John Farrell

Senior Tabletop Editor at Gaming Trend

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Let us Build a Tower Review - mythic adventure, legendary quality

2 days ago | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

Representing some of the finest in writing, design, and layout I’ve seen in years, Let Us Build a Tower sets its ambitions high but achieves them with grandeur and class. Set in bronze age Mesopotamia, it tasks adventurers with ascending the Tower of Babel to claim the Throne of Heaven for themselves.
Black Powder and Brimstone review - desperately needs an editor

2 weeks ago | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

Black Powder and Brimstone, a gothic horror take on the 30 Years’ War, shows us that even the Mork Borg engine can only take you so far. Mork Borg was a revolutionary game, making it seem easy to tweak and modify or create supplements for. Black Powder and Brimstone’s visuals and ideas come with plenty of flair, but the rules and lore writing can’t carry the weight of either. So many sections are founded on ambiguity that could derail or ruin a game.
The Bondsman review - missing its potential, thematically and diagetically

1 month ago | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

The Bondsman has a lot to recommend it, all of which falls away shortly after you start watching it. Kevin Bacon stars as Hub Halloran, a hard-nosed bounty hunter who comes back from a grisly death and finds he’s been recruited to continue his work; this time, it’s for the Devil, recovering escaped demons from Hell. Despite a great premise and proven talent in front of and behind the camera, the show never manages to form those elements into a cohesive, successful show.
Defy the Gods preview - exploring queerness and chaos in this Sword & Sorcery TTRPG

1 month ago | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

Defy the Gods takes place in a fantastical ancient Mesopotamia. You will make your own gods and city. Everything has a bronze age feel. City-states are independent and you don’t know what the rest of the world is like yet. Aesthetically, it emphasizes a material culture of chariots, massive stone architecture, and clay tablets. The core themes are adventure, romance, and the treachery of power. Gods, rulers, and wild animals threaten to destroy you.
Urban Shadows 2nd Edition review - feeling the weight of ambition

1 month ago | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

Urban Shadows’ vision of city-based fantasy horror sets a dense web of relationships and obligations. Playing as a creature of the night (vampire, fae, werewolf, etc.) or several shades of mortal investigator, this game will taunt you with power while weighing that power down with debts and threats. While both its themes and Powered by the Apocalypse mechanics pull from familiar sources, there’s no mistaking Magpie Game’s eye for focus and layout.
Hands-on with Frosthaven's PC adaptation

1 month ago | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

In 2021 I responded well to Gloomhaven’s PC implementation, and I look forward to Frosthaven getting similar treatment. Last week I sat down with the design team to see their work in action, and I’ve been surprised at the challenges and results of their work. Many familiar features will be met by new tools, as Frosthaven brings more options and complexity to the table than Gloomhaven ever attempted.
Armed review - somber yet gory action satire that's step away from greatness

2 months ago | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

Armed explodes onto the screen with the soul of 90s B movies but the production quality of modern cinema. When a team of ex-soldiers set out to steal a shipment of weapons, they find themselves hunted by an artificial would-be replacement, a Ken-Doll-esque soldier with all of their skills but none of their hangups.
Cyberpunk RED launches Demiplane character tools

Feb 13, 2025 | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

Available now, Cyberpunk RED launches its Nexus on Demiplane. Just under a year ago I covered Demiplane’s entry into the VTT space, and found myself impressed with its presentation, ease of use, and responsible content-sharing policies. Not long after that, Roll20 bought Demiplane, integrating features between the two platforms. As of today, Cyberpunk RED is out of early access and fully available on the platform.
Memories of a lifetime in indie film --- Flying in: My Adventures in Filmmaking with Gretchen McGowan

Jan 30, 2025 | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

Flying In: My Adventures in Filmmaking was a thoughtful, refreshing look at the state of independent filmmaking, and in no way what I was expecting. When I first heard of the memoir, I was not enthused at the idea of a producer talking about themselves. I pictured self-aggrandizing stories of a money-man groping his way through Los Angeles as he took a machete to other people’s projects.
Seeking Star Trek's soul --- Section 31, Bomber Girl, and Constar: the Motion Picture

Jan 28, 2025 | gamingtrend.com | John Farrell

I come before you today to break a promise. When I started Fandom Underground a few years ago, I said that this series highlighting fan works would not compare these works to their professional counterpart or use the series as a diatribe on the state of modern media. I meant that when I said it, but the timing of Section 31’s release is too perfect and the film too pointless, torturous, and insulting to my intelligence for me to be able to keep that promise any longer.