Dishonored RPG vs Blade Runner RPG: Cinematic Systems Compared

Quick answer

Pick Dishonored RPG if your group wants a stealth sandbox with improvisational problem-solving and supernatural mobility. Pick Blade Runner RPG if you want a structured detective case file with moral pressure and a defined session shape. Both run on Modiphius 2d20, so the real difference is the play loop, not the dice.

Dishonored RPG and Blade Runner RPG look like siblings on the shelf: both are Modiphius 2d20 games, both are licensed from beloved video game and film properties, and both promise cinematic play. At the table they ask for different things. Dishonored hands you a city, a target, and a toolkit, then dares you to find a way in and out. Blade Runner hands you a case file and asks what you are willing to do to close it.

This comparison sticks to what the two games actually do at the table: how a session is structured, what the GM prepares, what players spend their attention on, and which one fits a given group. If you are weighing a stealth RPG against a detective RPG, the answer usually comes down to whether your group prefers open-ended infiltration or a driven investigation.

The core loop: infiltration vs investigation

Dishonored RPG is built around missions. The GM sets up a target, a location, and a web of guards, factions, and side opportunities. Players choose an approach, then improvise when it goes wrong. The game rewards planning, vertical movement, and using powers and gadgets creatively. A session often ends with the question: did you get in, get the job done, and get out on your terms?

Blade Runner RPG is built around cases. The GM prepares a mystery with clues, witnesses, and conflicting interests. Players gather evidence, interview people, and decide how far to push. The session shape is closer to a procedural: briefing, legwork, confrontation, fallout. The tension is not whether you can climb the wall, but whether you can live with the answer you find.

• If your group loves heist-style planning and improvisation, Dishonored's mission loop will feel natural.
• If your group loves piecing together clues and making moral calls, Blade Runner's case loop will feel natural.

What the GM prepares each week

For Dishonored, prep is a map, a target, and a set of obstacles. You need to know who is where, what they want, and what happens if alarms go off. Improvisation matters because players will find routes you did not plan. A good Dishonored session often has three or four possible approaches and no single correct one.

For Blade Runner, prep is a timeline of events, a cast of suspects, and a set of clues that point in more than one direction. You need to know what is true, what each NPC believes, and what happens if the players stop asking questions. Improvisation matters because players will fixate on the wrong detail, and you need to keep the case moving without railroading.

• Dishonored prep is spatial: maps, patrols, and escape routes.
• Blade Runner prep is relational: motives, lies, and evidence trails.

Player roles and spotlight time

In Dishonored, every character tends to have a practical specialty: stealth, combat, technical work, or social manipulation. Spotlight shifts as the plan moves through phases. One player might scout, another talks past a guard, and a third handles the getaway. The group shares the mission, and the fun comes from watching the plan mutate.

In Blade Runner, characters are investigators with different skills and different loyalties. Spotlight often lands on whoever is asking the hard questions, and the group's disagreements about what to do with the truth become the drama. If your table enjoys in-character debate and moral friction, this is the engine working as intended.

• Dishonored rewards players who like tactical improvisation.
• Blade Runner rewards players who like interrogation scenes and ethical pressure.

Tone, lethality, and consequences

Dishonored is a revenge-flavored world with supernatural abilities and a corrupt city. Violence is an option, but the game's fiction often pushes toward nonlethal or low-chaos solutions. Consequences tend to be immediate and local: a botched stealth check, a dead guard, a lockdown. The tone is dark but adventurous, and the players usually have more control over the outcome than they think.

Blade Runner is a noir world where the job itself is corrosive. Violence is sudden and often final, and the consequences are personal and reputational. The game is less about whether you survive and more about what you become. If your group wants clear heroic wins, Blade Runner will feel uncomfortable, and that discomfort is the point.

• Dishonored: consequences are tactical and recoverable.
• Blade Runner: consequences are moral and lasting.

Which 2d20 game fits your group right now

If you already run Modiphius 2d20 games, both will feel familiar. Momentum, Threat, and the core dice mechanic carry over, so the learning curve is mostly about the play loop. That makes this a good pair to own if your group likes to rotate genres without relearning a whole system.

If you are new to 2d20, start with the game whose loop matches your group's habits. A group that argues about plans will thrive in Dishonored. A group that argues about motives will thrive in Blade Runner. Neither is a better game; they are different jobs for the same engine.

• Own both if your group rotates between action and investigation.
• Own one if you want to master a single loop before adding another.

Trade-offs at a glance

• Dishonored RPG: open-ended missions: The mission structure gives players freedom to approach a target their way, but the GM must be ready to improvise maps, patrols, and consequences when the plan changes. Best when your group enjoys planning and adapting in the moment.
• Blade Runner RPG: driven cases: The case structure gives every session a clear direction and a moral question, but it asks the GM to prepare a web of clues and motives that can survive player scrutiny. Best when your group enjoys investigation and uncomfortable choices.
• Shared 2d20 engine: Both games use Modiphius 2d20, so momentum, threat, and the core dice mechanic transfer between them. The difference is the play loop, not the math. Owning both is reasonable if your group rotates genres.

Catalog facts that matter for this comparison

• Triangle Agency: The Tabletop Role-Playing Game (Core Rulebook): A 300-page, US letter size hardcover paranormal investigation and corporate horror TTRPG for creating Field Agents and running Anomalous investigations. If your group wants investigation with a surreal, bureaucratic tone rather than noir, this is the third option worth considering alongside Blade Runner.
• Mythic Game Master Emulator Second Edition: An oracle-style question resolution system for playing any role-playing game solo or without a Game Master, updated from the 2003 ruleset with new options and refinements. Useful if you want to try Dishonored's stealth sandbox or Blade Runner's case file solo before committing your whole group to a campaign.
• Achtung! Cthulhu 2d20: Assault on the Fuhrer Train: A November 1944 adventure for Achtung! Cthulhu 2d20 set during the stalemate on the Siegfried Line before the Battle of the Bulge. A concrete example of how Modiphius uses 2d20 for a very different genre, useful if your group wants to test the engine before choosing Dishonored or Blade Runner.

Which one should you buy?

Best for

• Groups that want a stealth sandbox with improvisational problem-solving and supernatural mobility.
• Players who enjoy tactical planning, vertical maps, and missions that can go sideways.
• Tables that want a dark but adventurous tone with recoverable consequences.

Not for

• Groups that want a tightly structured mystery with a defined session shape.
• Players who prefer moral pressure and investigative legwork over infiltration.
• Tables that dislike preparation-heavy sandbox play or open-ended planning.

Dishonored RPG and Blade Runner RPG are not competing for the same table; they are competing for the same evening. Choose Dishonored when you want a mission to solve, and Blade Runner when you want a case to close. If your group rotates, both belong on the shelf.