Wandering the exhibition halls at this year’s UK Games Expo, Geek Native secured a first-hand look at the final, glorious hardback edition of Midnight of the Century. Found at Stand 3-307, the tabletop roleplaying game is the latest release from Colin Le Sueur and By Odin’s Beard RPG, the studio best known for the Norse fantasy soulslike Runecairn and the weird west gunslinger We Deal in Lead.
While the digital PDF has been quietly available on DriveThruRPG since March, the physical debut at UKGE marks the fulfilment of a long-standing crowdfunding promise. Originally launched as a proof-of-concept ashcan on itch.io, players backed the early version with the understanding that the publisher would iterate and upgrade the mechanics. That trust has been rewarded with a completed 104-page, black-and-white rulebook built on the Into the Odd framework.
Midnight of the Century trades traditional combat for a lightweight investigation system set in the mid-90s Pacific Northwest. Drawing heavy inspiration from television shows like Millennium, The X-Files, and Twin Peaks, a recurring thematic presence on the convention floor this weekend, the game leans heavily into liminal horror. Players navigate escalating tensions using a four-phase “Doom Clock” while investigating serial killers and the uncanny supernatural. They may even find themselves working for shadowy organisations that, in a twist on the usual tropes, might actually be trying to prevent a terrible catastrophe.
Fans of investigative tabletop roleplaying games like Cairn, Mothership, and Brindlewood Bay will find familiar, satisfying conceptual ground here. But perhaps the most striking element of the game is its strict, thematic adherence to human creativity.
The team at By Odin’s Beard RPG told Geek Native at UK Games Expo that absolutely no generative AI was used in the creation of the book. Instead, traditional “kitbashing” techniques were employed to blend photographs and artwork into a copyright-friendly, visually striking aesthetic.
This anti-AI production stance perfectly mirrors the game’s 1990s setting. For those who lived through the era, the creeping dread of Midnight of the Century taps into early anxieties about machine corporations monitoring our every move and harvesting data to “make the world a better place.”
If you are exploring the indie roleplaying games section at the UK Games Expo, the By Odin’s Beard booth is a mandatory stop for anyone interested in occult mysteries and old-school revival mechanics.
Quick Links
- Drivethrurpg: Midnight of the Century
