" If you end up taking to the world you won't be disappointed with its depth. "

      Title: Children of the Sun by Misguided Games

      Format: Fantasy RPG

      Reviewing Monkey: Mojo Jojo

      The Hype: Billed as the next great "coming of the near-apocalypse" game, Children of the Sun is Misguided Game's answer to the D&D doldrums. Take arms in this new fantasy world, embrace their races and creeds, and do battle against the forces of evil.

      What This Monkey Thought...

      Story and Drama: As I said in "The Hype" section, Children of the Sun is really a game about alternatives. I don't know if it was intended to be that way or if that's just how this monkey sees it, but everything the game offers from front to back seems to scream "Tired of the old way? Try our way!" Set in an alternative version of the classic "Stagnant World" theory, Children of the Sun deals with life around the island of Krace, which is caught in a neo-fantasy late renessance-esque setting. In it, the game's custom set of races (which will all feel very familiar to veteran gamers) pit magic and what amounts to late 19th century tech together into a fantasy world that is heavily detailed, though unfortunately uninspired. That's not to say the game's concept or background is bad- it just proves to be decidedly unremarkable. From the blatant "Battle of Normandy" intro to the very classic races (including the crynos wolfman and catman, the elf, and the mermaid) the whole thing is a very involved and in-depth twist on concepts near as old as roleplaying gaming. On the plus side, though- if you end up taking to the world you won't be disappointed with its depth. There's background in spades to be found here. 3 out of 5

      Layout and Presentation: All in all, the Children's presentation is solid and doesn't leave a lot to be desired. Beginning with a Table of Contents that's actually useful and ending in a index that certainly does the job, the game manages to crest that ridge so rare in game books: not annoying to sift through! The only bummer, and it's a mild bummer at that is the often-haphazard artwork, which doesn't detract from the feel of the book but certainly doesn't add to it either. 4 out of 5

      Playability: Running a fairly standard polyhedral diced stat set; the "Token System" on which the game revolves has a decent feel that has definitely spent a considerable amount of time being worked out. The most notable feature to the gameplay, and breeding the systems name, is the Token, which is issued to each player at the start of each round. That Token can then be used as a sort of fast-fire interrupt which allows players to break the standard flow of initiative and action and jump the gun as needed. It's a neat concept, and one that was entertaining to play with, but not one that ended up catching my groups fancy overly. While it does indeed add an element of randomness and spontaneity it also stays forgotten in all but the most intense of situations and can often become the source of frustration- since it means you never really can be sure that, despite any incredible amount of advantage you may have, your action will go off as planned. 3.5 out of 5

      Desired Content: If there's one thing this game isn't lacking it's content! Tons of it, from background to technology fills all 350 pages the book offers. There was no little bit of information that we wanted that the book didn't offer up and it all had a nice sense of drama and world to it. 4 out of 5

      The Verdict:

In the end, Children of the Sun is a good though unremarkable fray into the fantasy gaming genre. Neither disappointing nor inspired, it should serve as a nice alternative to those desiring fantasy play but discouraged for whatever reason from the games currently out there. At the same time, though, it doesn't offer anything overly intriguing and will likely end up collecting dust for anyone content with what the market already offers.

      The Good: Expansive and detailed world.

      The Bad: That is just like every other expansive and detailed world.

      The Overall Ugly: I'm not sorry I had to play it but won't likely reach for it anytime soon.

      What it's Worth: Market.