Rating: 
Summary: d20 done right...finally!
Review: Like most RPGers, probably, I got started in this wonderful, odd little hobby with D&D. I played it through junior-high and high school, but eventually, after playing lots of other games with simpler, more streamlined rule systems that made it easier to "role-play" instead of "roll-play," I left D&D behind. For nearly 20 years I played other games, but when I heard the hype about d20, my interest was piqued. Since the books were so cheap, I gave them a try, and they looked very good at first, but when I joined a group to play, I found that things were as bogged-down in myriad minute rules as ever. Things would be fine until we had to fight something, then everything came to a screeching halt as we spent the next half hour simulating thirty seconds of combat with dozens of dice rolls. And these days, I just don't have the time or patience to study a set of game books as if they were a textbook.Recently, I was looking for a rule system to use in a fantasy campaign, but with a very different flavor--imagine my surprise when the one I chose turned out to be d20! In Mutants & Masterminds, all the non-essentials have been tossed out, and the game is much improved by it. And while it is a supers game, with a little tinkering, superpowers can easily become magic. "A 1-year-old child" gave the game 1 star--interestingly, all the things he complained about were things I liked. In addition, he had little reason to complain, as for every rule he complained about, there was a box nearby with an alternate rule for people who didn't like M&M's new rule. For example, I'm going to use good old-fashioned hit points for now. Though perfect for a superhero game, the M&M damage system is too comic-book-style for my campaign. All in all, it's the first d20 game that is as good as some of the better games out there.
Rating: 
Summary: Good D20 Supers-genre game
Review: M&M has very high production values and a slick system (that while taking some departures from strict-D20 mechanics) still manages to retain enough elements that those familiar with other D20 games (i.e. DND) will be able to get up and running with the system quickly. The rules capture the heroic flavor of four-color superhero combat well, and combat manages not to get bogged down although there are lots of tactical options for players who enjoy that sort of thing. The powers and character creation are well balanced, the system is varied and and flexible enough to allow you to develop literally any type of hero. The Power Level system scales well for a variety of game types, from lower level "gritty" supers to higher-level four color save-the-world type games. The sample material and included character archetypes offer a good mix of of beginning campaign material, certainly adequate as a jumping off point for new M&M GMs. One criticism I have is that the sections on equipment and vehicles are very skimpy, and because of the different rules for combat damage, you cannot easily use equipment from books like D20 Modern without some conversion. Hopefully this lack will be addressed in upcoming supplements. At the very least, the book does provide a generic system for modeling any peice of equipment or vehicle desired; but more examples would be nice.
Rating:
Summary: NO HIT POINTS!
Review: Mutants and Masterminds is a game which applies the d20 system to the superhero genre. In creating M&M the publishers have taken the system and improved it by eliminating the antiquated elements which were keeping the d20 system in the dark ages. That's right, M&M has no stifeling character classes, no meaningless alignments and, best of all, NO HIT POINTS! That fact alone makes it worth at least 4 stars in my opinion. I have played most of the superhero games which have been published, including the Marvel and DC games, Villians and Vigillantes, Underground and Champions. The streamlined but playable rules of M&M beat all of them. The rules for powers are highly customizable, allowing players to design the character they want to play. In addition, the rules for gadgets, skills and feats can make a character who doesn't have powers (like, The Punisher from the comics) fun and worth playing. The fact that "supernormals" don't have muich of a chnace was one of my biggest gripes against some other systems, and a big point in M&M's favor for me. Overall M&M gets my highest recommendations.
Rating:
Summary: NO HIT POINTS!
Review: Mutants and Masterminds is a game which applies the d20 system to the superhero genre. In creating M&M the publishers have taken the system and improved it by eliminating the antiquated elements which were keeping the d20 system in the dark ages. That's right, M&M has no stifeling character classes, no meaningless alignments and, best of all, NO HIT POINTS! That fact alone makes it worth at least 4 stars in my opinion. I have played most of the superhero games which have been published, including the Marvel and DC games, Villians and Vigillantes, Underground and Champions. The streamlined but playable rules of M&M beat all of them. The rules for powers are highly customizable, allowing players to design the character they want to play. In addition, the rules for gadgets, skills and feats can make a character who doesn't have powers (like, The Punisher from the comics) fun and worth playing. The fact that "supernormals" don't have muich of a chnace was one of my biggest gripes against some other systems, and a big point in M&M's favor for me. Overall M&M gets my highest recommendations.
Rating:
Summary: Best RPG system out there
Review: My friends and I play 3 or 4 different RPG systems on a regular basis, and this by far is the best. Since everything is going D20, as long as it is closer to Mutants than D&D 3ed. I'm happy. This blows all other systems out of the water. It combines the current accepted system (D20) with the variable character designs that open ended (non class based) system allow for. My friends and I aren't great fans of D20, but play it since it is whats available now, but we love Mutants. Plus, we only found a few loop holes and ambiguities, and those were all fixed in the errata. Green Ronin, We salute you! PS, can you publish a few more copies. After my roommates read through my copy(which i got from amazon), we decided to play a game and needed more books pronto for everyone else, we had to try 5 different stores before we found a place that wasn't sold out, and they only had 1 copy left.
Rating:
Summary: Rock-em Sock-em RPG
Review: Simplicity. Its what makes the d20 system so user-friendly and adaptable and the super-simplified Mutants and Masterminds system is what I find appealing about Green Ronin's handling of the super-hero/comic book genre. Super heros don't have hit points, they don't min-max for the wickedest weapon damage dice, they don't have a rule for everything. I'm not knocking d20, I really like it and I really like the rich, detailed characters you can create with it, I just prefer a more simplistic approach to superheros. M&M is a quick, fun game where the emphasis is on action rather than rules and that is so much more reflective of the comicbook world than regular d20 and certainly better suited to simple "4-color" comics than GURPS, etc. The plethora of powers and the open-endedness of the system makes it possible to create whatever you want and still allow for limitations that make characters balanced in comparison to other characters and villians. The lack of classes makes the possibility of characters with diverse talents feasable (like a character that can heal others with their touch and release damaging blasts of holy fire, etc.). This book is only one star away from being outstanding because of a lack of editing. When you buy this book you'll need to go to the M&M website and download the errata that goes with the book. Overall, this is a great system if you're looking for comicbook style roleplay, combat-lite, and versatility. If you want to figure out how many dice of damage Wolverine could do, pick something else.
Rating: 
Summary: Good ideas, but requires work to make playable.
Review: The book seems to start out strongly. In it, you have a point-based character creation system, and a superhero power system based around the d20 level mechanic, so that power level scales naturally. However, the failing of the book is that it is based on a 'damage save'. Basically, instead of skill or effectiveness of your abilities, the roll of 2d20 (damage + 1d20, save + 1d20) is the biggest influence on whether or not you succeed. Ever have a first level character have a chance to kill 25% of the time? You will now -- and in Mutants & Masterminds, you start at level 10. This mechanic sinks Mutants & Mastermind from an excellent game to the level of mediocrity.
Rating:
Summary: Good ideas, but requires work to make playable.
Review: The book seems to start out strongly. In it, you have a point-based character creation system, and a superhero power system based around the d20 level mechanic, so that power level scales naturally. However, the failing of the book is that it is based on a 'damage save'. Basically, instead of skill or effectiveness of your abilities, the roll of 2d20 (damage + 1d20, save + 1d20) is the biggest influence on whether or not you succeed. Ever have a first level character have a chance to kill 25% of the time? You will now -- and in Mutants & Masterminds, you start at level 10. This mechanic sinks Mutants & Mastermind from an excellent game to the level of mediocrity.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Superhero Roleplaying
Review: This book is one of Green Ronin's crowning achievements, no doubt about it. The system is one of the easiest and streamlined d20 games that I have ever played, and teaching my new players the ropes was a cinch. One of the reviewers below expressed his biased opinion about both the damage save system and the use of a single d20. M&M's strength is that it is both simplistic and in-depth at the same time. The game's damage save system does an excellent job of simulating the sometimes day-long combats and one-hit-KO knockouts found in comics. (Note to previous reviewers: If you don't like save system, go use the Hit Point variant in the book or buy some ranks in Amazing Save (Damage)/Armor/Protection!) The combats in the game are fast paced, with minimal dice rolling due to the single d20. But possibly the thing I like about the book is the power system. Characters are rated in "Power Levels", with the starting level being 10, to represent the average skill of a new superhero. You have 15 "power points" each level to purchase skills, feats, BAB, defense, and super-powers with. The dozens upon dozens of super-powers that the game presents can be customized to such an extent that it's not even funny. If have a power concept that you don't find in the book, there is an entire section in the book dedicated to creating new powers. The main site is www.mutantsandmasterminds.com, complete with free adventures and an intensely dedicated fanbase that scours the forums. Other supplements to the Mutants and Masterminds Core Rulebook include Freedom City (which has been hailed as one of the best supers' RPG supplements of all time), Nocturnals: A Midnight Companion (which chronicles Dan Brereton's Nocturnals's comic series, highly recommended), Crooks! (Full of fleshed out criminals from the Meta-4 campaign setting), and the upcoming Annual #1, full of more variant rules and help for settings set in the far future and in WWII. I would whole heartedly recommend this book to anyone who wants to try a unique spin on the Supers' RPG genre or who just wants a decent gaming system (ignore the naysayers!).
Rating:
Summary: Superheroes R Us
Review: This game is the best of the newest Superhero roleplaying games that has been released as of late. It is loosely based on the standard d20 system, but it is customized enough to make it fast paced and exiting to comic book fans. The book provides all the rules needed to run a superhero game. It provides all customization capabilities that other HEROic games may have but is light on the complexity in order to create an imaginative, detailed yet easy game to play.
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