Gen Con announcements have started rolling in, and Margaret Weis Productions sent a pair of good ones. First, a reaffirmation that the Battlestar Galactica RPG will make its debut at Gen Con, as will a Quickstart Guide which contains a full adventure. Second, the animated movie trailer for Dragonlance: Dragons of Autumn Twilight will be shown Thursday night at the show, along with behind the scenes footage from Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. More details in the press releases below.
Pair of Margaret Weis Productions press releases follow:
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA RPG DEBUTS AT GEN CON INDY!
The Battlestar Galactica Role Playing Game from Margaret Weis Productions, Ltd. goes on-sale for the first time at the Gen Con Game Fair in Indianapolis, Indiana on Thursday, August 16, 2007. The product will be available in the US hobby and book trades in September. The game is based on the re-imagined television series that begins its fourth and final season on the SciFi Channel in January 2008.
The Battlestar Galactica RPG uses the Cortex System (the same game rules featured in the best-selling Serenity Role Playing Game) and emphasizes a fast pace, role playing, and character development. Players can join the action as the characters from the show, or create completely original characters independent of the core storyline explored in the television series. The book also reveals information about the universe, ships and space travel, Cylons, and storytelling styles in the BSG universe.
MWP is hosting two separate Battlestar Galactica game events at Gen Con this year that run all four days. The staff will be on-hand at booth #2417 to answer questions and autograph copies of the game. Also available is the Battlestar Galactica RPG Quickstart Guide, a preview product that contains a full adventure.
For more information, visit the following links:
Battlestar Galactica Role Playing Game – http://www.bsg-rpg.com (coming soon!)
Battlestar Galactica Television Series – http://www.scifi.com/battlestar
Margaret Weis Productions, Ltd. – http://www.margaretweis.com
DRAGONLANCE MOVIE TRAILER TO PREMIERE AT GEN CON INDY!
Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman are thrilled to announce the world premiere of the trailer for the upcoming film, Dragonlance: Dragons of Autumn Twilight, at the Gen Con Game Fair in Indianapolis, Indiana. The trailer for the animated fantasy film will be shown on Thursday night at 6:00 PM CDT (final location to be announced) along with footage shot by both Weis and Hickman during their journey alongside the filmmaking process.
Margaret Weis Productions, Ltd. will be hosting the authors in booth #2417, along with actor Jason Marsden, who portrays Tasslehoff Burrfoot in the animated film. Weis, Hickman, and Marsden will be signing autographs and answering questions about the movie for the fans — who can also receive special Dragonlance movie collector’s cards available only at the convention.
Dragons of the Highlord Skies, the second book in the Lost Chronicles trilogy by Weis & Hickman will be available at the show. Dragons of Krynn, the definitive sourcebook about the legendary creatures in the world of Dragonlance, will debut at the convention in a full-color hardcover that features essays by a number of best-selling fantasy authors.
For more information, visit the following links:
Dragonlance Movie – http://www.dragonlance-movie.com
Dragonlance Novels – http://www.wizards.com/books/
Dragonlance Games – http://www.dragonlance.com
Margaret Weis – http://www.margaretweis.com
Tracy Hickman – http://www.trhickman.com
Jason Marsden – http://www.earthless.com/ijm/homepage.htm
What the press release (and your article) doesn’t mention is that the BSG RPG quickstart guide is available for $7 (download) and $10 (hard copy, I believe). It is a 32 page product and includes a unique adventure that won’t be featured in the rulebook.
While there’s been some criticism already of the MWP charging for their quick-start (unlike, say, WW’s recent Changeling demo kit), Jamie Chambers (VP at MWP) noted the following:
* The basic rules are available for free as the preview of the quick-start rules via DriveThru RPG. Those free rules don’t include the ships, adventure and characters.
* MWP will be releasing a free web-enhancement upgrade designed to upgrade the adventures and characters from the quick-start to the full rules.
To balance, Green Ronin’s M&M Beginner’s Guide is priced similarly (although is in color).
The BSG RPG Quickstart’s been available since Friday via DriveThruRPG and RPGnow.
$44.99 for a 220 page rule-book is feeling spend-y on this one. Just in comparison to some other things…
Interesting times.