Cyberpunk and Witcher RPG maker teases new tabletop project condenamed Blue Moon

The tabletop design studio behind Cyberpunk RED and The Witcher RPG teased a new upcoming tabletop project that has nothing to do with either world. In fact, the so-called Project: Blue Moon looks as though it will break ground on an entirely new setting with roots in Japan’s history and spirituality.

A post on publisher R. Talsorian’s website explains that Project: Blue Moon is the brainchild of Cody Pondsmith, the lead designer at the studio and son of the famed Michael Pondsmith. The younger Pondsmith most recently led the creation of The Witcher RPG, which has become the studio’s second largest series.

R. Talsorian claims it will reveal more information about the secretive project on August 31st, leaving the public with a few paragraphs of foggy description and one piece of artwork that portrays a torii flanked by stone lanterns deep in the forest. Torii are arches that traditionally mark the entrance to a Shinto shrine and have become cultural signposts in popular media that dabble in traditional Japanese spirituality.

From the post: “You’ve seen beyond the mask and now you must make a choice: forget what you’ve seen or leave what you know behind. If you join us, you’ll be able to protect everything you’ve ever known and everything beyond your wildest dreams. Our enemy lurks in the darkest corners of reality. They hide behind masks of deception, waiting to strike. But remember, once you step through the gate you cannot go back.”

If Project: Blue Moon follows a similar narrative formula to R. Talsorian’s other notable projects, we might see players take on the role of agents protecting reality from the threats of some unseen world that overlays the one we inhabit. Stepping through the torii broadly signifies someone transitioning from the mundane world to a holy one, so we can probably expect kami or other representation of gods from Shinto thrown into the mix.

If this isn’t another licensed RPG, it will be the first wholly new world from R. Talsorian Games, a studio that, in its modern incarnation, has largely handled development on Cyberpunk 202 and RED - the series was recently inducted into the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design’s Hall of Fame.