Last week, I had the chance to join a Q&A session with Dan Davenport, better known as the Hard-boiled GMShoe from the RandomWorlds Discord server. You can read the full log here. But there was one question that really stuck with me: What is noir?
Noir from a traditional perspective
Noir is usually defined as “a genre of crime film or fiction full of cynicism, fatalism, and moral ambiguity.” But noir is more than just a style or vibe—which is something you see a lot when people talk about mixing it with role-playing games. True noir is more about the setup, not just the mood.
As Megan Abbott puts it, ‘In noir, everyone is fallen, and right and wrong are not clearly defined and maybe not even attainable.’ This sentiment traces back to the gritty detective novels of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, where noir’s moral ambiguity was first laid out. While ‘film noir’ became famous for its visual style in cinema, the true essence of noir—the blurred lines between right and wrong—was born in crime fiction. It’s the themes of those stories, not just their look, that give noir its enduring soul.
It’s hard to separate the pieces of noir because if you Google it, most of what you find will be about film noir. And if you search Dashiell Hammett, you’ll probably end up in the hard-boiled genre, which is its own thing entirely. Nowadays, people use hard-boiled and noir like they’re the same thing, mostly because they often show up together in discussions about crime fiction. It can be confusing, but even though they overlap, they each bring something different to the table.
This is why it’s important to know the difference between noir and hard-boiled fiction. In true noir, even the ‘heroes’ aren’t really heroic—they’re flawed, broken people. That doesn’t make them anti-heroes, but they do cross lines. For example, Batman has that one rule about never killing, but in noir, there are no hard lines like that. Everyone has a point where they’ll turn their backs on their morals or ethics, and that’s what makes noir so compelling—the characters live in that gray area, which makes the stories feel deeper and more real.
How to build a noir setting for table top role playing games
When building a noir setting for tabletop role-playing, the first thing to keep in mind is that it’s not all about shadows and rainy streets—though those can help set the mood if that’s what you’re going for. You can use the visual style of film noir as a reference, but only if it helps develop the tone and characters that will drive your world. Remember Megan Abbott’s quote: “In noir, everyone is fallen.” This means your setting isn’t just about dark alleys or smoke-filled bars; it’s about flawed people and their struggles. You could set your noir story in a sunny beach town, and it would still work—because noir is less about the backdrop and more about the people, their stories, and the choices they make.
What makes a setting noir isn’t where it’s set, but how the characters live in that world and how they bend or break under pressure.
Starting with the bad guys
When building a noir setting, the bad guys are a great place to start. Corrupt politicians, gangsters, hired killers, and dirty cops—they’re all key players who help shape the world your players will be navigating. These characters aren’t just there to cause trouble; they serve as the dark contrast to the limited light in the setting, making the world feel as bleak and morally gray as possible.
But here’s the thing: in noir, even the worst villains usually aren’t purely evil. Most of them have some kind of personal code or ethos that makes them more complex. Maybe they remember a time when they weren’t so far gone, or they justify their actions with a warped sense of right and wrong. Giving your bad guys these layers not only makes them more interesting but also reinforces that classic noir theme: no one is entirely clean, and everyone has fallen from grace in one way or another.
Start with the People
Not everyone in a noir setting has to be cynical or have a fatalistic outlook, but it definitely helps when the major NPCs lean that way. The people around your players—the witnesses, informants, allies, and even bystanders—shape the tone of the world. These characters may not be corrupt or sinister, but they should still feel like they’re part of a world where hope is a scarce resource and trust is hard-earned.
For example, maybe the local shopkeeper is just trying to survive while dealing with protection rackets, or the bartender knows too much and stays quiet because it’s safer. These aren’t necessarily bad people, but they’re hardened by the world they live in. Their interactions with the players should reflect that sense of moral complexity, whether they’re reluctantly offering help or withholding it out of self-preservation.
By surrounding your players with characters who carry the weight of the setting, you create an immersive atmosphere where every conversation, favor, or betrayal feels like it has stakes.
Start with the players
Like the classic noir heroes, player characters don’t have to be paragons of virtue. In fact, they shouldn’t be. Noir thrives on characters with a certain moral ambiguity, where right and wrong aren’t always clear—or even relevant. This doesn’t mean your players need to be anti-heroes, but it does mean they should operate with personal codes rather than societal ethics.
Think of classic noir protagonists like Humphrey Bogart’s Sam Spade in The Maltese Falcon. He isn’t driven by justice or a deep concern for others, but by a personal sense of duty or pragmatism. Spade avenges his partner’s murder, not out of sentimentality, but because “it’s bad business” to let the killer get away.
This kind of cold reasoning can be a guiding principle for player characters in your noir setting—doing what needs to be done, not because it’s right, but because it fits their own logic or survival.
Players should be encouraged to develop characters with their own internal code, even if that code bends or breaks under pressure. Maybe they won’t kill, but they’ll extort someone to get what they need. Or perhaps they’ll turn a blind eye to injustice because it’s not their problem. In noir, there are no hard moral lines—everyone has a point at which they might betray their own beliefs when things get tough.
The Noir Game
Noir games thrive on creating situations that force players to choose between bad options, where doing the “right” thing might come at a personal cost that’s too high to pay. Maybe they’ll have to turn a blind eye to a crime because the only witness is someone they can’t afford to cross. Or perhaps they’ll make a deal with a gangster to protect someone they care about, knowing full well that they’re stepping deeper into the criminal underworld. These aren’t just random obstacles; they are the driving force of the narrative. The choices your players make are what define their characters, and noir is all about testing how far they’re willing to go before they compromise their own beliefs.
In a noir game, the story and world itself will often push the players to make these morally ambiguous decisions. It’s not just about solving a mystery or stopping a villain—it’s about navigating a world that refuses to let them come out clean. Every action has consequences, and sometimes the only way to survive is to get your hands dirty. The key here is to make those consequences feel personal. The best noir games present situations where the stakes are high, but they’re tied to the players’ characters in such a way that they feel responsible for the outcomes, no matter how grim they are.
What makes this approach so powerful in a tabletop setting is that it asks the players to constantly reassess their own values. As they get pulled deeper into the murky waters of the noir world, they’ll find that staying true to their original goals becomes harder and harder. Maybe they start out wanting to be a force for good, but by the end, they’ve crossed lines they never thought they would. And in noir, that’s the point. It’s not about winning—it’s about surviving, and seeing just how much of yourself you lose along the way.
Ready to check out Dark Noir?
Ready to dive into the gritty world of noir? Download the free quickstart guide for Dark Noir on our BackerKit teaser page! It’s your chance to start building your own noir-inspired stories with your players and explore the moral complexities that define this captivating genre. Whether you’re a seasoned storyteller or new to tabletop role-playing games, the quickstart will give you everything you need to set the stage for thrilling adventures filled with moral ambiguity and unforgettable characters. Don’t miss out—grab your copy now and let the shadows guide your narrative!
