After the apocalypse, what would be your base of operations? Many people would say Waffle House, the American breakfast chain that’s infamous for remaining open, no matter the chaos outside. Thankfully, you don’t have to wait for the end to hole up in a Waffle House, as Waffle Us lets you experience this in the form of a TTRPG game.
Waffle Us is a multiplayer TTRPG set in 2044. In this world, a massive solar flare destroyed the electrical grid, ending modern society as we know it. However, this wasn’t enough to stop Waffle House; in fact, the chain only became more important after the flare hit. These chain restaurants became SafeHouses, places where travelers making their way across the wild and dangerous wastes could rest and prepare themselves for the next leg of their journey.
Hitting The Road To Waffle House
The game is designed for 2-5 players and a GM. Before the game starts, the players will need to make their post-apocalyptic characters. Players pick from one of six different classes (each with their own abilities and heat) and then assign an array of numbers to five stats: Beefiness (physical strength), Crispness (reflexes and precision), Grittiness (resourcefulness and willpower), Sharpness (intelligence and reasoning), and Greasiness (social skills).
On top of this, all the players must work together to come up with the vehicle the party will be using to get from place to place. Cars, like characters, can have unique skills and abilities, meaning the decisions players make during this design process will heavily affect how their group approaches situations while on the road.
Waffle Us games have several phases. The first part of the sequence starts in one of the Waffle House Safe Houses, where the players interact with NPCs and prepare themselves for the trip ahead. During this phase, players earn Spare Dice that can be used as a one-time boost on any future roll.
After players are done in the Safe House, they hit the road for the exploration phase. During this, players can explore environments they come across and fight any hostile entities they encounter.
This is the phase where players will make checks; thankfully, checks in Waffle Us are handled pretty simply. Whenever a character does something with a chance of failure, the play assembles a dice pool. By default, this pool contains two six-sided dice. The player then adds or removes dice based on the most relevant stat and any extra dice given by modifiers. The player may also add Spare Dice from their trunk (if any are available) to further boost the roll. Once this is done, the player rolls all the dice. Every roll of five or six counts as a success. If the GM believes the number of successes is sufficient to overcome the problem, the player’s action succeeds.
Once the exploration phase (and thus one leg of the journey) is done, the players pull into another Safe House, and the whole process starts again.
A Solid Base (And A Good Breakfast)
While Waffle Us is still in the playtest phase, the game already has a lot going for it. For example, I’m in love with the group vehicle mechanic. While most games have players share a form of transportation, Waffle Us makes the vehicle into a character by giving it dedicated mechanics with unique, customizable actions. Not only does this add depth to the gameplay by giving players another load of mechanics to use, but it also dramatically enhances the game’s tone as it isn’t a road trip movie (which is clearly what Waffle Us draws inspiration from) without an iconic vehicle.
Similarly, I like the decision to formalize the Waffle House locations in the game. In many TTRPGs, resting tends to be something players skip over, so they can get back to the action as quickly as possible. However, by making Waffle House into a defined location with unique rules, this game makes the resting segments feel as important as the exploration ones. Not only does this prevent the game from becoming repetitive, but it also gives players space to flesh out their characters and the world, as it’s a clearly defined time to interact and roleplay with NPCs and each other, which helps make the game’s post-apocalyptic world feel more alive.
I also really like the game’s mechanics. During exploration phases, the players have access to numerous mechanics, including class-specific actions, items, weapons, environmental objects, and a surprisingly deep combat system. This means that players have numerous ways to show off their creativity, and that every exploration scene is different, keeping the game fresh.
This is complemented by the game’s decision to use dice pools. The feel of rolling dice pools and then fishing out successes really fits a game about survivors using their wits and the environment to survive in a chaotically hostile world. Plus, pools mean that players are (on average) more likely to succeed, even when the odds are against them, which again perfectly fits the tone the game is trying to capture as it encourages players to take big swings and approach situations from unique angles.
I also love the game’s writing. The game’s items and monsters really capture the idea of a wild and wacky wasteland built in the ruins of hyper-capitalist America. My favourite monsters are the Crocogator, an alligator that has grown a crocodile head, and the Mutated Pepper, a hot chill that has grown legs and a chomping mouth, both of which instantly evoke a very specific vibe.
The art is also cute, being mostly pen doodles like you would find on a used restaurant menu. While this is likely to change as the game receives updates, I hope the developers retain some of this aesthetic, as it really complements their writing and fits the tone they’re trying to evoke.
The idea of a game based around a post-apocalyptic Waffle House run may sound odd on paper, Waffle Us is actually really good, perfectly nailing a specific, weird vibe and pairing it with fitting mechanics. While the game is in an early phase, there is already a lot of content to sink your teeth into, and the core mechanics are already really strong, meaning that if you’re looking for a post-apocalyptic game to run, Waffle Us is worth picking up.
