 June 2002 Archive
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« May 2002 | Main | July 2002 »
08:03 PM: Greg Kessler says... In a story on Gaming Report.com, it has been reported that Wizards of the Coast has recently concluded a revision of their patent for the Magic. The purpose of the revision is to clarify WotC's ownership over the innovations that made Magic such a success. The net result of this revision could be EVERYONE GETTING SUED!! If WotC (or rather, Hasbro) decides that most card games violate their patent, they could attempt to prevent other companies from marketing collectable card games. How this fits in with the WotC Open Game License philosophy, only some real good defense lawers will tell. To read the entire article on Gaming Report.com click here.
09:23 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Matthew gives us the lowdown on GURPS Traveller Heroes 1: Bounty Hunters by Steve Jackson Games. Does the book manage to bring 'em back alive? Matthew tells all inside.
06:51 PM: Greg Kessler says... Malignant Games has announced the availability of a PDF demo version of their new game, Dread. By emailing their website you can get information on receiving the demo. Dread is a new modern horror game that, if nothing else has a good tag line.
03:28 PM: Greg Kessler says... Call of Cthulhu publisher, Chaosium is in the market for some twisted ideas. Chaosium has put out an open call for submissions to an upcoming Call of Cthulhu D20 project. For a submission packet, sample format and guidelines, drop an email to xenophon@att.net. Deadline for submissions is August 24th. Relatives and employees of Bruce Campbell are not eligible.
12:24 PM: Mike Sugarbaker says... Well, not really - his Line of Sight column on this week's big WotC hoo-hah is as level-headed as it is insightful. In my opinion Chainmail was mismarketed from the get-go, and it looks like a lot of people agree. But here's the thing: Monte's comments open up another thing GW gets right that Wizards may get wrong. Specifically, Games Workshop almost never kills a game. Old, out-of-print titles like Epic 40,000 and Blood Bowl? Not only can you still mail-order the models, but new bits of rules - yes, actual game support - are released online and in periodicals all the freakin' time. These people know how to support a game and support it cheaply, and as a result a lot of GW gamers are fanatically loyal to the company and the hobby. (However, when GW notices that a game isn't selling minis, they kill it deader than Elvis before you can blink - see Talisman.) Now, as an exercise, go down to your local game retailer and have a look at the Chainmail game product. Not the models, but the game - Blood and Ice, or Fire and Ghostwind or whatever those campaign things are. (Eww... I smell ghostwind.) Is there anything in those books that couldn't be printed three times as cheaply? Is there anything about the Chainmail models that couldn't be duplicated in the regular line of D&D models that's staying in production? Is there any reason to formally kill this game, rather than just selling it as a few books to go with your Dungeons and Dragons miniatures? Whatever. Just more proof that Wizards doesn't understand the minis-gaming market and would do better to stay out. As far as GW goes, it's their big Games Day weekend out in their American HQ-city Baltimore, and we may have a full report on it in the next couple of weeks. I have a good time razzing GW on this site, but I've actually gained a lot more respect for what they do, in the past several months working here at the store. Which leads me to my final point: today is the final day of my savage journey into the heart of the retail dream. I'm giving up my discount and moving on. I've learned a great deal but, well, if you see me at Origins, congratulate me.
03:14 PM: Greg Kessler says... Judges Guild Moves To Necromancer In a press release, Necromancer Games has announced their intention to update and revise the City State series and the entire Wilderlands campaign setting. Products not reprinted by Necromancer Games will be made available as PDF downloads on a Necromancer-hosted website. Of particular interest is the company's plan for a City-State of the Invincible Overlord Boxed Set next spring, packed with added tidbits and out-of-print materials. All of which begs the question, where in Faerun is the City-state of the Invincible Overlord located?
11:59 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Details are still sketchy at this point, but ENworld is reporting that Wizards of the Coast has sold off their periodicals department, sending both Dragon Magazine and Dungeon on their merry way. Rumors abound as to who has bought the department, but once something is confirmed, we'll let you know. It'll be interesting to see if Dragon still gets to post character class info and preview stuff once the departure from WotC is complete. Maybe they'll just make the inside front cover into a copy of the D20 OGL from now on.
07:43 PM: Greg Kessler says... End of a (really short) Era at Wizards of the Coast
01:30 PM: Greg Kessler says... Fantasy Flight Games has both posted an eight page PDF preview of their new D20 book Path of the Sword and announced the release of their new Traps & Treachery book. Traps & Treachery is going to be an indispensable codex of ways to kill off those pesky PCs with all manner of evil machinations (looks like a 21st century Grimtooth's Traps). Path of the Sword looks to to be a great collection of character expansions, among them new prestige classes, that will obviously be killed off by evil GMs wielding Traps & Treachery.
03:42 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Wizards of the Coast is continuing the countdown to the D20 Modern release in November by launching the D20 Modern section of their website. So far, there's not much there: the Charismatic Hero class, an introduction to the game, and a look at D20 Modern art. More is sure to follow, though. GamePlay Demo CD #3 Shipping
11:54 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... There are occasionally those who leave the Cave to seek greener pastures (don't know why... plenty of moss in here...). Case in point: Michael Suileabhain-Wilson, who wrote a review for us a while back. Turns out he's written GURPS Deadlands: Varmints as well, which is currently in playtest by those smart enough to be Pyramid subscribers. We may have to crawl out into the light and find a copy of Michael's book once it's ready. Them varmints is particularly tasty.
11:38 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... I go out of town for a couple of days, and Mike starts laughing maniacally. Hoo-boy. Let's do a little catch-up, shall we? From listening in to the Mongoose Publishing mailing list, I've confirmed suspicions that the September release, The Handbook of Prestige Classes, Volume 1, will contain Mongoose prestige classes right alongside of "the best classes from other publishers as well." I was wondering when someone was going to do this. T20 Stands To Be Huge, Despite Lack Of Arnold Abusing Mimes For Fun And Profit As Of Last Friday...
06:47 PM: Greg Kessler says... No matter how pure a pen a paper gamer tries to be, there is always some company trying to tempt them. Columbia Games has released new a HarnMaster Character Generator for PC and MAC. Columbia Games is offering free demo downloads on their site.
06:16 PM: Greg Kessler says... In a move certainly designed to start a nasty continuity fight among players, IHERO has published an online timeline for their signature game, I, HERO. Beginning in 1940 and running through July of 2002 their timeline includes tidbits like this:
12:54 PM: Mike Sugarbaker says...
12:35 PM: Greg Kessler says... Ogres are Coming to Dinner
05:09 PM: Greg Kessler says... Monte Cook and his new PDF
05:00 PM: Greg Kessler says... Transhuman Space: Personnel Files Entering Playtesting
05:34 PM: Demian Katz says... It's the middle of a new month, so Invisible City Productions has once again released a free game. This time it's Scoop!, a board game in which two to six players compete to be the first to sell three high-quality stories to the editor of the Action City Times. Solitaire rules are also included for the benefit of the lonely. As always, you can't beat the price.
05:07 PM: Greg Kessler says... This Friday June 21st, Chris Galvin and Kierin Chase, the developers of the extensive organized play (OP) program for the Star Wars trading card game (TCG), will be available at Wizards.com to discuss the new Jedi Nights organized play program events that will be available to players. The chat will take place from 5-6 p.m. PST at http://www.wizards.com/chat
10:26 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Green Ronin has just posted a four-page PDF preview for Hammer & Helm. Lurking within, you'll find eight feats, the Ironbound prestige class, and three priestly domains: Fortitude, Stonehearth, and Sword. There's some cool artwork as well. Fetch your ale, get your beard combed, and go have a look.
11:41 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Delayed by my previous computer's rattling death, resultant email recovery problems, and some OgreCave staff changes, we now have the winner of our "Borrow the Car" Car Wars contest posted for all to see. Naturally, we had so many great entries that we've posted quite a few of them for you to peruse. And by way of apology to Steve Jackson Games, the company behind the game we know and love, for the delay, OgreCave will provide the prizes itself. And now, enjoy the rambling pleading of young people attempting to get the car for a night of cruising and duelling.
03:36 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Even though Green Ronin and Paradigm Concepts have already announced their intertwined product lines under the OGL Interlock banner, they've now changed the title of the arrangement to OGL Interlink. "To avoid confusion with aspiring d20 publisher Interlock Games." Sounds fair, and I'm all for having less confusion. The plans Green Ronin and Paradigm have for the OGL Interlink crossover products remain otherwise unchanged.
09:58 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Okay, crappy title, but it's Monday. Give me a break. Green Ronin Publishing has added a few art galleries to their D20 product listings. First to be added are the Hammer & Helm gallery, showcasing the dwarves in the first of GR's Races of Renown series. The book itself will be along next month. We also get a look at the Book of the Righteous gallery, previewing the style of the 320-page hardcover religions supplement coming this August. Head on over and click away.
09:23 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... His latest expedition has taken Joe into the depths of Rappan Athuk 3: The Lower Levels by Necromancer Games. He seems to have enjoyed the ordeal, too. Go have a look and see why.
12:21 PM: Demian Katz says... Project Aon has been working really efficiently lately. With record speed, they've released the free online edition of The Dungeons of Torgar, the tenth Lone Wolf gamebook. As with the last release, both online-playable and downloadable PDF editions are available, and all of the original illustrations are included.
04:28 PM: Mike Sugarbaker says... Surprising no one, Rio Grande announced in its newsletter that it'd be picking up this reported frontrunner for this year's Spiel des Jahres and printing it in English, for a July release. I want to make a July 4th joke here but I can't quite make it work. In any case I'm excited to try this one.
01:45 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Phil Reed of Steve Jackson Games dropped us a note to let us know he'd be running Frag 3d games at Origins. He also sent along links to his Frag 3d Terrain Guidelines and Frag 3d Building pages. "I hope to see some people at Origins bring their own terrain so that we can greatly expand our available options," Phil said in his email. "There's currently enough terrain for a 4' x 5' game board (24 x 30 squares . . . a bit bigger than the 2d Frag maps)." The shots of a game in progress look outstanding, so more terrain would likely make for an incredible game session.
01:40 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... When I stopped by the office yesterday, I got a nifty bonus. David from Chaosium gave me a peek at a near-final draft of the creatures chapter from Secrets of Japan, the upcoming sourcebook for Call of Cthulhu. The chapter contained some excellent artwork of rather disturbing creatures, including a samurai-like beast that -- well, I wouldn't want to make that sanity check. A brief section at the end of the chapter mentions the influence various Great Old Ones have had on Japan's development. It was here that the book mentions Cthulhu's dreams may have influenced the anime industry, causing "tentacle horror" anime to be created. Gotta love a sourcebook that can explain that. Watch for Secrets of Japan to arrive this fall.
10:25 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Politically Incorrect Games has announced its cooperation with Mystic Ages Online to present us gamers with an "art rich" version of Eldritch Ass Kicking. The enhanced version will be released during GenCon, and will be available as a free upgrade to customers who already own the game. The current version sounds pretty good already: a 24-page PDF of wizard-on-wizard combat, with demon binding, spellcasting, and "rules for Official Ass Kicking" for a mere $5. I've always wanted to make my ass kickings "official." Sign me up.
11:22 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Next Monday, Fast Forward Entertainment wil unleash the Green Races Campaign Sourcebook, a 224-page hardbound d20 campaign based on FFE's Green Races adventures. In this setting, the Green Races -- trolls, goblins, orcs, and others -- slowly advance on the DragonElves and the BronzeMen, two different races fighting for survival. Should be interesting. Plus, it provides a great excuse to break out my horde of orc figures again... and again, and again.
12:52 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Deep7 has released its film noir RPG Mean Streets. The $7.95 game clocks in at 58 pages, all in PDF format of course. The game's first supplement, Vendetta, is due for a drive-by late next month, and will focus on organized crime in America. A trio of Mean Streets freebies are up on the official Deep7 fan site, so go take a look. The first three tastes are free, apparently.
12:38 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Missed an episode here or there? Need to check some details for a B5 game you're running? Or are you like Mike, who just picked up a copy of AoG's Babylon 5 Component Game System Core Set and needs to know how to tell the ships apart? No problem. In a recent usenet post, J. Michael Straczynski has confirmed that Babylon 5 will begin to see the light of day in DVD form. Season one will be released this fall, with various extras and commentaries that are still to be determined. Let the celebration begin!
12:36 PM: Mike Sugarbaker says... Knuckleduster has just released the Cowtown Creator, a Western-themed generic-citybook sort of thing for D20, FUDGE, and classic Deadlands rulesets. Is it me, or does the word "Cowtown" make you think of a hopeless backwater, rather than a general term for a Wild West town? But I can't think for a term for Wild West towns, besides "Wild West town." I reckon they had the same problem. (Hey, I got to say "reckon.")
11:27 AM: Mike Sugarbaker says... The boys over at Penny Arcade are very excited about an upcoming turn-based strategy game called Moonbase Commander, and you know what? After looking at the screenshots, I am too. So there.
11:01 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Joe has gone over Thunderhead Games' Bluffside: City on the Edge with a fine-toothed comb, and presents us with his findings. Looking for a city to drop into your campaign? Bluffside just may be for you.
02:10 PM: Mike Sugarbaker says... WizKids announced Monday that they've done a deal with the publishers of PC Gamer magazine to include a special redemption coupon in their September issue. The coupon plus five bucks will get you a limited edition MechWarrior figure not available anywhere else. I can see what PC Gamer will get out of this - lots of non-PC gamers fiending for one of their issues - but I wonder if it's going to have the cross-market promotional effect that WizKids would probably like. If you were a player of one or two of the MechWarrior games for PCs and you suddenly had an opportunity to pay $5 for a little plastic thing, would you do it? Hmm.
10:54 PM: Mike Sugarbaker says... The G to the R has some further notes on both the change of top execs at Wizards, and the perpetrators of the alleged financial fraud. According to their story, Hasbro has filed suit against two individuals. Oh my.
01:03 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Gaming Report has a story on exactly what I've heard floating around the rumor mill for the last day or so. According to their story, which I'm still trying to confirm, a lawsuit is being filed against a Senior VP at WotC who stands accused of funneling money out of the company and into his personal accounts. That's unconfirmed at this point, though. What is confirmed is that Vince Caluori has left Wizards of the Coast, Chuck Huebner has been appointed the new CEO, and Loren Greenwood has become COO. I believe both Chuck and Loren are Hasbro guys, and that Chuck resides on the opposite site of the country, so read into that what you will. The alleged fraud is a separate issue unrelated to Caluori leaving the company.
10:26 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... While the rumors of a change in management at WotC continue to fly, it's been confirmed that the company's looking for a new D&D world setting, and they're running a contest to get the next big idea -- possibly from you. By submitting a writeup of a D&D setting, anyone can have a chance at $120,000 and possible future gigs to write for the game line, should the setting be published. You can get the details from this page, then get your ideas sorted out and send 'em in. Unless you don't need the cash, or don't want to be known for creating the latest official world for D&D, of course.
10:06 PM: Mike Sugarbaker says... You know, it hadn't fully dawned on me until recently that 2001 was a really sad year for me, games-wise. Perhaps this didn't dawn on me because 2001 didn't actually get sad until 2002. To unpack that a little, I had two games I was collecting avidly in 2001 (both collectible, natch): Z-G and Vortex. Both are kinda dead on their feet now, although Z-G a little more so. Vortex is still around, but it isn't exactly lighting the world on fire, and I wouldn't bet on any expansions coming out soon to add more juice or address problems. Atomoton, on the other hand, hasn't updated their website in eight months and fell silent on its Yahoo group almost as long ago. It ain't looking good for the Zigs, kids. I bring this up for a couple of reasons. First: I've made excited posts every time a collectible game has threatened not to suck in the past few months. Why am I into these things? I think it has to do with the way they're so... public. Playing a CCG feels like being a part of the world, like swimming around in something bigger than you, rather than taking the whole thing home in a box (what a letdown). It was actually INWO that reintroduced me to gaming as an adult; maybe I'm just easily trainable. (Have I mentioned that INWO gets played at the store about twice a week these days?) Second, I took a swing by Tom Jolly's site last week, for the first time in much too long, and noticed his page on Variants for Vortex. He claims the Vortex pieces are ideally suited to designing other games around, and he might be right. In fact, Allan and I once spent about half an hour trying to come up with a Diceland-like game played with mixed armies of Vortex and Sack Armies tiles. So, maybe I'll be busting out the Vortex again. Thanks, Tom!
02:44 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Rumor has it that Vince Caluori, CEO of Wizards of the Coast, has announced he is leaving the company. Rumor also has it that a major shakedown of the company is about to be handed down by Hasbro, owners of WotC. Will Hasbro force WotC to begin selling off game properties soon? Who will be at the helm of WotC with Vince gone? Will WotC survive this round of Hasbro meddling? Stay tuned.
12:56 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Politically Incorrect Games has just posted a PDF preview of its new sci-fi RPG The Colonies. The site also mentions that Shadim, a fantasy RPG based on the same rule system as The Colonies, will be slightly delayed due to rules improvements that will be incorporated.
10:42 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Orion clambers into the Cave with his review of The Magic Dump by Monkeygod Enterprises. Did the contents outweigh the worst name yet for a D20 product? Go read the review and find out.
11:54 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Sure enough, I start hinting at something secret Green Ronin was planning related to Hammer and Helm: A Guidebook to Dwarves, and they go ahead and spill the beans. Green Ronin Publishing is working together with Paradigm Concepts to bring us OGL Interlock, "a series of related sourcebooks for d20 System." Starting with Paradigm's Races of Legend series and Green Ronin's Races of Renown series, the two companies will be working together to compliment each other's products. "Both companies decided to do a series of race books at the same time, so rather than go head to head we agreed to work together to cover more ground," says Chris Pramas, Green Ronin's main guy. "Now Paradigm is doing a giant book to complement our dwarf book and we're doing an orc book to complement their elf book. All the books will bear the OGL Interlock logo." How else will the books be connected? Why, by the cover art, of course. Each set of complimentary titles will have their cover art done by the same artist, such that lining up the two books next to each other will create a larger scene. The OGL Interlock action begins next month with the aforementioned Hammer and Helm: A Guidebook to Dwarves, which Paradigm will compliment with The Lords of the Peaks: The Essential Guide to Giants in August.
11:46 PM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Privateer Press has retrofitted the Iron Kingdoms website to fit their preferred look-and-feel, and things are looking good. The site has received several content updates as well, which includes the Rifleman Prestige Class. Part Spoiler, Part Preview Card
11:18 AM: Allan Sugarbaker says... Green Ronin has announced an increased page count for its upcoming Hammer and Helm: A Guidebook to Dwarves, bringing the total to 112 pages for $19.95. The book will go into print this week, and be available in July (and the cover has a secret to it I learned of at GTS, but I ain't telling). Aside from that, GR's d20 System Character Record Folio is bring printed yet again, so you should be able to get more copies soon. Heck, it even got nominated for an Origins Award in the Best Game Accessory category, so if you like it that much, give it your vote. Pocket Grimoire Arcane and Pocket Grimoire Divine, the volumes compiling D20 spells from a variety of publishers (including the core books) should be in stores by the end of June, and Secret College of Necromancy looked pretty damn good when I saw it at KublaCon last week. So go get it. Is This What I Think It Is? |
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