First, to be completely forthcoming, I was part of the Kickstarter for this book. But, I’m not letting that color my review. In fact, there were some serious delays in the final finished product. But, I’m only going to discuss the product itself. So, what’s the verdict?

I’m extremely happy with this game and they did an AMAZING job with it. I’m a big fan of the Prose Descriptive Quality (PDQ) system and I own every PDQ game there is. Some are great and some… not so much. This one is definitely up near, or at, the top. It’s the longest PDQ game to date and there is a TON of information packed in there. Each student type (see below) has an entire chapter devoted to how their powers work with a plethora of examples.

For those familiar with the PDQ system, they’ve made some rules tweaks that really make the game their own. The two biggest changes are as follows: #1) Instead of having damage lower your Qualities, you now have a damage track. This was done so that physical and mental damage could be tracked separately. Which is a must considering the setting’s heaving Cthulhu vibe. Big rule change #2 is, instead of making up your own Qualities, you have a predetermined set to choose from. They are geared to the setting and well done. This will help players who can’t decide what Qualities to give their characters.

The blurb describes the setting as basically Scooby Doo with real monsters, but I think a more accurate description would be “what if Harry Potter was written by H.P. Lovecraft.” But HPL Prep doesn’t just teach would-be wizards and witches. It is also home to mad scientists, kids with monster pets (Pokemon with actual scary monsters), mutants (more Lovecraft than Marvel), kids who can enter, and manipulate, your dreams, and even plain ol’ regular kids (who are nicely balanced against the “powered” ones). I think with minimal work, you could also run this game at a college level, because let’s face it, not everybody is going to want to play a 13 year old kid.

I’m super happy with this game and, despite a somewhat frustrating Kickstarter, I’m very glad I backed this. If you’re a fan of the PDQ system, don’t hesitate to get this game. Between the rule changes, the setting, and the plethora of power examples, there’s going to be something you’ll like – even if it’s just to borrow for a different PDQ game. If you’re not familiar with the PDQ system, this game is a great place to start. It has kept the best parts of PDQ and turned the “less good” bits into something more user friendly. This game is also recommended to fans of The Laundry novels, the Locke & Key comics, the Hellboy comics, the Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children novels, and the Monsters & Other Childish Things rpg.