Dread: Worst Mechanic Ever?
This one needs a little background. A little over a week ago, while reading d20 Blonde, I came across mention of a horror role-playing game called Dread, which featured a unique mechanic: task resolution by playing Jenga. (Not to be confused with the other horror role-playing game Dread, which uses 2d12, and which was published several years prior to this Dread.) (Edit: Some further digging reveals that, while the other Dread was published first, this Dread seems to have been created and used for convention play first. Not that this matters much, really — just for the sake of accuracy.)
My immediate reaction was not favorable:
A Jenga tower? Really? That’s got to be the worst mechanic I’ve ever heard of. Nothing like killing a character because the player is physically clumsy… or has a nerve-related ailment.
This was, however, apparently a unique reaction. One of the responses put it this way:
The threat of the tower falling (even if you’ve got shaky hands!) is part of what builds the tension in the game… In fact, as the tower grows and become more precarious, you’ll see the players physically scoot back from the table because, even if you accidentally knock the tower reaching for a drink, you’re [sic.] PC bites it.
As the story progresses, the danger of dying increases with each pull… and the atmosphere grows more and more intense. It’s a beautiful thing.
Additionally, I received several admonishments not to judge the game without playing it. Well, fair enough. I decided to see whether my group would be interested in trying a game, using the quickstart rules available on the website. They were.
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