when a game despises itself // Candela Obscura Review & Analysis 

My Review in written format over on Flutes Loot: www.flutesloot.com/candela-obscura-review-by-a-game-designer/

Art should not be fragile enough that it needs to be blindly defended against all criticism. If you love something, you should absolutely consider criticism to make it better.

Side-note, but I think we have reached a point where CR is going to have to address the out-of-control parasocial issues plaguing their fanbase, or I foresee some kind of boiling over point in their future.

One of the best pieces of advice I've ever heard: "If you're gonna tell someone not to do something, but you're not gonna tell them what they should do instead, keep your mouth shut." I think if they wanted to address the problematic qualities of the genre, a "Here's how to tackle this subject matter tastefully" section would have done the job much better.

On the talk of roleplaying "insanity": My family has struggled with mental illness as far back as the early 20th century. My father is Schizophrenic, my mom had extreme bipolar depression. I have depression, anxiety and PTSD. I've learned anyone and everyone can struggle with mental illness. Because of that, I really don't mind insanity in games. Our brains are easily messed up. It's the great equalizer. Rich, poor, right, left, any ethnic background, any location on earth. All of us can go crazy. Before we even add stress to it.

From what I've seen of the cast, they'd be really unhappy with the hate thrown at critics, which I'd think is pretty ironic

"They could've explored the horror of immortality if they don't want people to die." This is literally what the Fallen London setting (another of the inspirations for Blades in the Dark) does. Which, coincidentally, is another cosmic-horror laden Victorian setting with occult elements. They decided they didn't want to include death, really, so... you don't. You just sort of get back up after a bit unless you get your head taken off or get cut into pieces or something similar. Which is something that's created some really messed up perspectives on death where people will kill one another for art, or as a kind of entertainment stimulus. It's not touched on super deeply, but it's there, and it's cool.

I feel like having the mechanic of inflicting physical or mental disabilities on your players characters being so core to your rulesets as to replace damage and health, but then saying "we don't think it's right to roleplay insanity" on the *same page* is really silly. Like what do they think insanity is if not a mental condition, illness, or disability? It's simultaneously discouraged and enforced on you by the rules.

As CR and it’s offshoots put out more and more things, I’m left with an increasing sense that they are spreading their talents, time, and money increasingly thin, to the detriment of all their products. Candela Obscura isn’t their first lack luster/underwhelming creation, and I’ll be absolutely shocked if it’s not indicative of what we can look forward to from CR in the immediate future.

In a hobby where we imagine to kill sentient beings, it seems weird to try to draw a hard line on imagining having mental breaks and insanity. People are killing each other now in the real world, and that doesn't stop us from enjoying action films and killing a fistful of sentient goblins... This issue needs to be handled at table not in the rules.

How sad is it that this man had to do a full disclaimer to defend critiquing an obviously flawed game system just because it's associated with the Critical Role people. When did their fan base turn so toxic and zealous that people have actually been blacklisted or threatened just for critiquing, not agreeing with, or disliking something produced by the company? I used to enjoy CR and I'm even running a D&D game in Tal'Dorei, but at this point I'm ready to end my associations with their brand.

At first, when I saw Candela Obscura, I was excited- I mean, a game in which the "magic" users can tap into the supernatural at the detriment of themselves fascinated me. Then I realized that as the game went along, the story grew more compelling yet the game mechanics grew more muddled. No rules for PVP, avoiding damage, or how players simply just HAD other class abilities when there's no multi-classing mechanics. It's great as a show- but not as a game.

lol the blades in the dark being behind you the entire time is great, i can almost hear it saying "play me not my imitation."

Dude - I have criticized you in the past for your analysis, but I think this was a pretty honest and helpful review. And maybe slightly courageous given some of the crazies online, as you mentioned. Anyhow - this helped me.

If someone called my autism "mental scar" I'd hust look at the camera like im on the office

I've watched some of the episodes for the Candela Obscura shows and it's a great viewer experience, especially as someone not typically into horror. Howerever, the arc of the chracters is very much a death spiral where shits gets progressively worse so I don't get why they would be so preachy about dark themes in the book. Also the Marks always caught me off guard and felt like "you character is about to die because I said so". I love narrative systems, which is why I don't understand the choice of quantitative damage on such a low scale (you go down after 3 hits max) if what you're interested in is big swings every hit.

"Being born with empathy and a weakness for socialism and femboys." Did you know that snorting protein shake out of your nose is painful? This line informed me of this reality.

I think any game that is going to tread "Horror-Adjacent" themes needs to contain rules for the inevitability and possibility of character death.

Have to say, as a long standing Critical Role fan I was hoping for a better system, but I'm disappointed. The streams have been 100% carried by the amazing DMs that can weave tantalizing tales, while a full set and lights are at their disposal to keep the mood going. Good Review. Tidy and put together. Very well done.

I’m a Critter and I’m a fan of Taron’s. I also find it not only unnecessarily preachy but short sided and in poor taste how the authors/publishers decided to handle this.

Good stuff mate. Someone had to do it. You confirmed something I suspected, which is 'Why does this exist? Aren't there a ton of horror themed investigation systems already?'.

I am a huge Critter and I find a lot of their more recent stuff to be patronizing and preachy. Its a real turn off.

Grognard here…thank you for your honesty and willingness to critique art.

I'm not a personal fan of Insanity Mechanics myself, but that's not for really any "moral" reason, it's more just that in my opinion, insanity in the contexts that this genre uses is too complicated to fully turn into mechanics, but that's mostly due to the term being ill-defined rather than anything else. Good review!

So, if I heard you right, characters can't be killed in combat unless the GM decides they should be killed? If that's the case, and this information is available to players who actually read the rulebook, the question then becomes; if my character dies in a combat, why should I trust that the GM didn't have some kind of personal motivation behind it? Like, sure, it's not fun when your character dies randomly because of a bad roll, but at least you _know_ the dice are impartial.

First off, thanks for the review! It sounds like Candela should be more of a setting book/supplement to Blades in the Dark or Vaesen rather than its own system. Bummer how they handled some of the game design and sensitive topics and, as a critrole fan myself, hopefully you don't get any hate for bringing light to that. Most of those can probably be handled via a solid session0 or just an adult conversation at the table with the DM/players. Keep up the great work as always!!

As a fellow empathic person with a weakness for socialism and femboys, I felt your complaints about not being able to complain about poorly written or unnecessary instructions on how not to play a game SO DEEPLY IN MY SOUL.

It’s pretty wild that they want to preach while providing actual mechanical rules for physical disabilities like it’s no big deal. You nailed it when you said there’s a legit conversation to be had in the game industry, but they really bungled it by acting as if they alone know the answer. There are ways to have this necessary conversation and this ain’t it.

If an angry mob of critters comes for you, i would like to rage

An absolutely professional review, and I'm seriously impressed by the willingness to go against the advice to just avoid the shitstorm altogether with the mentality of "I know this will rile the portion that dont think CR can do any wrong, but even they can admit that they do."

“I just had to be born with empathy for socialism and femboys.” 😂

Ok, am I the only one who thinks avoiding themes that makes people uncomfortable is ultimately self defeating to the community? Part of roleplaying is to be able to experience what other people not like you deal with. How are you supposed to gain understanding and empathy toward an issue if you simply ignore it? Further I don't think condemning people exploring dark subject mater is particularly helpful as I feel that responsible exploration of those subjects can be useful in gaining and understanding of it and to what it does to a person subjected to it....am I wrong on this or am I just a unreasonable jerk?

For what it’s worth, I am a person with mental disabilities and I *hate* that RPGs go out of their way to say “don’t play mentally disabled characters like an asshole” but NOBODY writes “don’t play physically disabled characters like an asshole.” It’s delightful to see a physically disabled gamer address that.

18:45 you expressed this portion fantastically, lol. When critiquing stuff like this, it feels like you're forced to argue with both sides at once (not to say it's the same as being a centrist, cause it's not).

This review is well put together. I've been enjoying watching all three chapters of Candela Obscura, so it's a shame that the rulebook isn't as good as I was expecting. I've been a long time fan of CR, basically since the beginning, and I'm hoping you're not put down by the community for this.

I was one of those people that was kind of disappointed that CO was kind of a reskinned BitD/Vaesen and made my opinion on that clear before they clarified that point. I had a Critter (I too am a Critter) say that CO was better just by the nature that it had a space on the character sheet for the character's pronouns. Now I'm fairly liberal myself but I thought that argument was so stupid, because I didn't see a need to put my charcter's pronouns on a character sheet, it's my character I know their pronouns and if I ever forget that, I'm in really big trouble.

I like this review. I feel like you were pretty objective about the things that were missing and fair about the parts that you found uncomfortable to you. I will absolutely be looking at Vaeson now

That CR is swinging above their intellectual capability is quite clear. I was so excited about some of the C3 characters supposed issues and traumas and later also the main story but I've had to tap out once it became clear that the depth of it all was just cosmetic. Although in some fairness, as much as they seem to have a capability issue lately, it might also be fear of their own fans that is holding them back.

It might be that roles and specialties being all grouped up is meant to help a GM lead a group through charater creation at the table by going step by step. (Everyone choses a role together, then specielty, then etc...) In that case it would actually help the GM not flip though the book for every class but if you are not making PCs with everyone at the table I can see how that could be annoying.

I enjoyed watching the CO episodes on Critical Role. I liked the setting, but had not actually read the playtest rules. I was planning on picking up a copy, eventually, but after your review I will certainly wait for a 2nd edition that has more into it, or just go with Blades in the Dark or Vaeson. A well thought out, even handed review - thank you

Great review. Appreciate the candor. Maybe they just have too many irons in the fire?? Glad they’re playtesting Daggerheart, hopefully they’ll learn from this.

I have schizoaffective disorder. I've experienced a lot of pain and suffering from it in my life, and I struggle with it a lot. You have my *EXPLICIT* permission to roleplay an insane, mad, crazy, or "schizo" person, and to use these terms as you choose in your game. I also give you a free pass to make your villains madmen or to have NPCs suffer for their mental illness. To me, it's *fun* to roleplay a Malkavian or mad Warlock who's seen crazy shit and broken over it, it's *cool* to explore these things. And to think that you're making the world better by publishing a tabletop roleplaying game and spending your time lecturing your customers and prospective playerbase as though you're their parents and you're teaching them how to behave in the world is naive at best and narcissistic at worst. You should instead focus on a good product, and leave the moralizing about society to your free time.

When you started talking about the GM decides when the combat is over that was it for me. These modern RPGs would save a lot of dead trees because they just need a single page of rules stating "This isn't a game, this is a bunch of friends getting together to make stories up and decide what happens." Which is fine, it's just not much of a game.

I agree that the lack of an explicit “Dead or Retired when you get your Fourth Scar” is an unfortunate omission, but it is referenced on Page 74 in the core rule-book “When a member of Candela Obscura acquires three scars, the risk of them gaining a fourth and fatal scar is incredibly high.”. I agree that the book (and some of the creators’ videos) are “a bit too preachy for my liking” but still think the game and its setting are excellent and the creators are clearly well-intentioned. It’s never going to be easy to raise these topics without either going too far or not going far enough. The rules are very simple (which suits the intended short campaign form very well) and very easy to teach to new players. I’ve played with a couple of different groups already and had a lot of fun.

Is a game without a failure state actually a game? It doesn't need to be death strictly speaking, but there *needs* to be some mode of failure. Some parts of the rules (I read the primer) do feel preachy to me. I'm a filthy moderate, so anything telling me what topics to stay away from is generally unwelcome, fwiw. Thanks for pointing this stuff out. I'd just as soon go to Free League or Monte Cook Games for something which scratches this particular itch.

I felt the same thing about the more "preachy" stuff. Having a note about the sensitivities someone might feel toward a subject matter and to be respectful is one thing. Outright telling people what to do or not do with regards to these issues really put me off. I do like the game system overall and I look forward to seeing where they take it in the future.

So im a fan of CR, and im not here to attack or anything. I do respect you, dude, and im glad i found you channel a long time ago Now, as for your review? You have every right to make this, and I'm glad you did. No one, or product, should escape criticism and no one should have their life threatend just because they criticize something. Im happy to hear of your two cents on this TTRPG. i bought it because i like the ideas presented in the book and from the show the cast is doing. So, hearing you talk about the work in the book is good to see. Then, when it came to the latter half, i was very interested. I am disabled more on the mental side due to my neurodivergency, and yet your talk on the preaching that is done by the book is a bit of an eye opener for me. Now what im going to say isnt me saying your points arent valid. What i am assuming is that the reason why CO comes across as prechy may be because of the fanbase of CR. ive seen CR get so much damn flak over the past few years (some warrented) over so many things that to me, and only me, the reason why they seem to be so prechy in the book is because they dont want to get hell from people again. But by trying to be careful, they shot themselves in the foot. What i am hoping, is that CR can take these criticisms of CO, and work on making something better. I do feel that they can.

I don't know why I was worried when I saw the thumbnail, because of course, this was another well reasoned breakdown that I appreciate and think is clearly proper critique. I am glad to hear someone cover this and hopefully they take some of the feedback in board whenever these rules eventually get a revision. Absolutely going to be playing Vaesen instead

All games have their own problems. The point of refining a game is "can you make the bugs into features?" They should have another year. Trying out new iterations. Do more testing. Then I would come back to this project in 2024.

Thanks for saving me $40. I appreciate it. Good video. If an angry mob of Critters comes after you, I'll gladly throw myself in front of them. This was a good critique. Hopefully people will see it. 👍

I feel Candela is fine for them as performers with the improv experience to fill the gaps, such that they might not have noticed the gaps. I already have Vaesen though so getting this already seemed superfluous. Thanks for confirming that suspicion.

I haven’t played the game, but it sounds like you make some very valid and reasonable points about it. I think anybody putting a new role-playing system out in the market should be wide open to criticism, especially when there is a question about whether it’s mechanics work or not or if it derives too much from other sources. It doesn’t matter who makes the book. Thank you for your well thought out presentation.

This feels worth saying: some of us remember where you stood during the OGL mess. There is a clear value in holding to your standards. It means that, when you *do* criticize a fandom darling, you have a history *of* those standards to point to. Good on you.

The second I saw the press for this game, I was disheartened because it was moving into the space currently being taken by Vaesen. My thoughts were, “But Vaesen already does this so well, and people are probably not going to find it now.” But maybe I was wrong. Maybe now Vaesen will get the spotlight it deserves (as well as most of Freeleague’s catalogue)

Great fans when you need to instruct them not to be racist.

I am honestly surprised that it came out so quickly. It hasn't been a full year since the OGL crisis. From what i have seen of it, it isn't a bad game, but it is not fully to my taste. Should i ever pick it up and run it, i would certainly add things to it, like a larger damage pool, or ways for players to reduce damage, like maybe superficial vs Aggravated body damage like Vampire has. That being said, i like what i have seen and hope it is iterated on further into its own thing.

High quality review. Confirmed some of my suspicions and corrected others.

Thanks for the review! It's a shame this was such a miss considering that it has some real talent behind it. Was interesting to hear your remarks re: progressive grandstanding in the RPG scene. As someone who also considers themselves a progressive leftist, it's a bit frustrating to see designers bending over backwards to lecture people on the problematic aspects of their chosen genre. I'd much rather they'd have just said 'hey, here are some suggested lines and veils to discuss with your table before running the game and during play' - I think that would have potentially achieved their goal while not coming across as too preachy.

I actually kinda like the idea of mental scars being "a change, [not] a lessening", but I don't think they're really doing that themselves, based on some of their examples. Stuff like "lowered confidence" of "consumed by guilt" definitely feels like a clear lessening. I think it would be interesting if the symptoms were more... orthogonal, perhaps things more commonly associated with neurodiversity. Maybe stuff like "distressed by people flouting rules" or "unwilling to wear fewer than 3 different colors". That would reinforce the idea that exposure to the unnatural really does not make you damaged or lesser, just DIFFERENT. Eventually even so different that most people can no longer relate to you at all.

Very important points raised. Personally I think that Madness is a very interesting topic and you can't just shut people down from exploring. Roleplaying is a doorway to empathy and understanding. It is up to each table to establish their own rules, but what's certainly true in my experience is this: Forbidding people from discussing something is a bad idea. Language is the articulation of thought, and I will not have my brain neutered or muted because of one person's discomfort at something.

I completely agree with you about the progressive themes. Something that stuck out to me about the quick start was that it has player characters taking from a culture that isn't theirs listed directly as one of the things you shouldn't do, but it didn't seem to make any mentions of players themselves possibly engaging in cultural appropriation. But when a player is doing cultural appropriation and when they're respectfully engaging with someone else's culture is a much more difficult question to answer because people engaging in appropriation often don't do it out of maliciousness or conscious racism. It's also a way more important conversation for the ttrpg space to have, there's another orientalist dnd supplement coming out every other year, and people repeatedly misunderstand the foreword to Coyote and Crow to mean that white people shouldn't play the game. So it just overall comes across like they're more interested in preventing difficult topics from coming up at all (which is bizarre for a supposed horror game) then they are in actually furthering progressive discourse

As a big CR fan I think you were fair, constructive, and clearly showing that you're trying to point out the games weaknesses without being harsh on CR itself. While I do think it's a shame that the rule book has to be shown as a weak first venture on to ttrpg creation, I think you made a lot of very reasonable arguments towards why it could be greatly improved from where it currently stands. I hope that all CR fans treat you with kindness as this review is seen by more folks in the community ❤

I'm no longer especially interested in CR, there were lots of telling signs of their fall-off at the inception of the pandemic, but it is difficult to steer outward from personal preference when that reach expands in the space they occupy. I had the suspicion from the moment it was announced that Candela Obscura would not provide a lot. Maybe I am just jaded, but I look at these attempts and my immediate thought is: a game runner is not a game designer. There are already some criticisms to be levied at how their table space is run. Obviously they are hiring talent and making use of the company by brand name, though the directorial decisions are coming from in house - that means fundamentally, because CR see how well they can run a show, they also believe they can run the foundation of such a show for everybody else. They showed no tentativeness in their expansion towards physical media, and products, previous releases of Campaign Settings via Tal'dorei and Wildemount, are not an expression of the developmental process of a system from the ground up. Dungeons and Dragons, and most of all others TTRPG systems have taken YEARS of development, with team veterans and MANY iterations to become as laudable in the space as they now are - it rings of deep conceit to me that they can openly place their hat in the ring because of experience in a proximity medium. I feel similarly to other spaces doing the same, while I endorse a lot of Matt Colville's ideas I do not feel strongly for a TTRPG listed under MCDM's name, the talent and creative process might allow for something unique and interesting but the vein of comparison where these teams could be providing better and informed ancillary content for systems like Pathfinder2e, simply makes me shake my head. Paizo, Wizards and many more companies, did not up and roll out products as massive as full-scale system TTRPGs on the whim that they would 'contest the market'. Some amount of it is a gamble on bringing out an alternative, yes, but the only reason I can think places like CR are (able to be) doing this in the first place, is on name recognition alone. Could just be me, but when I recognize the name 'Critical Role', I see a respectable creative platform for performance built on top of TTRPG development - not a cadre of developers whose games I would immediately consider my money upon.

Very well done, sir! I applaud your C.O. breakdown, and I am very thankful for the information. I was looking for an honest breakdown, and I am happy to say that your video was honest and tastefully done. Thanks again!

I suspected something like this would happen, creating a game takes time and lots of iterations, revisions, etc. You don't create a game out of thin air because a license controversy. Plus there are so many good games from indie creators tested by the community over the years. But hey I hope they make millions anyway and keep promoting the hobby.

This is an excellent review and you have my thanks. I appreciate that you brought attention to the layout and structure of the core rules. Using space effectively makes the rules more lucid and easier to follow; not doing so just makes the game more frustrating to play. Your critique of the authors’ approach to ableism is very solid. Mental illness isn’t a personality flaw and while I don’t think the authors intentionally conflate the two, replacing mental illnesses with personality flaws isn’t just absurd but arguably itself ableist. While I don’t mind minor suggestions about approaching potentially sensitive content in text boxes, there has to be a point where the developer trusts that the adults playing at each table will apply those rules in a way that best suits their group. In short, just trust us!

I usually identify with a lot of very progressive ideas, people would probably call me woke on twitter lol That being said, the progressiveness of cr as a general,not just this product, often times feels very...performative. Almost as if they are trying too hard to say what the audience wants to hear. It tastes very...corporate.

I specifically didn't buy it because Vaesen is the primary game I run in my home campaign and this looked like at best it was scratching the same itch.

I don't see why you'd want to risk using the gilded die to replenish your Drive (if the gilded die is anything below 4). Just hit MP and MK (or R2 if you're using modern controls) whenever you think the other guy's going to go for a combo, or just take the Burnout and hit them with a Level 3, and you'll get the full bar back.

This is my first time watching one of your videos. For your layout portion of your critique, I cannot really argue with you. I took some design layout classes some years back so I have enough knowledge to understand where you're coming from and concede on your points that I would have been most likely blind to. Overall, solid video.

Thank you for the great breakdown! After seeing the quickstart & preview tidbits early on I've wanted to see a good review of this from someone who has interacted with stuff like BitD enough to make comparisons. There have been bits & pieces I've seen about it that looked interesting because I've seen those types of mechanics & wanted to see how they slot into a different style of system like fate/BitD/etc. It's disappointing that the implied behind the curtain fresh take wasn't there as implied monyths ago

I have only just found this channel through this video, and I have to say I like your style, very fair review. I can see this video is blowing up a bit and I can only say that it seems much deserved, keep doing what you are doing

I felt the same way most of the time, so much of the game seemed to have unneeded changes, just for the sake of changes. As for the CR community, yeah, it's always kinda been the same, the para-social "Don't criticize my friends!" level is wild when it comes to CR. Unfortunately, the cast and LLC has just let it slide for so long that it'll never change (see League of Legends lol). The same can be said for their fairly frequent price gouges taking chunk after chunk from the gaming community. It sucks, and I wish it was different, but its not, and it won't be.

Dang, came for a tear down of a shoddy CR product and walked away with a lot to think about. I hope we get that discussion about certain prejudices baked into gaming. I think the attitude you talked about is what turned me off from CR a few years ago. Great breakdown and video! Also guess I need to check out Vaesen? Because I want a non-Lovecraftian horror system that isn't just Biblical fanfiction.

I hate that CR are so careful and try to sanatise everything because some of their fans like to think they have media literacy, when really their way of understanding nuances is stifled because of their own inner biases. As a fan myself I see it all the time. It's all so reactionary, they don't take the time to sit and digest something, especially if it goes against their preconceived notions. It's frustrating and annoying to think that the cast are actively tamping down on certain themes or plots because their fans will blow up at the slightest thing. Anyway, great review! I've immensely enjoyed watching the CO streams that CR do themselves, and it's a shame that the book doesn't live up to that, but maybe they'll take the criticisms and make the next version better.

thank you for the incredibly thoughtful review; I had my doubts about this game and you very tactfully and articulately explained my similar reservations.

Thank you for this insightful, and imo respectful review. The message on how to handle sensitivity in ttrpgs is definitely taken on board. And I appreciate how you continue to be a champion of pre-existing underappreciated games in this space. It sounds like a future printing with more polish, more identity in it's rules and... Lets say experience with respect to handling sensitivities, could deliver a much better game, until then I think I'll give this one a miss.

Surfing youtube and painting minis, stumbled across this video. Oh boy I have so much I want to say, but I don't want a dissertation. So I think I'm going to put it like this. Disco Elysium is a game. If you need a hook for how to do madness, you can start there. I think where they are getting massively tripped up is that they think it's socially unacceptable to say that a persons inherent nature causes conflict to any degree. But, that's like what stories are, and it's kind of hard to tell a meaningful story with protagonists without flaws. It's also a massive kick in the dick to say that ONLY protagonists without flaws can overcome obstacles and be heroic. This kind of genre, one of the draws, for me, is that despite being massively disadvantaged, a measure of success is still possible. Also, I want to throw this out there, saddling a PC with Depression or PTSD or Bipolar and having them deal with it mechanically, I WANT them to be feeling "Man, this fuckin' sucks." Like, I know, right?! Yeah, this shit can be sensitive, but that comes with the territory. Saying that exploring these themes is wrong, especially in this genre, is like telling someone they are enjoying the thing they like in the wrong way.

This is really well put together. Thanks for your input man, I was curious about this game but now I really just wanna play Vaesen lol

Your review seems fair and well reasoned, and I really appreciate getting your perspective on everything discussed. Thank you for sharing, and making me aware of Vaesen which I am now much more interested in checking out. Keep up the good work!

Hello! General CR fan here (no I haven’t been keeping up) who has been excited about candela obscura for a long time, and immediately got the limited edition (even tho I think the regular edition is prettier) when the opportunity arose. The moment I saw this video in my recommended I saved it to my watch later. There was the little note of apprehension that this was a view-chasing video (sorry, wasn’t familiar with the channel name and the thumbnail and title were a little sensational for me) but I knew if there was anything valid in here I’d like to see it anyways. The moment I clicked onto it, I realized I was fine, because I’ve seen you before, and to top it off, you mentioned the original plan was to review it before you realized you had to switch track. As of now I have only gotten to the part where you mentioned knowing despite this video you know people will still buy this thing and hi! That’s me. Felt I should comment from that standpoint. First of all, before any of that though - I am sorry for any aggression you get for this video. I will just explain why I purchased Candela, and why, even if it is unfinished and even if you objectively find it lacking, I still would have. 🙏 I am one of those “doesn’t have a lot of experience outside of dnd” ttrpgers (I know, popular to bash on twitter). But the caveat there is I do play non-dnd (I’ve done gurps, zweihander, dungeon crawl…) it’s just a matter of having people willing to learn a new system and buying into a new set of books, etc etc etc… the other aspect is general unawareness. I love the concept of other ttrpgs! Even if I love dnd, I like to explore and if I don’t like a mechanic, there’s always room to adjust it in my book. So enter Candela Obscura. Some time ago, Talesin from CR did a horror oneshot session that has been a background muse for me for some time. On and off for years I’ve thought about writing a horror one shot. But lacking the time, energy, and dedication, it’s just been a project I pick at from time to time. Hearing about Candela brought all that excitement up. Yes, it may well collect dust on my shelf - has, already - but that’s not necessarily product fault in my case. I’ve been watching Candela Obscura since they started releasing the promo videos, and I love lots of vibes, but off the batt I knew I would be adjusting things to fit my personal preferences if I hosted. So when I made the purchase, it was with an understanding that I wasn’t getting a product that I would use in its entirety. That however perfect the product could be (I tend to assume my tastes are the problem) it was an imperfect fit for me. And you know, supporting content I like, etc etc. Why comment all this? Well, I guess to be a voice that might not be common in the comments. I am a fan of CR, I have no ill will towards you and hope no one else does, I’ll happily listen to the video and take everything you say into account (honestly, this is almost research for me when I do get a game together for things to be ready for), and someone who still supported the product anyways. I mean, it would be too late now to not have, but you understand what I mean. Ok, sorry for the wall of text! 🩶

CR fan here. Your earnest review earned you a follow. We need more straightforward, honest criticism in the game industry as a whole.

This review is very earnest and and thorough. I was worried at first but you are completely upfront and well researched/versed in what you are talking about. At no point are you being dramatic or hyperbolic. This is a great review. It also didn't seem easy for you to do so... yeah, anyone who is angry at you did not watch this video. Keep doing what you are doing.

Thank you for the review. I'm big fan of Forged in the Dark games family, but from the quickstart I have a vibe that this game is taking steps back rather than foreward and my predictions was, unfortunately, right. What a shame and lose.

"Being born with empathy and a weakness for socialism and femboys." amen brother. same jere. we shall just have to suffer together.

I feel as though we just listened to the first honest RPG review that has been made in a LOOOOOOONG time. Thank you! Subscribed.

Honestly the damage system is somewhat akin to the ironkingdoms health system for damage just structured in a different formation

Hopefully there isn't any hate sent towards you over very fair critics. As my friend said about the quickstart "it's Blades in the Dark, but worse." I personally don't have experience in either candela or Blade, but personally I think I may try blades some day for sure.

Has anyone else pointed out the clever subtitle in the thumbnail lmao

This was an awesome video and review. I've seen your videos before, but this one earned my subscription. Absolutely great stuff

I think maybe what happened is that they approached the game in a streamer state of mind. If you plan to stream or televise your campaign to an audience it makes sence you'd want to have more rigid tenets to reach a wider appeal. thing is, most people will play this in a group of 4-6 and you can avoid all of that drama with just one text "hey guys, just finished reading the campaign! so theres gonna be some heavy themes in this, if any of you have any subject matter that would make the game not fun for you just send me a private message ill tweak the campaign no worries." I mean at the end of the day its a game between you and your friends, the goal is always ti have fun

Thanks for the review! Tbh, I wasn’t ever planning on buying it but this does solidify my interest in it to 0. Though I might still watch the Aabria game (though the success of that game will likely come from the player’s at the table and not the system it looks like).

thank you for reviewing this, glad to hear someone honestly and respectfully critiqueing this work. thank you for sharing, keep up the good work! (also this made me research VAESEN and i may or may not have gotten it for myself)

Appreciate the review, and I'll say you handled criticizing the "Legacy of Harm in Horror" section beautifully.

Vaesen is one good alternative rule set; another would be Monster of the Week. Their latest supplement "The Codex of Worlds" has rules additions for variant settings (one of which is "Gothic era") and team playbooks (so that everyone can gain benefits as part of the team, one of which, "Guardians of the Borderlands" fits the Candela Obscura's setting quite well.) So, just adding these 2 additional bits to Monster of the Week is a great alternative to Vaesen for folks that want yet another choice.

Hey man. Your video showed up in my feed after my not having seen your stuff in ages. I have to say you look really great. I followed your journey for a while but then the algorithm swallowed you. Always on point with your content, it was an interesting video. I noticed the grey tinge you’ve got going on. From one grey haired to another it really suits you. Keep up the great work and I’ll make sure to keep watching.

I spent half of this video madly googling vasyn, basin, vaysin and then finally I notice "Vaesen" was right behind you for the whole video

1. No death mechanics? What? 2. Kind of OCD but I hate the way the title doesn't vertically align, letter by letter.

I'm sorry to hear that CO was a let down. Thanks for your open thoughts of its quality and current value. I REALLY hope that they revamp it properly for their next edition.

I applaud the courage to speak about your honest thoughts about it. Excellent perspective on this book I would not have found anywhere else.