options exist for young kids and teens, so a frank discussion on boundaries would have been mandatory in any event. So important are boundaries that they are the first “section” of the book on page 3.
Aesthetically the book is a pleasure to hold and look at. Letters are easy to read and page numbers are gloriously obvious. The art evokes thoughts of Eerie, Indiana and American Gothic. KoB fits nicely into one hand for holding and referencing when needed. It also easily fits in a backpack; whether this was intentional or just a coincidence, it is still a nice tie into the game where backpacks are important to the characters. A comic at the beginning gives an example of what an adventure might look like. Chapter headers and the table of contents are informal, but stand out and leave no room for ambiguity. I never needed more than a few page flips to find what I was looking for. There are also a ton of examples. This is the deluxe edition so there are adventure modules in the back. This is a nice touch and each one is short and succinct.
My only gripe with the game is that some of the sections might have been organized differently. For instance, the Tropes appendix could have been near character creation. All in all, I would recommend picking up Kids on Bikes, written by Jonathan Gilmour & Doug Levandowksi. Let’s Ride!
The terms collaborative storytelling and narrative are used quite a bit these days in role playing discussions. Many games are designed with both of these in mind while others suggest their use even when the mechanics don’t support them. KoB absolutely falls into the category of getting how to create a collaborative storytelling role playing game. From character creation to conflict resolution, the players and the game master are encouraged to work things out together, to narrate outcomes, and to fail forward when it comes to tests. Players receive Adversity Tokens that they can use for tests later in games and the KoB suggests some early failures in a session may be of some benefit. I also think this fits well into the narrative approach to the game, where drama is derived from the growing tension. So failure is an option.
One process I enjoyed was how in character creation, the players built actual relationships with one another. Questions are asked of one another and having a negative view of another character is not discouraged. Again we see a subtle nod to tension as a tool. Of course your players need to buy into it, but the process seems to favor an easy buy in. No one should have any issue figuring out character creation since it is done together as a group. Each player has a stake in some aspect of their characters of their fellow players. There is even an option for creating a powered character controlled by all the players. Regular characters are just that: normal everyday people taking on the weirdness.
A sizable portion of the book is dedicated to creating what can only be called a safe place for the players. It offers brief discussions of race and gender and devotes time to setting boundaries in the game. This is good advice at any time but seeing these integrated into the game’s canon and mechanics reinforces the idea. Although one can play adults in Kids on Bikes, clearly you are encouraged not to. Options exist for young kids and teens, so a frank discussion on boundaries would have been mandatory in any event. So important are boundaries that they are the first “section” of the book on page 3.
Aesthetically the book is a pleasure to hold and look at. Letters are easy to read and page numbers are gloriously obvious. The art evokes thoughts of Eerie, Indiana and American Gothic. KoB fits nicely into one hand for holding and referencing when needed. It also easily fits in a backpack; whether this was intentional or just a coincidence, it is still a nice tie into the game where backpacks are important to the characters. A comic at the beginning gives an example of what an adventure might look like. Chapter headers and the table of contents are informal, but stand out and leave no room for ambiguity. I never needed more than a few page flips to find what I was looking for. There are also a ton of examples. This is the deluxe edition so there are adventure modules in the back. This is a nice touch and each one is short and succinct.
My only gripe with the game is that some of the sections might have been organized differently. For instance, the Tropes appendix could have been near character creation. All in all, I would recommend picking up Kids on Bikes, written by Jonathan Gilmour & Doug Levandowksi. Let’s Ride!