How we review
We both score every product on camera, separately, before we compare notes. Then the math takes over. Nobody picks the final score by feel, so when you see our numbers, you can check them yourself.
What we grade
A battle mat doesn't have rules, and a rulebook doesn't survive spilled drinks. So what we grade depends on what the product is. Each review is filed under one of these, and we score the categories that fit. If one doesn't apply to a particular product, we skip it.
Rulebooks and starter sets
Core rulebooks, starter boxes
- Rules
- Layout
- Setting
- Value
Adventures and campaigns
One-shots and full adventure paths
- Adventure
- Prep
- Layout
Setting books and supplements
Lore books, bestiaries, player options, expansions
- Setting
- Rules
- Layout
- Usefulness
GM guides and toolkits
GM advice books, random tables
- Usefulness
- Layout
Battle mats and terrain
Mats, tiles, terrain, miniatures
- Quality
- Usability
- Look
- Value
Dice
Dice sets, trays, towers, bags
- Look
- Usability
- Quality
- Value
Apps and digital tools
VTTs, character apps
- Usability
- Usefulness
- Value
What each category means
Every category is scored as a whole number from 1 to 20. No half points.
| Category | What we're asking |
|---|---|
| Rules | Do the mechanics fit the theme and stay out of the way? Can a new player learn them? |
| Layout | Can you find what you need mid-session? Organization, cross-referencing, indexing, and how the book reads. |
| Setting | Does the world make you want to play in it, and does it give the GM hooks to build on? |
| Adventure | Is the story worth running? Good hooks, and room for players to go off-script. |
| Prep | How much work does it take to run? Read-aloud and stat blocks where you need them, or a pile of homework? |
| Usefulness | How often will this actually come off the shelf and help at the table? |
| Quality | Materials and build. Does it survive spilled drinks and being packed in a bag every week? |
| Usability | How easy is it to use during play? Setup, readability, markers, and how well it fits the table. |
| Look | Does it look good on the table and in front of players? |
| Value | What you get for the price, compared with what else is out there. |
How the final score works
Every score is out of 20, like a d20. Each of us scores the categories, and our final is the average of them, rounded to a whole number. That's the whole formula. Here's a rulebook:
Rules 16 + Layout 12 + Setting 18 + Value 10 = 56 ÷ 4 = 14
Skipping a category doesn't hurt a product, because we only average the ones we scored. A battle mat graded on three of its four categories:
Quality 18 + Usability 16 + Value 13 = 47 ÷ 3 = 15.7, which rounds to 16
There are no hidden adjustments. If the math ever lands somewhere our gut disagrees with, that means we're not grading something that matters, and the fix is a better category, out in the open. That's why rulebooks now get a Value score: a game that sells its missing pieces back to you should lose points where you can see it.
Every review shows this math under each reviewer's scores, so you never have to take the final on trust.
The table score and the verdict
When we both score a product, the headline table score is the average of our two finals, rounded to a whole number. It reads like an attack roll:
| Table score | Verdict |
|---|---|
| 20 | Critical hit |
| 11 to 19 | Hit |
| 2 to 10 | Miss |
| 1 | Critical fail |
If our finals land 4 or more points apart, the review gets a Split decision badge. We're an unlikely party. Sometimes we don't agree, and you should know when.
One exception: our first review, the Dungeon Crawler Carl Starter Set, came before we settled on this method. Its categories are out of 10 and its finals are the ones we gave on camera. We've left it that way so it matches the video.
Read-through or played
Every review is labeled with how we tested it. A Read-through means we read it cover to cover but haven't run a session yet, so the scores are about the book, not the game at the table. Played means we ran at least one session with it before scoring. We won't call something played when it wasn't.
Affiliate links
Some reviews link to DriveThruRPG or Amazon, and we earn a small commission if you buy through them. Every review with a link says so before the first one. A link has never changed a score, and the formula above doesn't leave room for it to.