Top Secret: New World Order. That’s right, for DM Dave’s Birthday Game (of which we are quickly becoming well-versed), DM Chris ran our gaming group through the update to the TSR classic espionage RPG, Top Secret from TSR, Inc. by Merle Rasmussen.

In this episode, Tony, Chris, and Dave sit down to review the system, and discuss what they liked and didn’t about playing as Agents of ICON. For anyone wanting to dip their toes into playing in worlds like James Bond and Mission: Impossible, this is the episode for you.

2:06 DM Tony’s quick overview of the system.

3:50 DM Chris’ high overview of how he approached running Top Secret.

6:05 DM Dave’s intro thoughts.

9:15 The realism inherent in playing ordinary people in extraordinary situations.

10:40 How DM Chris approached learning and then running and teaching the game in real time.

12:26 Even for experienced DMs and GMs, it can be confusing when running a brand new system.

15:54 A discussion on the intro adventure, The White Queen, that was included in Top Secret: New World Order.

19:25 The right system for the right game.

22:40 How the game fosters roleplaying that moves the story and mission forward.

28:00 Would DM Chris have done anything differently having now run the game?

32:08 Being Agents of ICON is the easiest way to hook the players into the adventure.

34:32 Final Thoughts.