Three RPG one-shots from the last quarter that I'd happily run again.

Mothership: "Dead Planet"

Table setup with the Mothership rulebook and minis

Mothership is best in short form. The whole game is built around panic and bad odds. A one-shot is enough to set up the tension, deliver the horror, and end before the players figure out how to optimise their way out of it.

Brindlewood Bay: "The Body in the Library"

A whiteboard covered in clues and suspect names

Brindlewood works because the clues don't have a "real" answer. The players invent one and the game decides if they got it right. It sounds gimmicky on paper; in play it's one of the most satisfying mystery formats I've ever run.

Honey Heist: "The Big Salmon Job"

A bear puppet on the table next to character sheets

Honey Heist is the perfect "we have ninety minutes and one of us is too tired to think" game. You're a bear. You're committing a heist. Roll the dice and lean in.