The G.I. Joe Roleplaying Game has been officially revealed
Rolling is half the battle.
The G.I. Joe Roleplaying Game, based on the line of toy soldiers, has been officially unveiled by publisher Renegade Game Studios.
We’ve known of a G.I. Joe RPG since last year, when Renegade announced it was working on deckbuilding games and tabletop RPGs based on Hasbro-owned properties Power Rangers, Transformers, My Little Pony and G.I. Joe. The G.I. Joe Deck-Building Game was subsequently revealed in July ahead of its planned release next month.
The full announcement of the G.I. Joe RPG’s core rulebook didn’t detail exactly how the upcoming roleplaying game will adapt the iconic line of action figures - originally based on the real-life American armed forces, and released here in the UK as Action Man - and its wider lore, which includes the villainous terrorist organisation Cobra, for the tabletop.
What we do know is that - like most tabletop RPGs - the G.I. Joe Roleplaying Game will allow players to create their own Joe and see one player as GM run the story for the rest of the group.
Players’ characters will be created from a mixture of personal traits and their military background, taking a specific role in the titular G.I. Joe organisation as they embark on various missions - including a starter adventure included in the core book.
Renegade previously announced that its upcoming RPGs based on Power Rangers, G.I. Joe and Transformers would be powered by a new system called Essence20, replacing its original plan to build on the gameplay of Dungeons & Dragons 5E.
Essence20 sees players rolling a single 20-sided die and one or more dice ranging from a d2 to a second d20 - determined by their level in a given skill - to resolve tests, adding together their highest skill die and the d20 to surpass a test’s difficulty.
Behind the G.I. Joe RPG are designers Ryan Costello, Ben Heisler and Paige Leitman, who between them have credits on supplements for Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, Cyberpunk 2020 and the ENnie-winning adventure anthology Uncaged.
Renegade is yet to announce a release date for the G.I. Joe Roleplaying Game, but has listed the core rulebook for pre-order on its online store for $55.