Infinity’s Edge

Designer: Shawn Carman

Artist: Kim Wong Lim

Publisher: Kyoudai Games

Year Published: 2019

No. of Players: 2+ (ttRPG)

Ages: 8+

Playing Time: NA

Main mechanic / Theme: D100 / LitRPG

You know you’re in a game, and so does everyone else.

Find more info on RPGGeek.com

Overview

Infinity’s Edge by Shawn Carman and published by Kyoudai Games is a fantasy literary roleplaying game (LitRPG). Players know they are characters, and the characters know they are in a game. There are some wonderful books that use this concept. The story people are familiar with is the new version of Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and its sequel.

I was given a copy of the core rulebook for Infinity’s Edge by the publisher while I was at GenCon for review purposes.

The concept of a Literature Roleplaying Game (LitRPG)

LitRPG is when the main character(s), and even the non-player characters, in the story know they are in a game. The concepts of needing to earn experience, gaining levels, increasing skills, and other aspects of the game are understood and actively sought out. In some of the stories the characters can look up their statistics and skills.

Characters talking about statistics, skill levels, and special traits are no longer metagaming. With all the characters understanding the goal of the adventurers, they can ask if they are qualified to attempt an action by asking if they have the appropriate skill and the minimum requirements with that skill. Players can also ask the same types of questions of the nonplayer characters and still be within the parameters of the game and not break out of character. For more information on LitRPGs, read more at Wikipedia.

Our younger and newer players were familiar with Jumanji, Ready Player One, and online RPGs and were able to easily grasp on the concept of LitRPG and apply it to the game. The mechanics used are like some computer-based games which also made it easier for them to start playing.

Mechanics

Infinity’s Edge uses a percentage (d100) system. To succeed at a check, you must roll below the threshold which is a modified percentage. The base threshold for most checks is 60. The modification is for abilities and skills. The use of a percentage roll made it simple for new players to pick up the mechanics of gameplay.

Three meters are used to track the current condition of the characters. All of these regain losses as time passes.

Health measures the character’s ability to take damage. Every time they take damage, their health drops. Health returns at 1% per minute of nonstrenuous activity.

Mana is the measurement metaphysical energy that is used to cast spells and perform supernatural abilities. Mana regenerates at 5% per minute.

Stamina reflects the ability a character has for engaging in strenuous activity. Stamina regenerates the fastest at 10% each minute.

All characters start with 100% of each meter.

Infinity’s Edge utilizes a few other mechanics popularly used in digital games. Players have an inventory of additional items they can carry with them. When a character’s health reaches zero the character dies, drops all their belongings and respawns at their last indicated save point. 

Characters

Characters all start out basically the same. There are seven attributes with 3 reflecting physical, 3 mental, and 1 that combines the physical and mental. All attributes start at 10.

The player chooses their ancestry (race) which modifies their attributes and provides a passive and an active ability. There are 5 major races and because the races in Infinity’s Edge are from a common ancestry a character can have a half-blood ancestry of any 2 of them for 14 racial variations.

At this point the player is ready to enter the gamer as a novice. Novices are levels 1 through 10. Characters can start learning skills early in game play and advance then in the directions of personal interest. Skills are learned by attempting the task (including fighting).

Characters develop more aspects during play. On a personal level they can gain traits. As they advance in levels they can train in classes (there are base, hybrid, and specialty). They can also join or build guilds and factions. Being a member of one of these organizations has some cost but provides benefits and includes some additional levels of play that go beyond the individual to organizing a small town up to a kingdom.

The Book

Infinity’s Edge Core Rulebook is about 100 pages. There is everything you need to start playing and running a campaign. The information takes characters up to level 30 without any concerns. At level 30 they can take an Advanced Class which requires the next book covering those.

The Core Rulebook is easy to read and follow. It was also easy to teach other people how the game works. Because of the book's smaller size (8½ x 5½ inches) it is easy to carry with you or everyone can have a copy. The books are also available in PDF.

The artwork is reflective of the theme of LitRPG. I couldn't tell from the book, but I think the character art is very likely the players who helped in bringing this game to everyone’s gaming table.

If you want to read some LitRPG novels, several novels are referenced with their cover art so you can easily recognize them.

Final Thoughts

Infinity’s Edge is a fun LitRPG that is easily to learn and allows for players to start quickly.

Everyone starting as a novice class with different ancestry allows character creation to grow as the character advances. Since they know they are a character in a game, and you can play it as though they are a player knowing they are in a game, there wasn’t the need for the elaborate background stories. Instead, character creation was more about the goals individual players wanted to achieve and adjusting as the different opportunities arose.

Game play moved easily, and players enjoyed the aspect that the metagaming topics were part of the game. Being able to ask what was needed could be played against an NPC instead of the GM. This provided some new levels of entertainment. The element of respawning the character allows players to be more creative and daring in their play. They might lose some of their equipment from dying, but they won’t lose their character.

The setting used in Infinity’s Edge allows for personal expansion. Basic information is given about the world in the base book. If you want to place this in your own world, that will not require a resetting of the world or the mechanic—it would just be a change in philosophy those living in the world know they live in a game.

I recommend Infinity’s Edge to gamers who enjoy the mechanics used in many of the electronic RPGs. This is also great for newer players who are uncertain what type of character they want to play until they gain a few levels.

About the Author

Daniel Yocom writes about geeky things because people always say to write what you know. Their love of the geeky, nerdy community dates to the 1960s through games, books, movies, and stranger things better shared in small groups. They’re an award-winning writer with hundreds of articles on these topics for blogs, magazines, and gaming companies. They also have short stories and books published. Their research includes playing as many of their collection of around 500 roleplaying games and another 1,000 tabletop games with friends. Join them at guildmastergaming.com.