Rene Plays Games

Welcome back to Mining Media where we turn your binging into better TTRPG experiences by missing my chance to say the right thing, then botching the chance I got to redeem myself, then thinking it's all hopeless until the stars align and we're standing across from one another in the first place we ever met... We're talking Romance!  Continuing our February Valentine's theme through to Mining Media...

Welcome back to the Heart of the Dominion and season 2 of my Ironsworn: Sundered Isles series.    After a brief conversation with Quon, the clockwork contact for the Ebb, about freeing an important prisoner in Deepwater Harbor's dungeons, Cassidy rushes to fulfill her iron vow to Church of the Enduring Servant's Inquisitor Azriel Stirling to protect the crew of the Enduring Blade as they claim it...

Happy Heart Day! As a bonus episode for the month of February (and because we love a good reason to do a holiday themed session), I've brought my wife Lynn back for a Valentine's Day one-shot. Last year was the not-so-romantic Call of Cthulhu scenario, but this year we're really leaning into the theme with...   Star Crossed by Alex Roberts ! A game about two characters with a forbidden love, who r...

Welcome back to the Heart of the Dominion and season 2 of my Ironsworn: Sundered Isles series.    In this episode, Cassidy negotiates with Azriel - an Inquisitor of the Church of the Enduring Servants and the resurrected brother of her ghost lover Leigh Stirling. After swearing an iron vow to protect the Enduring Blade in the upcoming race to the sky isle, she then reflects on the vow made in bloo...

Welcome to another episode of Perspective Checks where I sit down with friends and folks from the TTRPG world and discuss what they love about this wonderful hobby!   This month's episode is dropping on the first of the month because Tanya Floaker 's newest game Mum Chums is now crowdfunding on Kickstarter! Tanya is a game designer, writer, and consultant out of Edinburgh, Scotland and they are so...

A new series?! I hope so! I'd love to make this concept for a monthly episode happen, so if you have a game that you're itching to play but have no one to play it with, please email me at reneplaysgamespod@gmail.com !   For the very first Tabletop Tutorial I'm joined by Dan Bronson-Lowe of Almost Bedtime Theater , a podcast of a father and daughter (and her cousin) who learn and play TTRPGs togeth...

Aaaaand it's officially begun! Ironsworn: Sundered Isles season 2 is underway with the first episode of this series. Cassidy makes her way to the Talan Flotilla, a neutral collection of traders dealing in vice and smuggling in Kyrody waters, to track down the captain of the Enduring Blade, who may or may not have valuable information toward achieving her goal of ridding herself of her ex-lover's g...

Welcome to another episode of Perspective Checks where I sit down with friends and folks from the TTRPG world and discuss what they love about this wonderful hobby!   This month's episode is a late upload from last year, but it fits perfectly well to kick off 2025 - we're talking about getting into TTRPGs with Amber & Jess from DMs After Dark , my original RPGs on the internet homies! We talk...

We're back for season 2 of Ironsworn: Sundered Isles and this time the story will be taking place shortly after the conclusion of Dyne's story from last year in a very different location - The Heart of the Kyrody Dominion itself!   Rene goes through the campaign creation steps to adjust some of the Truths from season 1 to reflect for the new part of the world this story takes place in, creates his...

Fill out the Google Form here!   It has been 1 full year of my foray into the world of podcasting all on my own, and wow has it been a fulfilling one!   I go over some stats, numbers, achievements, goals met and yet to be accomplished, and talk about some more I have for 2025.   I am so grateful for anyone out there listening, and I really hope I've shown you a game that makes you want to explore...

Happy Merry & hope your holidays are going wonderfully cozy, easy, and not at all stressful.   In this Christmas Eve solo holiday special, I'm reskinning Jack Harrison a.k.a. Mousehole Press ' Bucket of Bolts from a futuristic spaceship POV experience to inhabiting the iconic sleigh of St. Nicholas himself, instead playing as the sleigh for the many Santas throughout the centuries.   It's shor...

Happy holidays! I'm a sucker for holiday themed one-shots, so here we are taking the very cool LOOT by GilaRPGs and reskinning all of its West Marches fantasy goodness into cartoon holiday movie shenanigans!   I'm joined by Troy and Jess from the DMs After Dark , friend of the DMs Eileen ( @comradeeileen.bsky.social ), and home group homie returning to the show Raso ( Raso's Beacon ) as we play th...

Welcome to another episode of Perspective Checks where I sit down with friends and folks from the TTRPG world and discuss what they love about this wonderful hobby!   2024's Perspective Checks episodes come to a close with Star from the *amazing* Characters Without Stories podcast as we talk about failure in TTRPGs. Star is a wonderful person I've met this past year and have been lucky enough to c...

Welcome back to more Koriko: A Magical Year by Jack Harrison & Mousehole Press !   Genie's Magical Year has come to an end, and the last few weeks of the year mean she faces the big decision - does she stay in Koriko? Return home to her mentor? Or move on and go somewhere new? I don't think anyone will be surprised by the answer, but there are some really nice moments in this episode to close...

Welcome back to Mining Media where we turn your binging into better TTRPG experiences by reminiscing on the innocent wonder of winter holiday magic in our youths... or was that just me?   This month I want to talk about mining holiday movies for ideas for your festive one-shots, whether you take a break to do something silly or expand the lore of your ongoing game's universe or prep something enti...

Welcome back to more Koriko: A Magical Year by Jack Harrison & Mousehole Press !   Winter comes to Koriko, and Genie is coming up on the end of her Magical Year. She spends time with her Confidants, even meeting a few new ones, and pushes her limits as the city's witch. She steps a bit outside of her comfort zone, but sometimes that's the only way to grow. The season ends with a heartfelt gath...

Welcome to another episode of Perspective Checks where I sit down with friends and folks from the TTRPG world and discuss what they love about this wonderful hobby!   This month I sat down with Gloria a.k.a. GlowPinkstah , a prolific content creator, TTRPG actual play podcaster, streamer, YouTuber, and advocate for body positivity throughout all media! We talk about all things body representation,...

Welcome back to more Koriko: A Magical Year by Jack Harrison & Mousehole Press !   In this episode, Autumn tests Genie. We meet a few new Confidants and catch up with older friends in the tail end of the year as the emotionally charged prompts make their appearance. Heading into the final two Volumes of our Koriko AP, Genie doubles down and vows no more holding back.   I made a Ko-Fi if you fe...

There we already 5 Tuesdays in October, but why not upload a 6th episode just for Halloween?!   For a Halloween special Rene played alongside Jess from the DMs After Dark and returning guest Lynn (matrimonally obligated to occasionally game) for some Ghost Club RPG by Andrew Dowell (with some extra gear and archetypes from the New Kids Expansion )! Unlike our other spooky one-shots, this one is pe...

Spooky October one-shot #2, and this time it's a DEEP conspiracy of actual terror and horror, we're playing Delta Green by Arc Dream Publishing!   Specifically, we're playing the scenario Music From A Darkened Room , an investigation for Agents that takes them into 1206 Spooner Avenue, Meadowbrook, New Jersey, and IT. IS. NOT. OKAY.   Content Warnings: Suicidal ideation, Dead Children, Violence, a...

It's Spooky October One-Shots time!   For the first of the three Halloween horror one-shots, Rene sits down with Troy from the DMs After Dark to play Wraithound by Cezar Capacle , an incredible Brazilian game designer whose philosophy I love so much, so it's very exciting to finally play one of his games on the podcast!   Wraithound is a zero-prep, GM-less game where you play ghost hunters of an a...

Welcome back to more Koriko: A Magical Year by Jack Harrison & Mousehole Press !   In this episode, Summer brings the heat! Genie hangs out with some familiar confidants and gets new perspectives into their places in Koriko, as well as gets a peek behind the curtain, according to Koriko & Ace, glimpsing a bit more of the truth about this incredible city. Lastly, we end with a contentious n...

Welcome to another episode of Perspective Checks where I sit down with friends and folks from the TTRPG world and discuss what they love about this wonderful hobby!   This month's episode is a big one! Worldbuilding is an integral part of storytelling in RPGs, whether you're playing in an established universe like many big named systems provide, or are drawing maps and leaving blanks in the Powere...

Welcome back to more Koriko: A Magical Year by Jack Harrison & Mousehole Press !   In this episode, our teenage witch Genie and her friendly 3-eyed mink Mog are pretty well established in the city of Koriko, and people are starting to come to her for help! We see some friends made from the last volume and make some new acquaintances in the city, as well, including the city itself, as Genie con...

Welcome back to Mining Media where we turn your binging into better TTRPG experiences by using every monitoring drone we have access to to analyze every last bit of information and set our performance stability to 98% efficiency.   This week we're talking about The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells , a far future dystopian sci-fi series that follows Murderbot, the Sec-Unit with freedom from its go...