Broken Contract Labor Riot by Geng Gendall

Tonight I was working on my Kickstarter video and I just wasn’t happy with the results. It captured the grimness of the back story but it failed to capture the excitement of the game, which led me to go back and think about what makes Broken Contract a fun and exciting game so that I can attempt to capture that in my next video attempt.

So what is so exciting about Broken Contract anyway?

When I started designing the game I didn’t want it to be just another game where you Move, Shoot, and Fight. I created a variety of Stats so that anyone can attempt to apply first aid, negotiate with another Character, or hot wire a hydraulic door – I know, I know, that seems really specific – but you never know it might actually come into play! With Actions like “Stand Down!”, Beg for Mercy, and Carry a Comrade available to you, you might be able to halt an enemy in their tracks, stop a devastating Attack by being convincingly repentant, and attempt to leave no person behind! See Stats and Checks, Also See Dealing Checks

Since every game has movement and fighting, I wanted these things to be dynamic. You can Walk, Hustle, Rush, Dive Roll, Jump, Stand Up, Go Prone, and Crawl. I wanted the Characters to have to Jump over Prone Characters in their way, or Dive Roll under a closing hydraulic door, because in my mind that’s awesome. See Move Actions

Similarly, fighting isn’t just Attack after Attack. You can Push, Grapple, and Throw Down your opponent because sometimes just throwing your body into an enemy at full speed is better trying to Attack with a crappy weapon. Plus, when the enemy is off balance, one of your buddies can move in to do some real damage.

The Initiative system gives every Character on the board its own Turn through the use of numbered Initiative Cards. The swirl of action is always changing and one Character or player doesn’t always have the upper hand. This also forces each side to work as a team, making up for the failings of their lagging comrades or setting up an opponent for a serious beating after they’ve used up their Actions.

Many games use some sort of Action Point system, and Broken Contract is no different in that regard. Action Points can be used during your Initiative to perform specific Actions as you would expect, but you can also save them to perform Interruptions when you’re coming under Attack, such as Defend, Parry, Dodge, Flee, and the previously mentioned, Beg for Mercy. See Actions and Interruptions

I love the grit of games that have Critical Hits, Fumbles, Malfunctioning weapons, and Down and Out of Action Characters littering the play area so all of those things make an appearance in Broken Contract. With a low model count allowing you to enjoy that level of detail without bogging down the game.

Broken Contract is a cinematic, high adventure game and that’s what I need to try and get across in the Kickstarter video. Maybe I should just say it like that?

Prone Officer Hickley 3D sculpt by Tim Barry