City of Mist

Crowdfunding for the original game was launched on Kickstarter in 2016 which generated 1,762 backers, raising $104,313, or nearly $90,000 over its original $14,000 goal.[5] It was then released in 2017.[6] Amit Moshe was inspired to design City of Mist after writing a modern retelling of Cú Chulainn.[7] In 2018, the game was picked up by publishing partner Modiphius Entertainment.[8][9]

The original release contained the rules in a single Core Book. A subsequent 2019 release reorganized the rules into two separate rulebooks, the Player's Guide and the Master of Ceremonies' Toolkit,[9][10] in an effort to make the game's literature less "daunting for new players" and "more accessible to everyone."[10] A second Kickstarter was also launched in 2019 for a new City of Mist Starter Box[2] which was then released as a standalone product in November 2020.[11] In 2020, support for running the game on Roll20 was released along with an online organized play program.[12][13]

In City of Mist's character creation process, characters are described using exclusively words ("tags") – there are no stats or numerical values of any kind.[14][15] "Player characters are people called 'Rifts,' who can draw on the powers of mythical heroes and creatures to fight enemies and solve paranormal mysteries".[16]

The action resolution system in City of Mist is a heavily modified version of the Apocalypse World game engine.[1] Player characters utilize specific "Moves" which can be "augmented by their Themes and Tags, to try to accomplish their goals"; players roll 2d6 to resolve these "Moves".[17]

The game uses two types of character development systems side by side. Gaining Attention points allows players to add power tags and unlock theme improvements similar to gaining experience points in other systems. The more substantial character development mechanic focuses on the pull between the mundane and the mythical.[15]

City of Mist was praised on Geek & Sundry, saying "The mechanics are simple yet INCREDIBLY robust"[18] and the game featured in Geek & Sundry's December 2017 RPG Buyer's Guide[19] and 2018 Best Role-Playing Games.[20] Joshua Nelson, for Bleeding Cool, wrote that the game "hits me with the classic noir-mystery tropes. [...] City Of Mist is all about a world inhabited by legendary figures – think King Arthur or the biblical Job, or even Little Red Riding Hood – who have been affected by an arcane force of nature of sorts, called The Mist, that makes them live a more mundane life than this. It's rather like The Matrix's namesake meets Once Upon A Time, perhaps. Regardless of its inspiration, City Of Mist deals with a handful of these myths and legends contending with both their roles in their stories and the humdrum of everyday living. I'm game for this".[21]

Giaco Furino, for TechRaptor, highlighted that "City of Mist takes an incredible idea and gives it player agency in its setting and gameplay. I really like the way the real world and the magical world are sort of tethered to each other, and playing the game means paying attention to both. You can’t just go swinging Excalibur around all day, you’ve also got to make rent, and figure out what happened to that kidnapped kid, and call your mom for her birthday. If you like that sort of tension between the modern world and the mystical, then this game is absolutely going to hit the mark for you".[17]

Richard Jansen-Parkes, for the UK print magazine Tabletop Gaming, wrote that "style and drama ooze from every page of this beautiful book. It takes a little more effort to crack than most story-driven games, but when things click it offers something truly special."[14] Tomás Giménez Rioja, for Tribality, highlighted that "some mechanics [...] could need some improvements but are good enough to make the game, if played correctly, a very fun game."[22]