Short review...

Discuss rule quandaries, supplements, or anything else OVA related here.

Moderators: Clay, Jade

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Moracai
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Short review...

Post by Moracai »

Atmo
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Re: Short review...

Post by Atmo »

“Why this little gem has restricted itself solely to anime genre, I have no idea…”
I do: because the RPG market is saturated with medieval fantasy and supers, and no one will bat an eye to anything related if someone without a huge name on the industry is working in the game.

I’m happy that OVA (now only OVA The Anime Role-Playing Game) is focused on what really matters.
Clay
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Re: Short review...

Post by Clay »

Thanks for taking the time to post about the game!

As for the quoted text, OVA is versatile enough to apply to many other kinds of cinematic stories. But anime is what I enjoy, so I decided to gear it most to that medium.

But if I were to play a supers or primetime TV game, I would use OVA for that, too. :)
MarthWMaster
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Re: Short review...

Post by MarthWMaster »

I feel the heart of the issue is that anime is not a genre, as the OP suggests, but a medium. And within that medium are many diverse genres, each with its own set of tropes and themes that can be mixed and matched to create an infinite number of unique stories and settings. Take this excerpt from the rulebook's introduction:
It [Anime] takes advantage of the animated medium to convey larger-than-life tales of amazing technology and giant robots, of impossible magics and fledgling heroes in ways live action could not. But anime is also capable of great subtlety, able to share down-to-earth, sincere stories of growth, reflection, and everyday life. Moreover, anime time and again flashily disregards expectations to combine all these facets however it sees fit. Slapstick comedy in the vein of Silly Symphonies plays out side by side with tear-jerking drama, over-the-top gun-toting action meshes with artistic flair, and the line between fantasy and science fiction ceases to exist. Using this versatility, anime crafts stories unlike anything else in the world.
In short, OVA is the perfect system for anime storytelling because it's so versatile. Rather than have books dedicated to each specific genre of anime, this game does something far more efficient by distilling everything into a simple set of tools that can be tailored to each group's specific tastes and preferences, and allowing them to interpret various Abilities, Weaknesses, etc. in ways that fit their campaign's flavor. It's beautiful.
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