Sometimes the marketeers get everything exactly right (one of our favorites is still that Coma ad pack we received 7 years ago). And that goes for a new roleplaying game from Wendy’s. Yep, that’s right, a fully fleshed-out roleplaying game from everyone’s favorite fast food restaurant that serves Frostys. And best of all, it’s free (you can download the entire 97-page rulebook and campaign guide below). Not only is it capitalizing (“capital” as in in-your-face, unapologetic commercialism) on the recent wave of interest in Dungeons & Dragons that was re-kindled by Stranger Things, the new roleplaying game Feast of Legends will probably divert at least a few groups of Wednesday night gamers to join in on a fun (and humorous) new adventure.
Feast of Legends is another good introduction to roleplaying games and springboard to the real deal. It includes a Rule Book and Game Master’s Guide with five campaigns to be led by your designated Game Master: Take on The Queen’s Quest, Trouble at Frosty Canyon, Lighting of the Bacon Beacon, The Biggie Vale, and The Deep Freeze, plus there’s a chapter on expansion play. Make your own character, join one of the 14 orders, or use pre-designed character sheets via a “quick start guide” to get on your way, with instructions on how to do so. This isn’t your typical throwaway giveaway. Players have five levels to achieve, and the book has all of the details on gameplay, adventuring, and yes, you will use food, specifically Wendy’s menu items, cleverly incorporated along the way. One of the underlying themes is Wendy’s advertising fresh meat over frozen, so a key villain here is the Ice Jester–a not-so-subtle jab at Ronald McDonald. His lair? A playhouse with tunnels and a colorful ball pit. Brilliant! Constable Von Freeze steps in for Mayor McCheese… Beware the Mimic Meal… Can you help Queen Wendy, by sneaking into the Deep Freeze and stop the Ice Jester before he can march on Freshtovia and start a new Frozen Age?
Although we wish we could credit by name the Wendy’s inside marketing team that wrote these rules, a big shout-out is owed to Alex Lopez for illustrations that mash-up the visual style from both classic RPG and Wendy’s iconography. Neither Lopez nor mapmaker Collin Fogel appear to have created illustrations before for D&D producer Wizards of the Coast, but this rule book should help them get their foot in the door (if D&D is really their thing).
Download the entire, full-color, high-resolution, 97-page rulebook and campaign guide now here at feastoflegends.com.
You don’t even need dice–Wendy’s provides a digital dice option online. But c’mon–The success of any marketing campaign is getting customers into the store. How about offering a value meal with a dice giveaway, hmm? And what D&D collector won’t shell out $10 for a physical copy of the rule book? Sounds like a win-win twofer to us.
Feast of Legends proves that imagination is all you need to start your own RPG, story, or real-life adventure. It also ups the ante on what companies might be willing to do to get your attention, providing some legitimate, maybe even quality programming and content to accompany that promotional message that was going to find you one way or the other anyway.
Here’s a quick trailer for the game from Wendy’s:
It’s a great marketing idea that can also be great fun for gamers or wannabe gamers. Download your copy of Feast of Legends at the above link now.
C.J. Bunce
Editor
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