this may be a bit tenuous for ACTUAL news, but seems like it'd be of interest to some: I was looking on Renegade's website for any update on the TF Deck Builder game release and I saw this press release from today:
Introducing the Essence20 Roleplaying System!

they are having a virtual con this weekend where they'll be revealing thier new D20 system that will power their upcoming TF/Joe/Power Ranger RPGs (showing off the Power Ranger version.)

Can save you clicking the link if you don't want to:

Spoiler: Renegadecon Essence 20 press release

Behind the scenes of Renegade’s upcoming Power Rangers, G.I. JOE, and Transformers Roleplaying Games lies a brand new system, Essence20. Read on to learn a little about this new system, and tune in to RenegadeCon VIrtual Special Edition this weekend to see it in action in the new games, and learn more about it from the creative team! Senior RPG Producer Elisa Teague also sat down with Forbes magazine to talk about Essence20 and the Power Rangers Roleplaying Game, which you can find here.

First off, as you may suspect from the name, Essence20 is a d20 based system. The core mechanic for resolving a roll is for the player to roll a d20 along with their Skill die (ranging from a d2-d20). The result of the d20 and skill die must exceed the difficulty of the test in order to succeed. Characters with a specialization in the skill being tested get to roll their skill die and all dice below it, and pick the highest result to add to their d20 roll, increasing their odds of success! What’s more, a max value roll on ANY die is a critical success, leading to more chances for crits and more opportunities for great roleplaying incorporating them.

Character creation follows a three-pronged approach, based on their Origin (what type of person are they?), Role (what is their place on the team?), and Influence (what experiences have led them to this point?). Character’s abilities and skills are based on the 4 S’s, Strength, Speed, Smarts, and Social. These options give an amazing depth and breadth to the variety of characters that a player can create!

The character backgrounds, character flaw system, and Story Point system (awarded for mission success, special heroics, and spectacular roleplaying) lend themselves to a cinematic and cooperative roleplaying experience that is a great fit for settings like Power Rangers, G.I. JOE, and Transformers. We are excited to show this system off, so please join us for RenegadeCon Virtual Special Edition this weekend for more information and to see it all put on the table in our premiere of Day of Destiny, a Power Rangers Roleplaying Game Actual Play!

 

Neat.

 

Sounds like a neat d20 based system. I'd love to see game mechanics in action.

 

I'm interested to see what the mechanics look like in-use... and of course the extent to which the systems are directly and intentionally cross-compatible for team-up action.

(you know you want to do Megazord vs. Predaking.)

 

Game on!!!!!

 

I'm getting so many unrelated e-mails from Renegade Games that I'm probably going to miss the one with Deck Building Game's release date.

 

So are these video games?

 

Really looking forward to this!   As a regular DnD player, I\'ve always wanted an RPG system for transformers. I know a fan-made one exists, but it\'s really too complicated for me/my friends. Looking forward to seeing how the Renegade system will handle things like transformation (especiallyduring combat), vehicle speed etc

 

Hopefully it's a video game and not more mobile garbage.

 

Tabletop dice-based RPG from what I can ascertain.

 

Creating a Transformers tabletop RPG and not using the Tech Spec stats is a HUGE miss in my book.

 

yeah, like @Sledgehammer said, pen and paper RPGs, Renegade is a traditional game maker (board/card/P&P rpgs)

 

I was already making a Tranformers ttrpg system fir myself and some friends. I guess i can still do that cause this seems...Perhaps i should say not-so-in-depth X3

 

Like I said, I'm intrigued. Even if I don't like the actual mechanics they end up using, I'm genuinely curious what system they think will "feel like" Transformers.

I'm guessing it's a fast-paced and zippy thing where it's hard to permanently die, your PC is a very heroic individual, etc.

It'll probably feel more-or-less like the G1 cartoon as far as lethality, etc., given the ways they talked about "death" or the lack thereof for the MMPR game (and the part where Transformers are generally pretty goddamned hard to kill in most iterations of the franchise).

 

Interested to see how this turns out, I’ve had a lot of fun with D20 focused games in the past.

 

*reads title* Ooh, new games!
*reads description* Oh... they're just tabletop "games"
That's kinda lame...

 

“Oh cool a new game- tabletop? FUUUUUU!!”

 

With how bad most licensed video games are (especially now in our FTP mobile realm), I’d honestly find a well executed tabletop experience more exciting
(I’d love to see a quality tabletop strategy game with miniatures that made good use of transforming and the G1 characters “super powers”)

 

*weeps in d20*

 

I love tabletop games, and I am really curious to see how this pans out. I just want a better idea how combat will work. All 3 series are synonymous with some kind of fighting so I hope Renegade keeps that in mind and doesn't over commit to a very narrative focused system