This mystery-solving RPG is a Scooby-Doo game in everything but name

A new tabletop roleplaying game lets players form their own group of mystery-hunters in the vein of the iconic animated franchise, Scooby-Doo.

The Mystery Business is a new tabletop RPG that has players investigating various ‘haunted’ locations in search of the truth behind the apparent horror happenings. In classic Scooby-Doo fashion, players take the role of a group of friends – each bringing their own skills and approaches to the investigation – and their unusual companion, as they find themselves escaping from scary encounters with supposedly spooky creatures and occurrences.

Unlike in the many series and iterations of Scooby-Doo, the scary goings-on in The Mystery Business could, in fact, be entirely real supernatural encounters, with players needing to find the clues they require to solve the case before they’re captured. The horror roleplaying game is designed to be easy to understand and play, with players using a d100 dice-rolling gameplay system to perform various actions and overcome obstacles.

Every character sheet will feature the list of difficulties they’re good at, giving players a clear idea of the best path forward for success. There’s no combat in The Mystery Business, with players instead being encouraged to run away from any pursuing monsters – like classic Scooby-Doo chase style – whilst using their wits over any weapons. If they do want to buy a bit more time away from their pursuers, players can build traps to catch their assailant: with the only limitations being the players’ imaginations.

The Mystery Business was created by Greg Leatherman, the designer behind an Ennie Award winning RPG called Glitter Hearts – a LGBTQA+ TRPG that has players transforming into superheroes from their alter-ego and fighting against the forces of evil.

A digital version of The Mystery Business is available on Itch.io for $15 (£).