» 2004 » February
Friday, February 13, 2004
Cargo arriving at DunDraCon
Some of you may understand that title, others not, so let me elaborate: Tom Jolly’s Cargo, the new strategy boardgame from Wingnut Games, will be available for the first time at DunDraCon this weekend. The neat little game of shoving crates of tea around the docks at the Boston Tea Party was, well, held up at the docks of the Port of Oakland while customs was clearing it. But just in time for the con, the Cargo cargo was cleared and arrived in Wingnut hands this morning. Be sure to check the game out, whether you make it to DunDraCon or not. Gotta love a Tom Jolly title that reminds you of both Dig Dug and chess.
Thursday, February 12, 2004
WotC plans for D&D 30th anniversary
Wizards of the Coast has revealed more details about their celebratory events around the thirtieth anniversary of D&D. The coffeetable book, with as-yet-unnamed celebrities appearing in its pages, gets mentioned again, as does a new Basic Set and a huge party at Gen Con 2004. A worldwide D&D Game Day in early October is also in the works, and a plug for the D&D Miniatures works its way into the press release, though I didn’t see a 30th anniversary tie-in per se.
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Tuesday, February 10, 2004
Upper Deck adds to CCG plans
So on top of the DC CCG planned for July, the Marvel CCG at the end of March, and the TMNT TCG due this month (which manages to be a mouthful despite the abbreviation), Upper Deck has more news. According to ICv2, Upper Deck plans two more collectible games: the Shaman King CCG and the Bratz Fashion Party Fever CCG. I’m not familiar with the Shaman King, though I can apparently catch it on Fox’s Saturday morning line-up. However, the Bratz CCG, while possibly making inroads with the young girl market, won’t be entering my house. The wife and I deemed the entire Bratz concept to be a bad example for our daughter. They all look like they should talk like Rosie Perez on speed, and that ain’t good.
Monday, February 9, 2004
RPGs officially a threat to the state
Okay, people, we have a problem: 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that an Oregon prison inmate can’t receive roleplaying materials in the mail. Firstly, it’s White Dwarf that’s at issue (so to speak), so there aren’t any roleplaying materials in it… but the court doesn’t draw that distinction, and maybe it isn’t fair to ask it to split hairs as finely as we do. Apparently, the same prisoner had earlier been denied a subscription to the superhero comic Green Lantern, on the basis of an obscure law that’s been overturned, but the real motivation behind that was probably the same as that of this ruling: “to prevent inmates from placing themselves in fantasy roles that reduce accountability and substitute raw power for legitimate authority.” Uh, yeah: who’s got the raw power here, hoss?
It would be easier to decry such a stereotype about gaming materials if there weren’t (more than) a grain of truth in it. But my bigger concern is something else: the computing and Internet industries have been struggling in a similar fashion with judges that appear unwilling or unable to grasp all the subtleties of that which they’re passing legislation for. Have our subcultures become so complex that they outstrip the complexity of the law - that is to say, too complex to be healthy? Or are we just looking at the classic American schizophrenia of the mainstream versus the intellectuals/geeks/bohemians/whatever? This is just depressing - I mean, I don’t relish the thought of some con ordering up a box of bloodlusted Orks either, but still.
Mongoose lays the Smackdown
In the March/April issue of Game Trade Magazine, there’s a product listing for Games Company Smackdown by Mongoose Publishing. Due in April for $19.95, it seems to be, well, a game about running a game company. Here’s the blurb:
Packed full of strategy and intrigue, Games Company Smackdown is a game of bluffing, tactics, and empire building where players attempt to release their game into the market whilst ensuring that their opponents run into setbacks and delays through the help of corporate spies, geek fanboys, and budding entrepreneurs.
From the listing, I can’t tell if this will be one of new boardgames Mongoose has planned, or if it’s an RPG supplement.
Friday, February 6, 2004
Love still in the Cave
There’s only a little over a week in our Ogres in Love contest, in which we’ll be giving away a copy of The Slayer’s Guide to Ogres, coming out this month from Mongoose Publishing. Come up with 100 words or less describing an Ogre’s Valentine’s Day, and you could well end up with a free copy of the book. Or at the very least, your name and entry up on the site. Have a look at the contest details, and get to writing.
OgreCave Preview: CyborGladiators
Matthew’s brought us a pre-release look at CyborGladiators by Firefly Games. I got to test out the game at last October’s RPGnet Game Day: Oakland, and ended up losing a limb, then the combat to a really tough insectoid. The book’s at the printer right now, so see what you think with Matthew’s review, and watch for it in stores in a couple of weeks.
Sisterz are doing it for themzelvez
It seems like every post I make these days is about some absurd new Hasbro initiative, but here goes: the G-rizzle has obtained some info on Star Sisterz, a collectible charm-bracelet-based game that combines the popular beaded trinkets with truth-or-dare-style questions on cards. It is actually a Wizards of the Coast-branded product, but it’ll be carried in Limited Too, so maybe the coolness levels of the two will cancel out in the minds of female 11-year-olds. Interestingly, this will hit around the same time as Duel Masters.
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Mongoose Year in Preview
On the heels of Mongoose’s Starship Troopers announcement, the company has outlined this year’s planned releases. Bruce Graw, formerly of Agents of Gaming, has joined the Mongoose staff, and will bring his Babylon 5 Wars experience to the company’s plans for miniatures games. Planned product highlights include: a new boardgames division; Schism, a “mature” RPG about a war in Heaven; Judge Dredd: Turf Wars, a miniatures combat game; Mighty Armies, a 15mm fantasy miniatures wargame that will package an entire army for $19.95; and hints toward another unannounced license, based on “an old and very popular RPG”. Click “Read more” for the full release, and start your drooling.
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Starship Troopers licensed by Mongoose
Now that Conan: the RPG is out, Mongoose Publishing decided to get the impending license anticipation building again. The company’s newest license is Starship Troopers, the grim-and-gritty story of mankind versus aliens in a war to the death. Mongoose has plans for a licensed RPG in late 2004, based on the company’s Open Game system. In early 2005, Mongoose will follow the RPG release with a miniatures wargame, starting with a big boxed set of Mobile Infantry and Arachnids, and supported by additional minis, vehicles and armies throughout the year. Starship Troopers graphic novels will also be produced, arriving every so often in 2004. As long as Jake Busey doesn’t play the electo-fiddle again, I’m all for it.
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