16
Mar

Vintage Gamer #8: Top Secret (RPG)

   Posted by: Jim   in Podcasts, Role-playing games

This week, the espionage roleplaying game Top Secret. Pick your cover carefully, and don’t forget your watch with the sawblade.

Show notes:

  • A song of spring and iTunes
  • Basic character creation
  • Common gameplay: shooting, fighting, obtaining information
  • Brief coverage of Top Secret/SI
  • Thoughts on Top Secret today
  • Next time: GDC reports

Top Secret Links:

icon for podpress  Standard Podcast: Download (1521)
This entry was posted on Thursday, March 16th, 2006 at 6:34 am and is filed under Podcasts, Role-playing games. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

7 comments so far

Charley Eastman
 1 

In response to your inquiry about out of print expensive hard to find games versus cheap and available–I’ll take cheap and available every time. Unless there is a way to make the old game without stealing from anyone. But barring that, I’m just not interested in hearing about games that I won’t get to play.

Having said all that, it’s your show, and it’s darn good, so just do what you want. I won’t stop listening if you get too much into the boneyard of ridiculous prices…
Cheers,
C

March 17th, 2006 at 9:37 pm
Rob Ritchie
 2 

You asked whether or not you should stick to readily available, less expensive games, or also include reviews of games that are hard to get without dropping some serious cash. I know it’s a bit of a cop-out, but I think you should continue to follow your instincts, which have been very good up to now. Follow the games that interest you, without regard to their price tag. I fear that if you start to impose limitations as to which games you want to talk about, it will effect the quality of your program. The life of a show like yours is the passion and interest you show. At the risk of undermining my point, don’t let what someone else writes or says on the internet influence you too much. I feel you’re on the right track.

March 18th, 2006 at 9:57 am
Mark Ballinger
 3 

I agree with Rob. Do the games you know and like, and if they’re hard to find and/or expensive, so be it.

I’m hardly going to go download an old Mac platformer, but I still enjoyed the show. Your show on Cosmic Encounter was welcome too, even though getting a set is a challenge.

March 21st, 2006 at 8:42 am
Donald Schoemaker
 4 

For my .02 I’ll say do Vintage Games regardless of availability. If you only stick to Monopoly, Risk and Candyland because they are still available and cheap your going to be pretty hamstringed.

Abilty to obtain the game (either because of cost or OOP status) is always going to be an issue. I think its a bummer when someone talks up a game I can’t get… but shoot, Mark Johnson just did a two part podcast on La Citta and its $75.00 and out of print in just a few years. Even though I’m not going to buy it I still enjoyed his review of it and am hopeful that one of my gaming friends had the foresight to buy the game.

I listen to your podcast because I like the essoteric aspect of vintage games I used to play when I was younger. I’d hate to see it become Hasborged.

Best, Don.

March 23rd, 2006 at 1:21 pm
Terry Reine
 5 

I have been catching up on your shows and in regard to your questions about OOP or available. It realy doesn’t matter. If an older game is available then all the better, and I will look for it if your descrption intrigues me. If it is not readily available I would still be interested in hearing about it just to know what was unique about it. If I’m lucky I may come across an old version is a thrift store or yard sale. If not at least I am able to say I know what the game was about if it every comes up. Seeing how games have changed over the years is a great way to reflect how society has changed as well.

March 27th, 2006 at 10:07 am
Ogma
 6 

I just listened to your Top Secret episode for my first time and in response to your question about focusing on readily-available versus collectible games… By all means go with WHATEVER tickles your fancy, regardless of the cost/value. You’re not SELLING games here, you’re discussing and critiquing. If a game is long out-of-print and extremely rare, to me that’s even MORE reason to do a show about it! There are so many terrific games I regret not picking up back in the 80s/90s and I would LOVE to hear detailed commentary about them.

Anyway, keep up the good work. I enjoy the show very much!

~Ogma

June 22nd, 2006 at 8:54 pm
Subey
 7 

When I was a young lad, I thought the Pair-A-Dice casino was the coolest play on words ever (probably the first play on words I ever encountered)

Yay for Thermite Bombs

July 29th, 2006 at 2:16 pm

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