Maze of the Spider

Very interesting! You've set up a solid premise for the storylines to write themselves.

That failure ending alone should earn this RPG a place in a Game Master's scenario library.

It's been months since this came out and I still find myself drifting back to it. Something about this pamphlet's tone, texture and execution is incredibly enigmatic. It's a pamphlet that never fails to spark my imagination and create a sense of place in its sparse few pages. And it's a module that I'm incredibly happy to have read and keep rotating back to every now and then.

Just bought a copy. The layout and artwork is superb, the rules easy to grasp. Can't wait to try it out!

Maze Of The Spider is a survival horror TTRPG about hunting spiders in a sort of gothic Ghibli setting. 

The PDF is 2 pages of pamphlet layout, with clean, easy to read text and some great illustrations.

Atmosphere-wise, Maze Of The Spider is immaculate. It gives the players and GM just enough information to go on, but it leaves most of the world implied. The PCs are members of a village that survives by hunting giant spiders, and that has fallen. The island surrounding the village is hostile territory, so the players know little of it, but they're resourceful and brave even if they're out of their depth.

Mechanically, Maze plays a bit like a board game. The island has a limited number of locations and the players' starting point can be randomized, but in general there are specific objectives to accomplish and how many objectives the players accomplish directly affects the ending.

To surmount challenges, the players spend items from their inventory. If a challenge is also dangerous, they roll dice as well. Damage and status effects are consequences for failure, and craft materials are earned from victory. New items can be crafted from these materials, and the general feeling is of an old console game, where progress is gated through judiciously spending healing items and ammo.

For GMs, there are some randomization tools and hints about what's going on in the story, but this might be a little tricky to run as your first game. You need to feel a little comfortable with writing content on the fly as you GM it, and central characters like Tribute Maiden Aideen and Townmaster Camchak don't get more than their name to describe them in the pamphlet.

Overall, I think Maze would be an absolute banger of a playstation horror title, and it's really great as a TTRPG too. The setting is compelling and the stakes feel very meaningful. It's also easy to play, and only a little harder to GM. If you're looking for a oneshot and you like clever, self-contained systems, definitely give this a try.