On the cusp of something good, Micro Chapbook RPG is a rules-lite, stripped-down RPG with an emphasis on action that tends to confuse instead of entertain. The game is played with a simple roll of 2 six-sided dice. Dungeons are assembled on graph paper with rolls for type, size, locks, etc. Author/Creator Noah Patterson has created a very simple form of an RPG that many people will find enjoyable, sadly, I am not one of them.

The rules for the game, while simple, are almost incomplete and a fair amount are scattered around the book. The rules themselves are pretty limited and manageable, but there is a hefty lack of description on how to apply some of them. This leads to how far your entertainment value can travel. You can either work around the frustration, seek answers online, or move on to something that is still simple but easier to follow and use like Four Against Darkness, Monsters! Monsters!, Avalon, or others. If you love homebrewing core rules and little nuances, then this game may rate higher for you. Also, the decision to role low instead of high is an absolute head-scratcher that seems more like an attempt to stand out instead of being a useful mechanic.

The other major concern stems from the difficulty of the game. Set in a "grimdark" setting like Warhammer 40K, or, perhaps more aptly, Tunnels and Trolls, Micro RPG places far too much emphasis on difficulty and less on enjoyment. It took me 6 games before I was able to meet the boss and another 2 games to finally live long enough to kill him. The mechanic system is constantly draining on the player with little option to survive, even far less reason to return. With a limited leveling system, too many constant ways to lose the core life-sustaining elements of Will and Health, Micro RPG is FRUSTRATING. And again, if you enjoy tweaking elements, this may not bother you. The lack of rules to reduce the power of enemies as they wind down, ways to heal properly, additional characters, etc., the game is a constant rut of creating and dying.

Micro RPG is simple and quick, it's just not very enjoyable.