News Roundup: Actual Play Directory Offers Glimpse into Popular Games to Record

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In this week’s roundup, a new directory for TTRPGs offers a limited look at what games are most popular for podcasters and fans. We also feature Smosh’s latest AP experiment involving Jenga blocks as well as the promotional efforts of Critical Role to build hype for Campaign IV.

New RPG Actual Play Directory Offers Glimpse Into Breadth of Play

Earlier this week, I got a press release for RPGAP.com, a website that claims to offer the “most comprehensive directory of actual play podcasts and YouTube series available today.” I’ll let others be the judge of that. Directories like this are helpful for people wanting to get a glimpse of the top podcasts in a market, but whether consumers or fans will begin to use it will depend on a lot of questions around consumer behaviors, how people discover podcasts and discoverability.

What caught my eye about the website was the stats. The website organizes content based on what games are played. Here’s the top ten so far (as of Sept. 19, 2025)

1. Dungeons and Dragons 5e with 964 shows

2. Multiple Systems (aka podcasts that run more than one game) with 200

3. Pathfinder 1e with 78

4. Call of Cthulhu with 69

5. Delta Green with 53

6. Monster of the Week with 49

7. Pathfinder 2e with 42

8. Shadowrun with 33

9. Starfinder with 32

10. Vampire: The Masquerade with 29

MOTW’s prominence took me by surprise, but it makes a lot of sense since I was told by some creators that The Adventure Zone inspired a ton of podcasts to do MOTW-focused shows after Amnesty’s launch. Call of Cthulhu and Delta Green seem like great shows for podcasting and long-form narrative, and many of the other games have just been around for a while.

It is important to note that this data is somewhat limited in scope, as it relies on people submitting their shows and focuses primarily on YouTube and podcasts to the network or on others being discovered. It doesn’t appear that Twitch broadcasts is included in the data, which may skew the numbers a bit. It also doesn’t tell us which shows are popular, which shows have more listeners, or how active the shows might be.

But it’s a snapshot of what seems to stand out to consumers at this time and is worth a bit of poking and prodding around if you’re curious.

SMOSH is Filled with ‘Dread’ in Latest Live Performance Actual Play

Smosh, the popular comedy-themed YouTube channel, has experimented with actual play content for years and has even run D&D games in the past. But their latest game that they’re bringing to their live shows is DREAD, an indie horror game where dice rolls or cards do not decide your decisions, but by pulling Jenga blocks. It’s a game that Smosh has played in the past, according to their wiki.

The show has been going on since late July, but has released four episodes since them. The shows are recorded before a live audience in Los Angeles then released in VOD format at a later date.

Why play Dread? It’s a nice change of pace and perfect for live audiences, according to the GM.

“After six years of working and creating with the 5th edition of Dungeons & Dragons, Smosh gave me the opportunity to try something new with a less character-sheet-driven system, and Dread immediately came to mind,” Primavera told Bleeding Cool. “The way the tower acts as a visual and kinetic manifestation of tension is almost unreplicable, and it is so quick and easy to get talented improvisers and comedians into the game with minimal prep time. I don't think I could have predicted how gripping the tower's gradual transformation would be to a live audience, but the energy in the room is like nothing I've ever experienced playing TTRPGs.”

While I am far from the typical audience for SMOSH, I am excited to see them get new indie games in front of a new audience, and hope more people get to watch 

Three episodes are remaining, and the live shows are scheduled monthly through December.

Critical Role Campaign IV Teases Arrival With Character Art, Trailer

With the start of Campaign Four only weeks away, Critical Role is in the process of hyping up the new campaign. We got art for the 13 new characters as well as a new trailer that sets the stage for how this tale will begin.

Events appear to be scheduled to begin right at the execution of Thjazi Fang, setting a stage for our three different tables to meet together and then go their separate ways in pursuit of whatever story arc they wish to pursue.

I’m easily won over with cool character art, so seeing the 13 characters posted has made me want to try and watch Campaign 4 if and when I have time. We’ll see how long I last.

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