 WARHAMMER
BORDED…This fall Fantasy Flight Games will
release a board game based on Games Workshop’s Warhammer Fantasy universe. Eric
M. Lang, who designed the Call of Cthulhu and A Game of Thrones card games has
designed Warhammer: Chaos in the Old World ($59.95). The game will feature a
tie-in to the Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning MMO in the form of two cards in
the first print run only. The Signet of the Cursed Company allows its owner to
become a skeletal warrior in the MMO. The Call to War will teleport the player
to his capital city. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 060509 |
 CRANIUM
SHUT DOWN…Just over a year ago Hasbro Inc
purchased the Seattle based game company Cranium Inc. This week Hasbro announced
they were closing their subsidiary’s Seattle office and laying off most of it’s
employees. The Pawtucket, R.I.-based Hasbro acquired Cranium in the first
quarter of 2008 for $77.5 million, bringing Cranium into the Hasbro family that
includes Monopoly, Clue, Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit. Cranium was invented in
1998 and employed 19 people in Seattle. 11 will be layed off, and 8 have been
offered positions at other Hasbro offices, including one at Wizards of the Coast
in Renton. The others would have to move to accept the new employment. The
employees will be offered competitive severance benefits and outplacement
services. The game itself will be merged into and run out of Hasbro's other
offices. The last day of operation is May 29. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer |
Posted: 052709 |
 DAVE
ANDERSON DIES…Dave Arneson, the co-creator of
Dungeons and Dragons, passed away yesterday in the company of his family. Both
Arneson and Gary Gygax (who died last year) designed games independent of each
other before teaming up to create the groundbreaking Dungeons and Dragons.
Together they created the first Dungeons and Dragons game in the early 1970’s,
which was subsequently released by TSR in 1974. Arneson later filed the first of
five lawsuits against TSR in 1979, which eventually resulted in his being
credited as the co-creator of Dungeons and Dragons. He returned to TSR in the
mid-80s and produced a series of modules for Blackmoor. In his later years,
Arneson worked in the computer industry, taught and also ran his own company:
Adventure Games. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: Various Sources |
Posted: 040909 |
 TWENTY
YEARS OF RUNNING…The 20th anniversary of the
Shadowrun RPG happens this year and Catalyst Game Labs is celebrating with two
big releases between now and the Fall. First up is the Shadowrun 4th Edition
20th Anniversary Core Rulebook ($44.99), a giant, full color 376-page rules
compendium that is fully compatible with all 4th Edition-published books. The
key to its complete integration with the full line of expansion rulebooks is a
22-page Master Index, covering not just the contents of the 4th Edition Core
Rulebook, but also the core rules expansions including: Arsenal, Augmentation,
Runner’s Companion, Street Magic, and Unwired. Then later this year look for the
release of the Runner’s Toolkit ($39.99), a box set of tools that should prove
as useful to regular players (runners) as it is to Game Masters (GMs). The
Runner’s Toolkit includes a giant (32 inches), 4-panel, hard-cardboard GM screen
featuring a stunning panoramic illustration of Seattle in 2072 plus lots of
items that will help both experienced “runners” and first timers enjoy the game. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 040209 |
 CONQUER
EUROPE FOR 70 BUCKS…This
November Z-Man Games takes you to colonial Europe in its
game Heads of State. Game play requires players to take
control of one of the European powers of the 16th
century and fight for economic/political domination over
the next three centuries. In order to become king
players will have to expect and deal with the Church,
assassination attempts, Machiavellian politics, and more
Designed by Peter Hawes, Heads of State looks to be a
faster, more German-style game than the classic
Diplomacy or its spin-offs; it's meant for two to five
players and playable in under two hours. MSRP is $70. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 100808 |
 PATHFINDER
RPG IS COMING...A Pathfinder RPG is coming from
Paizo Publishing and it will serve as the cornerstone
the company's Pathfinder adventures, sourcebooks, and
campaigns. The rules will be based on the Dungeons and
Dragon's 3.5 rules currently attainable through Wizards
of the Coast's Open Game License. With an August 2009
release date for the hardcover, alpha and beta testing
will happen over the course of this year. The first
alpha test version will be released in PDF form and
based on 3.5 rules with comments from gamers being
solicited and incorporated into later releases. Various
other Pathfinder related PDF products will also be
released in the coming months. After further playtesting,
a hardcover Pathfinder RPG will be released in August of
2009. Until that time, all Pathfinder products will be
based on the current 3.5 rule set, with future products
(after August of 2009) based on the updated Pathfinder
system but backward compatible to 3.5 ( this will be
their irst attempt at an update of the 3.5 rule system.)
Paizo also hopes to provide online fan-created 4.0
conversions for the game. Paizo will also support 4.0
through a complete line from partner company Necromancer
Games, which will produce a 4th Edition version of its
Tome of Horrors monster encyclopedia, plus other player
and gamemaster support products. Paizo has hired Nicolas
Logue, who co-founded the Living Greyhawk organized play
campaign during his tenure at Wizards of the Coast, to
run its organized play program for Pathfinder.
Convention, in-store, and home play events will be
supported with online scenarios available from Paizo.
Paizo launched the Pathfinder brand in the form of a
monthly release last year after the cancellations of
Dragon and Dungeon magazines. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 032508 |
 SCRAPING
THE BOTTOM OF THE CREATIVE BARREL…Universal
Pictures and Hasbro have teamed up for the next six
years to produce at least four feature films based on
some of Hasbro's best-known game and toy brands says
Reuters. Hasbro has the option of co-funding production
of the films and will retain all merchandising rights to
the brands with the first film to be out by 2010 or 2011
and at least one film a year released after that. The
deal does not cover either Transformers or G.I. Joe but
do cover the games Monopoly, Candy Land, Clue, Ouija,
Battleship, Magic, the Gathering and Stretch Armstrong.
Writer David Berenbaum is already writing a draft for
Ouija and Michael Bay's Platinum Dunes will produce.
Hasbro is in negotiations with Ridley Scott for him to
make a Monopoly film. If you recall, months back Scott
made it clear that he was interested in such a project
so that one is a go. Hasbro will co-finance script
development with Universal and has the option of
co-funding production of the films. The toy company will
retain all merchandising rights to the brands with the
two companies sharing in consumer products revenue
generated by the movies. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: Reuters |
Posted: 031708 |
 AVALON
HILL AT THE HALF CENTURY….Wizards of the Coast
will celebrate the 50th anniversary of its Avalon Hill
division by releasing an array of products in both the
board game and miniature categories. The most fitting
celebration of the Avalon Hill anniversary will be a new
edition of the company's signature game -- The Axis &
Allies Anniversary Edition (MSRP $100). Designed by
Larry Harris, the original designer of the game, the
Anniversary Edition will feature the debut of Italy as
the third Axis nation, the introduction of the cruiser
unit to the naval lineup, and the largest Axis & Allies
game board ever, which will measure 24 x 46 inches. The
new edition of Axis & Allies, which will feature more
than 600 pieces, will be available in October. Avalon
Hill is resurrecting two classic board games in 2008.
Diplomacy (MSRP $30), a strategy war game that will
feature all new packaging and components, is due out in
March followed by a revival of Acquire (MSRP $30), which
will also have new packaging and components, in June. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 031708 |
 MONGOOSE
IN YOUR FUTURE…Mongoose Publishing has been
having printing problems of late and has opted to
abandon in-house printing and instead switched to
printers in the U.S. This has created II $29.95 (RuneQuest),
and The Lurker's Guide to the Gaim $24.95 (Babylon 5).
April...In April Mongoose will release Traveller RPG
$39.95, Spinward Marches $24.95 (Traveller), Castle
Brass $29.95 (RuneQuest Hawkmoon RPG), and Trial of
Blood $34.95 (Conan).
May...May releases include Mercenary $24.95 (Traveller),
Patrons $29.95 (Traveller), Cities of Hyboria $24.95
(Conan), and BF Evolution: World at War $29.95 (Wargame
rules).
June...June books include Ruins of Glorantha $24.95 (RuneQuest),
High Guard $24.95 (Traveller), Cults of the Young
Kingdom $24.95 (RuneQuest Elric), and Cimmeria $29.95
(Conan). |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: Mongoose |
Posted: 031708 |
 CALL
THE ASSOCIATION SOMEONE'S GETTING WACKED...Endless
Games will release a game based on the Godfather film
trilogy in June. The game for players 13 and up will
retail for $15.99. Players will answer trivia questions
to collect cards with "family" members in order to build
their own families. But players can also order hits to
add or lose family members while they try to become
"made" gamers Endless Games has a number of TV-based
games, including The Newlywed Game, Family Feud, and
Password. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 031708 |
 CO-CREATOR
OF THE RPG DIES...Ernest Gary Gygax, who
co-created the fantasy game Dungeons & Dragons and is
widely seen as the father of the role-playing games,
died Tuesday morning (030408) at his home in Lake
Geneva, Wisconsin. He was 69. He had been suffering from
health problems for several years, including an
abdominal aneurysm, said his wife, Gail Gygax. Gygax was
a science fiction fan as a child who began to play
wargames as a teen. It was through that hobby that Gygax
met various people that would help him later co-many
volumes of early Dungeon & Dragons books. Disenchanted
with the much stricter, strategic goals of wargaming at
that time, Gygax and D & D co-creator Dave Arneson
developed Dungeons & Dragons in 1974 using medieval
characters and mythical creatures. D & D appealed to
many wargammes at the time because of the
looser-than-usual combat and magic rules combined with
the introduction of classroom exercise-type role-playing
to the scenarios in question. To the world at large the
game became known for its oddly shaped dice and the
rabid devotion it created in many of its primarily
teenage boy players, earning itself the reputation as
being the “quintessential geek pastime”. Gygax and Don
Kaye started Tactical Studies Rules in 1973 and together
they published the first version of D&D in 1974, a
1000-copy print run that immediately sold out. Over the
next few decades Gygax would have a tumultuous
relationship with the game he co-created. He bought
Kaye's shares from his widow after he died, renamed the
company, later sold two-thirds of the company to the
Blume Brothers, struggled with various officers over the
company's direction, left the company in the middle
1980s and eventually settling with the company which
would in turn be purchased first by Wizards of the Coast
and then by Hasbro, its current rights holder. Gygax’s
credits also include the design of other well-regarded
games, authoring several books, editing a few random
comics, writing a column for the now defunct Dragon
Magazine and serving as a kind of elder ambassador for
the hobby he helped make so popular. Approximately 20
million people are believed to have played some version
of Dungeons and Dragons and if you play any current ccg/cmg/rpg
or even videogame you have Gary Gygax to thank for
helping to start it all. He is survived by his current
wife, three sons and three daughters. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: Various Sources |
Posted: 030608 |
|
HASBRO
LOBOTOMIZES CRANIUM…Wacky and clever are two
words often used to describe Cranium, the Seattle based
game company that helped redefine board games and its
new owner Hasbro just announced Monday (030308) that
about 40 Cranium employees will be laid off as the new
parent company takes control of the Seattle board-game
company, but 20 others get to keep their jobs. Hasbro
announced that it will retain about a third of Cranium's
staff in Seattle (most of those staying are designers
and marketers) while the 40 jobs being eliminated are in
finance, logistics and sales. The layoffs will take
effect over the next two months but Hasbro promises
laid-off employees a "comprehensive and competitive
severance package." Some will have the chance to apply
for jobs elsewhere with Hasbro, including its
380-employee Wizards of the Coast division in Renton,
the company said. Hasbro ranks as the world's largest
distributor of board and card games with a portfolio
that includes Monopoly, Clue and Scrabble. Cranium
distributed a handful of its 40-plus games, books and
toys to about 20 countries outside the U.S. and Canada
as of January. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: Seattle Times |
Posted: 030608 |
 TRUE
20 REVISED AND FREE....Green Ronin has announced
it will revise it's True20 Adventure Roleplaying system
and the revised True20 core rulebook will be released in
April. The new book, True20 Adventure Roleplaying,
Revised Edition, will not be new rules, but will replace
the sample settings with the entire True20 Companion and
include all the errata for both books. Three other
releases for the True20 system are planned for 2008:
Experts Handbook was released in February, and the
Adepts Handbook while the Warrior's Handbook will
release later this year. Green Ronin also announced that
fees for use of the True20 system will be eliminated;
other companies will be able to use the system under the
current Open Game License. The True20 system was created
for Blue Rose: The Roleplaying Game of Romantic Fantasy,
but the rule set is a fit for all genres. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 030608 |
 A
BACCHUS BANQUET ON ANTLER ISLAND...Fragor Games
and Mayfair are offering a limited quantity of the new
board game Antler Island for U.S. sale as part of the
Mayfair Select line. Antler Island was created by the
Lamont Brothers, who also created Shear Panic. In the
game, stags compete for the eyes of the does as they
head for the best breeding grounds. Antler Island is for
three to four players, 10 and up, and can be played in
35-45 minutes. MSRP is $60. Mayfair also announced
Bacchus' Banquet, a new game designed by Frederic
Moyersoen, which will street April 10th. Players take
the roles of nine guests at a banquet in the time of
Caligula, each with a secret objective. The game
includes 110 cards, five player displays, five belt
buckles, and a rulebook. Bacchus' Banquet will have an
MSRP of $20. It's for three to eight players, eight and
up, and can be played in 30+ minutes. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 030608 |
 GW
PARTNERS WITH FFG...Roseville,
Minnesota’s Fantasy Flight Games (FFG) and Games
Workshop (GW) of Nottingham, UK jointly announced on
Friday (022208) that they have reached an agreement for
Fantasy Flight Games to become the exclusive publisher
of board games, card games (including collectible card
games), and role playing games based on Games Workshop’s
family of intellectual properties including Warhammer
Fantasy Battles and Warhammer 40,000. The deal will also
grant FFG the exclusive rights to publish new versions
of the classic board and card games titles published by
Games Workshop over the last 25 years. Additionally, a
second agreement between the parties will transfer the
publication rights and system of the Universal Fighting
System CCG, formerly published by Sabertooth Games, to
FFG. “We are just so thrilled to partner with Games
Workshop in such an encompassing deal,” said Christian
T. Petersen, CEO and founder of FFG. “Not only will we
be able to continue the publication of some phenomenal
role playing, card, and board games currently on the
market, but we look forward to creating new games for
the popular GW universes!” FFG will take over the
production of Talisman, and plan to produce a new
printing and expansions for the 4th edition of this
popular classic board game. Further, FFG will continue
production and new-product support for the Universal
Fighting System CCG, the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay RPG,
and the new smash-hit Dark Heresy RPG. The agreement
does not include certain GW titles in which miniatures
feature as the predominant component of the game, such
as Space Hulk and Blood Bowl. The Universal Fighting
System CCG will continue to be sold as starter and
booster packs in a traditional CCG format. FFG has no
current plans to adopt the game to its LCG™ (“Living
Card Game”) sales model. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: Various Sources |
Posted: 022408 |
 THE
D20 MONEY TRAIN HITS CHECKPOINTS....If
you're a developer who likes to dink around and
customize D&D rules get ready for atrip to red tape
land. Wizards of the Coast has announced that it will be
making 4th Edition D&D content available to developers
now via a new two-phase release structure. Phase One of
the 4th Edition roll-out is spotlighted this month with
the availability of an OGL Designer's Kit (which will
cost you $5,000). It is designed for independent
publishers looking to get early access to 4th Edition
rules in order to be able to release compatible 4th
Edition products by August 1st, 2008. In order to obtain
an OGL Designer's Kit you must possess a business
license and execute a Non-Disclosure Agreement prior to
contract communication. The OGL Designer's Kit includes
pre-publication versions of the 4th Edition Rulebooks
(Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, and Monster
Manual) as well as a pre-pub version of the System
Reference Document (SRD), an Opening Gaming License (OGL),
a License Guide, registration card, updated documents as
the rules are finalized, and advance copies of all the
finished core rulebooks. WotC is selling these kits for
the first time to establish a minimum bar for early
entry into the OGL publishing world and give a leg up to
publishers that are serious about creating books
compatible with 4th Edition. Phase Two of the OGL
rollout is scheduled for June 6th, 2008 when WotC will
provide free public availability for the 4th Edition SRD
and OGL. Although the SRD will be live upon release, the
free OGL won't go live until January 1st, 2009, which
means that developers who buy the OGL Designer's Kits
will be able to publish on August 1st (just in time for
GenCon), but those who wait for the free materials in
June will not be able to publish their 4th Edition
compatible works until January 1st, 2009. So pony up
your five grand and get your paperwork in order if you
want to make a buck off 4th Edition. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 011008 |
 SMART
MOVE...Hasbro Inc.,
the world's second-largest toy company, has agreed to
buy privately held board game maker Cranium Inc. for
about $77.5 million. The final price in the all-cash
deal will be based on Cranium's assets at closing. If
the deal is approved by Cranium's shareholders, Cranium
will become a subsidiary of Hasbro, which has agreed to
pay down Cranium's debt. If the deal goes through,
Hasbro will acquire Cranium's creative team and a line
of successful games including Cranium, Zooreka,
Hullabaloo, and Hoopla. Cranium Inc. has sold over 22
million games, toys and books in the nine-plus years
since Richard Tait and Whit Alexander introduced the
Cranium party board game in 1998. Like Monopoly and most
of Hasbro's popular board games, the Cranium games have
been popular in the mass market though they have
received hobby distribution as well |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: CNBC |
Posted: 011008 |
|
AND
HOW WILL THEY PAY FOR IT?...Hasbro
Inc. announced Wednesday it will cut 200 manufacturing
and support jobs at a western Massachusetts factory, but
will invest $40 million to modernize the board game
plant. About 1,350 people work at the plant in East
Longmeadow, just outside Springfield. The job cut begins
next month and represent about 3 percent of the
5,800-person global work force at Pawtucket, R.I.-based
Hasbro. The company also said it will immediately invest
$10 million to modernize equipment at the plant, as part
of a $40 million investment planned over the next few
years for new molding machines, high-speed assembly
lines and new printing and dye-cutting equipment. Most
of Hasbro's board games will continue to be manufactured
in East Longmeadow and a plant in Waterford, Ireland,
the company said. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: CNBC |
Posted: 011008 |
 TO
US FROM GERMANY VIA TEXAS...Rio
Grande Games has penned an agreement with the German
company Selecta-Spielzeug to produce English language
versions of some of their best games. For over 30 years
Selecta has been producing high quality, durable games
for a younger audience. Their games feature wooden
components painted with colorful designs using
child-safe water-based primary colors. Rio Grande will
begin releasing English language versions of Selecta
Games in February with Piratissimo, Fruitirelli, Giro
Giloppo, Viva Topo, and Mago Magino. Piratissimo, which
debuted in 2005, is an exciting pirate adventure board
game for the entire family (ages 6 and up). It provides
plenty of action and takes only 30 minutes to play. Viva
Topo, which won the 2003 Kinderspiel des Jahres
(Children's Game of the Year), is a delightful board
game for players ages 4 and up. Players take on the role
of mice (using cute color-coded 3-D wooden mouse tokens)
and attempt to earn cheese by reaching goals on the game
board, but players must manage risk and reward carefully
because a cat is lurking, ready to grab the first
unlucky mouse that overreaches. Reiner Knizia designed
Mago Magino (2004), an exciting board game for players
ages 5 and up. A witch has stolen crystals from the
wizard Mago Magino and players have to help him recover
them, but the witch is dangerous -- she can turn the
players into small frogs if they are not careful. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: Boardgame News |
Posted: 011008 |
 BECAUSE
KIDS LOVE EGYPTOLOGY...This
March look for the release of Mayfair Game's Horus, a
game that combines card and tile play in a unique
contest in which two to four players vie for control of
the river Nile and the kingdom of ancient Egypt. The
easy-to-learn game (for ages 10 and up) contains a
surprising amount of strategic and tactical elements as
players attempt to extend their own territory and block
the efforts of opponents to control vital areas of the
all-important Nile basin. Designed by H. Jean Vanaise,
the deluxe Horus game (MSRP $35) includes 54 cards, 120
tiles, 80 wooden kingdom markers, a tile bag, and rules.
|
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: Boardgame News |
Posted: 011008 |
 NEW
BLOOD IN THE HIDDEN CITY...Veteran
game designers Luke Crane and Jared Sorensen have been
named to the newly created post of Senior Game Designer
at Hidden City Games. Sorensen has worked on numerous
games, both paper and electronic. Most recently he was
content designer for the online Lord of the Rings:
Shadow of Angmar for Midway Games. Crane designed the
award-winning RPG The Burning Wheel in 2003 and the
Origins Best RPG Award-winning sequel Burning Empires in
2006. Peter Adkison, CEO of Hidden City Games, which is
currently focused on the girl-targeted Bella Sara TCG,
commented: "Crane and Sorensen's contributions to the
roleplaying game industry make them ideal choices for
the direction Hidden City Games is headed with our
upcoming projects," which would appear to indicate that
Hidden City Games is about to expand its horizons. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 011008 |
 COME
TO ME MY X-BUGS...ThIs
month European game manufacturer Nexus Editrice will
release Micro Mutants Evolution, a re-tooled, complete
board game version of X-Bugs (Fantasy Flight will
release the title in the U.S.). Additionally this
month look for the release of Micro Mutants (updated by
X-Bugs designers Francesco Nepitello and Marco Maggi).
It will use the same principles as X-Bugs, but offer
quicker play, overhauled and corrected armies, and
better components, including a playmat. X-Bugs and its
successor Micro Mutants both update the traditional
tiddlywinks game, with armies of bugs that have unique
powers and different peculiarities. The first Micro
Mutants set is Evolution and will include the four base
armies of the game: Flylborg, Chitinians, Sovietopters,
and Usarthropods. The next Micro Mutants release will
add new versions of two X-Bugs armies, and introduce two
new breeds. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 011008 |
 TOP
FIVE...ICV2 recently released their
current TOP FIVE list of RPG’s and TOP FIVE list
of board/card & family games.
Here’s what’s hot in the market right now:I
TOP FIVE RPG'S:
1. Dungeons and Dragons
2. World of Darkness
3. Scion
4. Battlestar Galactica
5. Exalted
TOP FIVE BOARD/CARD & FAMILY GAMES:
1. Settlers of Catan
2. Ticket to Ride
3. Last Night on Earth
4. Talisman
5. Carcassonne |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman" Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 011008 |
 WotC
BUTTONS UP 4TH EDITION...If
you’re looking for d20 STL (System Trademark Licensing)
related products in the future you will be sorely
disappointed. Wizards of the Coast has announced on the
EN World message boards that there will be no OGL (Open
Game License) as related to the 4th Edition D&D and the
only related products from this update will be from
Wizards only. WotC first introduced the OGL in 2000, and
at that time it also instituted a program that provided
a separate license (the d20 System Trademark) that
granted third party publisher’s usage of some WotC's
trademarked terms and a separate, distinctive logo to
identify these hybrid products.
All d20 products were required to be
based on the D&D core rulebook as well as
acknowledge that they were an outgrowth of the core
rulebook. The OGL and the d20 STL led to the creation of
many new companies specifically focused on producing d20
role-playing content. These companies subsequently
glutted the RPG market with d20 products during a time
when the market was already overburdened from various
forms of electronic RPGs and more recently MMORPGs
(massively multi-player online role-playing games).
In the last few years the number of
products from third party publishers using the d20 STL
has been declining, so the effect of WotC's pulling the
plug on the d20 STL may be minimal for a market
standpoint at this time. What this move does do is
consolidate the D & D intellectually property back
solely within the confines of WotC and their D & D
product line. |
|
Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman"
Davis
Source: En World |
Posted: 111507 |
 SEE
THE MOVIE, PLAY THE GAME...This month University
Games will release a board game based on the Spiderwick
Chronicles movie, which will open nationwide on February
15th. The deluxe Spiderwick Chronicles Board Game (MSRP
$24.99) features art from the film, which closely
follows the intricate designs in the Spiderwick
Chronicles YA novels by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi.
In the movie, which condenses the plots of five short
novels into one coherent narrative, Freddie Highmore
(Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) plays twins who move
into a ramshackle Victorian house with their mother
(Mary Louise Parker) and older sister (Sarah Bolger).
When one of the twins discovers their great uncle's
Fantastical Field Guide to Faires, which is coveted by a
ten-foot shaping-shifting ogre (played by a typecast
Nick Nolte), the action in this clever compendium of
fairy and goblin folklore really heats up. University's
Spiderwick Chronicles Board Game, which is subtitled
"The Fantastical Field Guide Mystery Game" replicates
the action of the movie as goblins chase the children
who have to discover the Field Guide and race to Uncle
Spiderwick before the goblins can capture them. The
deluxe game features a 3-D Spiderwick Estate as well as
molded plastic goblins. University also plans to release
a 200-piece Spiderwick Chronicles Puzzle (MSRP $7.99),
which depicts the Gothic Victorian intricacies of Uncle
Spiderwick's secret study. In addition to the board game
and the puzzle University Games is also releasing a
stand-alone Spiderwick Chronicles Card Game ($5.99) in
December. |
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Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman"
Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 111507 |
 PLAYER
BASE MAY OUTSTRIP THE READER BASE...Hero
Games will design, write, and publish a PS238
Roleplaying Game based on Aaron Williams' PS238 comics.
Williams will create the cover for the game, which is
tentatively scheduled for March 2008. Hero's Champions
rule system is seen as a good fit for Williams' story
about a school for young superheroes. Hero System Line
Developer Steve Long said that in order to make the RPG
kid-friendly, the PS238 RPG will use a form of Hero's
simplified Sidekick rules. Williams' PS238 comics and
trade paperbacks are published by Dork Storm Press.
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Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman"
Davis
Source: ICV2 |
Posted: 111507 |
 PALLADIUM
DUSTS OFF ITS ROBOTECH LICENSE...Palladium
Books and Harmony Gold have announced
that Palladium has once again
acquired the rights to produce role
playing game products based on
Robotech. The license includes both
the TV series and the recent feature
Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles.
Palladium's first release will be
Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles RPG,
planned for a late November release.
In homage to the Japanese origins of
the Robotech property, the RPG will
be released in a 192-page, manga-size
trade paperback. It will be written
by Palladium founder Kevin Siembieda,
who also wrote the original Robotech
RPG, with cover by Apollo Okamura.
Palladium has indicated that its new
Robotech books will use some of the
best artwork and text from its
previous Robotech RPG releases, but
says that "all of the new books will
be substantially rewritten, expanded
upon, and illustrated with much new
artwork." All will be released in 5"
x 7" formats, with the hope that they
will appeal not only to Robotech RPG
fans, but also to Robotech fans that
just want more info about the world.
Special larger-sized deluxe editions
are under consideration. The timeline
of the new game books will be brought
into line with current continuity.
Rules will be modified and updated
from the original, and statistics
adjusted. Palladium promises that
considerable attention will be paid
to the Southern Cross segment of the
Robotech storyline. No reprints of
old Robotech sourcebooks or games are
planned.
The scheduled order of release for
Palladium's Robotech line:
-Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles RPG
-New Generation/Invid Sourcebook
-The Macross Sage RPG
-Southern Cross Sourcebook
Plus more sourcebooks for them all,
rewritten and retold.
Palladium has had a long relationship
with the Robotech going back over 20
years. It held the RPG license from
1986 to 2000, and was the first
company to release Sentinels,
Southern Cross, and New Generation (Mospeada/Invids)
on videotape. Palladium sold
approximately 150,000 of the basic
Robotech RPG volume during that
period, which does not include sales
of sourcebooks or the Sentinels RPG.
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Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman"
Davis |
Posted: 100907 |
 ANOTHER
APOCALYPSE...Mind
Storm Labs is launching its first
game, Alpha Omega RPG, in early
November with the Alpha Omega Core
Manual ($45 MSRP). Alpha Omega is set
in a post-apocalyptic Earth where
aliens are waging war on the planet
and threaten to destroy what's left
of humanity. The Core Manual has more
than 300 full-color pages, featuring
hundreds of illustrations. The goal
of Alpha Omega designers David Carter
and Earl Fischl was to create an
adaptive rule set simple, flexible,
and detailed enough to accurately
represent the real world, and which
enables characters to evolve and act
without the restrictions of classes
or levels. The rules have optional
layers of complexity to allow players
to either simplify and expedite game
play or add more realism or
challenge.
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Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman"
Davis |
Posted: 100907 |
 LAZY
SETTLERS...Mayfair
Games will relaunch its flagship
Settlers of Catan game line,
consistently the #1 board/family game
in hobby shops, on November 8th. The
relaunched game will be new inside
and out, starting with new cover art
by Volkan Bager. Interior graphics
will also be new, with new tile and
card art, full color rules, and an
all sea interlocking board frame. The
relaunch also includes the expansions
Catan: Seafarers and Catan: Cities &
Knights, as well as the corresponding
5- and 6-player extensions. Catan
designer Klaus Teuber was closely
involved with the new designs, and
has given his stamp of approval for
the relaunch. Mayfair calls this "the
most ambitious project of its company
history." The full list of the
relaunched products, with MSRPs, is
as follows:
-The Settler's of Catan $42.00
-The Settlers of Catan 5 & 6 Player
Extension $20.00
-Catan: Seafarers Game Expansion
$42.00
-Catan: Seafarers 5&6 Player
Extension $20.00
-Catan: Cities & Knights Game
Expansion $42.00
-Catan: Cities & Knights 5-6 Player
Extension $20.00
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Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman"
Davis |
Posted: 100907 |
MORE
BANG FOR THE BUCK...Mayfair
Games has announced that it will
release Bang! The Bullet, a new
package that will include four
previously released games plus extras
for a $39 MSRP. This new release will
include every Bang! card previously
released, plus extras. It will
include the basic Bang! Game, and the
first three expansions: High Noon,
Dodge City, and a Fistful of Cards.
Extras include two new cards for High
Noon, three special characters, two
blank cards, and a sheriff's badge.
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Submitted by: Tim "Comicbookman"
Davis |
Posted: 100907 |
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