Feng Shui is the
roleplaying game of
Hong Kong action cinema published by
Atlas Games. In a word, Feng Shui is "
quick."
The game has been designed to encompass all the classic genres of Honk Kong action cinema, from the ancient mystic wire-fu of movies like A Chinese Ghost Story and Iron Monkey, to contemporary stories like Police Story and Rumble in the Bronx, to dystopic future. Furthermore, Feng Shui's universe allows for time travel, so all of these characters can kick each other's butts.
To this end, character design is based on templates, which may be customized to fit the player's vision. Although some people may feel that the templates are limiting, they serve to make get players into the game faster, and that futher serves the game's feel of non-stop action.
The main plot device of Feng Shui involves a Secret War to control all of time by gaining control over nodes of chi energy located across the Earth. Exerting influence over these locations allows one to shape the fate of the world to one's desires. Player characters have become aware of this Secret War, and work to prevent facist dark forces from ruining their day. It is from this plot device that Feng Shui takes its name.
The game simulates the genre well. Badguys without names, called "mooks," drop en masse, while named villains are significantly tougher to take out. Vehicles are rated for "coolness" as much as for speed. Triad henchmen are larger than refrigerators with tell-tale scars. Mechanics are simple enough that play keeps moving, and game jargon is often taken from cinematic terms (battles are kept track of in terms of "sequences," which are 3 seconds long, and "shots," the actual moves being performed. Characters are awarded bonuses for imaginative descriptions they give their attacks, and penalties for boring non-descriptive attacks ("I shoot him").