What Do I Know?

So, we’re up to day twenty-three of the RPG A Day questions.

What’s today’s questions?

Which RPG Has The Most Jaw-Dropping Layout?

A question with just a wee bit of hyperbole.

A lot of games spring to mind. Trying to figure out which game specifically jumps out, however, is really difficult. I love the Warhammer 40K RPGs, and the Midgard campaign setting books look amazing. I recently looked at Starfinder, and that’s a really striking book.

But to me, layout is more than just “wow this looks cool.” Some of that is art direction. Some of it is layout. But layout is also how the book is arranged and what that arrangement does for the reader.

Throwing that into the mix, I think I’ll have to give the nod to the Cypher System games. The use of the sidebars to either define concepts used in the text, give summary stat blocks, or to give page references is very functional. The books also use quote boxes to call out the main concept being conveyed on a page, as well as using the traditional sidebars that are fairly common in other RPGs, and some amazing artwork.

I’ve seen a page with colors and art that really looked amazing. But when used effectively, good layout isn’t really about dropping your jaw. It’s about easing the cognitive load when using the book in question. At least to me.