Tales From The Loop - Manuale Base (GDR - EDIZIONE ITALIANA)

In this game, a story is called a Mystery, and the protagonists are a group of young friends trying to solve that Mystery together. The friends are Kids, aged 10–15, living in an alternate 1980s. Their everyday lives are filled with overbearing parents, endless homework, and classmates who bully or are bullied.
Mysteries give the Kids the chance to encounter strange machines and creatures that exist because of the nearby Loop, a massive underground particle accelerator built in the late 1960s. The Kids can escape their daily routines and personal problems by taking part in something meaningful and magical—though dangerous.
They risk being hurt or changed by the Troubles they must overcome in order to solve a Mystery.

The core principles of Tales from the Loop are the following:

1. YOUR HOMETOWN IS FULL OF STRANGE AND WONDERFUL THINGS
When fusion, the particle accelerator, and the effects of the magnetrine were discovered in the 1950s, the boundary between the possible and the impossible was shattered. Enormous flying cargo ships appeared, along with cyborgs and thinking robots, scientists capable of creating time portals, and devices able to swap people’s identities. Today, strange creatures can be glimpsed on the horizon, and humanity can contact beings from other places and eras—though ordinary people know only about the extremely cheap energy and the technological innovations that have changed the world.
Yet “things” often come to light due to failed experiments, or random effects generate something new and unexpected. Only imagination limits what can happen under the influence of the Loop in the 1980s. The Kids will gradually discover all these bizarre phenomena, and the players must look at the world through their eyes.
The GM and the players should draw on their own childhood experiences to create something magical and wondrous. The game works beautifully whether you were a child many years ago or are young today. Tales is an excellent entry‑level RPG! The protagonists are kids who might sneak out in the middle of the night to meet friends in secret, dive into deep waters to collect shiny stones, or pedal as fast as they can along hillside paths that disappear into the woods.

2. EVERYDAY LIFE IS MONOTONOUS AND HARSH
You are the protagonist. The alarm rings every morning, and every evening you must finish your homework. It doesn’t matter if magnetrine ships float outside your window, if your parents argue constantly and your brother seems to hate you, if your house smells like fish and your allowance isn’t enough to buy the cassette you want. The trash still needs to be taken out every day, bullies keep giving you nicknames, and your bike is broken. It’s raining, and you don’t have a raincoat.
Life is full of obstacles and frustrations. Adults decide everything and do whatever they want, while kids are forced to obey. Sure, sometimes a problem gets solved and you enjoy a pleasant moment, but it never lasts long, and everything goes back to the way it was. Everyday life.

3. ADULTS STAY ON THE SIDELINES AND ARE NOT HELPFUL
No matter what you say, adults don’t listen and don’t understand. They live in their own world. There is no point in asking them for help to solve problems, uncover a Mystery, or overcome Trouble. The Kids are on their own. Adults wouldn’t even believe the bizarre things the Kids encounter.
Adults grumble, whine, and argue among themselves. They are wrapped up in their own lives and their work. Worse yet, they are often foolish. It is usually their mistakes the Kids must fix—machines running out of control, experiments gone wrong, aircraft crashing or exploding. The worst adults are those who do take an interest in the Kids and want to exploit or harm them.
Sometimes adults do help, like when your father comforts you, or when you call the police and they catch the thieves—but it never lasts long, and it often comes at a price. The police take all the credit, your stepmother expects you to mow the lawn all summer in exchange for her help, or the teacher now sees you as an ally and expects you to keep an eye on the troublemakers in class.

4. THE WORLD OF THE LOOP IS DANGEROUS, BUT THE KIDS WILL NOT DIE
In this game, your character is between 10 and 15 years old. Their age affects attribute scores and the number of Luck Points they have, but also how the player imagines and portrays the character. However, in Tales from the Loop, Kids can be hurt, imprisoned, mocked, replaced, robbed, or have their hearts broken—but they cannot die.

5. THE GAME ADVANCES SCENE BY SCENE
Just like in a movie, a Mystery is played out through scenes. First, the characters talk at home, then the story jumps directly to the moment they meet their teacher at school. You don’t play every single moment between home and school; you skip the boring or unimportant parts. In Tales from the Loop, the Gamemaster “frames” the scenes, often with help from the players. Framing a scene means starting it and ending it when everything relevant has happened.

6. THE WORLD IS DESCRIBED COLLABORATIVELY
The Gamemaster sets the scenes and describes what happens in the story, but shouldn’t do all the work alone. They should ask the players for help: what the school looks like, what the weather is like, why the neighbors are arguing, and so on. The Gamemaster should ask the Kids questions: What does your mother look like? What’s suspicious about the lady next door? What did you do to make her hate you? What are you wearing? Why do you love that girl?
The Gamemaster should constantly draw on the players’ imagination, encouraging the group to build the world together.
If the players invent a flying school or parents who work as Alien Hunters, the Gamemaster should gently remind them of the rule “Everyday life is monotonous and harsh.” Strange and mysterious things belong in the Mysteries. The Gamemaster always has the final say.