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I don't know about anyone else, but I have always felt a strong desire to live inside of a Mickey Spillane novel. I love the idea of sitting in an office with one of those frosted glass windows. Of course, I want a clothes tree to be next to the door with my trusty trench coat and fedora hanging there for me. In the right bottom drawer of my desk is where the bottle of 150 proof "medicine" would be found. Taped to the bottom of the middle drawer would be a .38, another one would be in the top left drawer (you just never know when you're going to need two). I could sit there, in the dim light of a desk lamp smoking a Pall Mall or a Lucky Strike waiting for a dame with a problem to walk through the door.

The Mean Streets is a game of film noir that takes characters into the grittiest and most shadow covered alleys of New York City, circa 1943. The game is put out by Deep 7 and uses their XPG rules system. XPG isn't complicated or difficult to learn. Most actions are resolved by trying to roll under a target number with 2d6. There are some more specific rules for different situations, but they don't take 50 pages to explain.

Character generation is reasonably free flowing. 20 points are assigned between 6 different stats, and 30 points are assigned to the various skills. A basic selection of advantages and disadvantages are also provided to further customize and flesh out the character. While there is a selection of archetypes for players to choose from for their characters, the archetypes in no way represent "character classes". The archetypes are there to help guide players who may not be overly familiar with film noir develop their character.

Going over the rules, I only had a couple of problems with the way the XPG system was presented. The problems were very minor, but I thought I should mention them. Even though archetype choice doesn't have any real game affect on the character, putting the list at the end of the character creation section was awkward. Since many players might not be really familiar with the genre, having the archetypes at the front of the chapter would have made it easier for those players.

There are two kinds of stats in this game. There are the six basic stats any gamer will recognize on sight, and then there are three derived stats. Combining or averaging two of the six base stats creates the derived stats. These three derived stats are easy to figure out, but math has never been my forte. Simply stating "find the sum" of two stats, or "average" two others isn't the best way to do explain it. An example for the mathematically deficient would have been nice. With the way it's written I had to take a moment and double check my thinking to make sure I was right. The next thought was then: "Wouldn't Mr. Bussard be happy I can still remember so much nearly 15 years after high school."

The book provides with what struck me as an excellent thumbnail sketch of New York in 1943. Most of the background information does center on the criminals and their organizations, but that's part of the genre. For a Soprano addict like myself, I just sat back and enjoyed reading a little about the forming of the Syndicate and the "Families". Deep 7 also has a supplement that does nothing but provide information about New York called the Concrete Jungle. I haven't looked into it yet, but based on the basic background in the main rules, it should be good.

Mean Streets also provides a good listing of film noir. I would highly recommend anyone playing this game go out and rent a couple of these films first. Not just because it will help you get in the mood, but it means a fun evening of entertainment. I was somewhat disappointed that there wasn't much mention of books that evoke the proper "film noir" feeling. I know I know, film noir, but there are some really good books that fit the bill.

An adventure based on the Fritz Lang film A Tangled Web is included with the rules. It looked like a fun adventure to play and run. I always appreciate when a game gives me a good, quick way for me to get my players in the game right away. I haven't seen the Lang film, so I can't say how accurate of an adaptation it is. Considering the rest of the book, I would guess that it is probably a very good adaptation.

Overall I like the game. The setting is one I've been indirectly in love with for years. Ever since the first time I saw Rutger Hauer walking the dark, rainy streets of the future in Blade Runner, I've been hooked on all things cyberpunk. Film noir is just cyberpunk's whiskey drinking grandfather. So, I think I'll tuck that .38 snub in the pocket of my trench and smooth the brim of my fedora. If you can't find me in the office, I'm down at Frank's having a Lucky Strike and a whiskey.