So much for every Monday. I let the links pile up until I felt there was enough for a post, and then got overwhelmed. Ah well, time to dig in.
In old RPG news, we have a few items. First, there’s the concluding articles to Ken Denmead’s Top 10 D&D Modules series: #7 Finale. I approve of both choices (but still no Barrier Peaks?).
Second, Allen Varney (no roleplaying slouch himself) has an interview over at the Escapist with Marc Miller, creator of Traveller.
The retro videogaming department is busy this week. For recent homages, we have Greg Costikyan at Play This Thing! with a review of a Japanese rogue-like and Z over at GeekDad with a review of a NES/SNES clone. For the latter, I’m glad Mur has her old SNES — this thing sounds like a cheap knockoff.
In nods to the past, Marc Cerny, creator of Marble Madness and contributor to many a Naughty Dog and Insomniac game (disclosure: I work for Insomniac Games) has been inducted into the AIAS Hall of Fame. And around the same time Marble Madness came out, there was Starflight, one of the most complex games of its time. Erin Hoffman at the Escapist covers the story of its development.
Finally, a rather interesting story about how partnerships can go awry. Apparently, Konami, the creators of Yu-Gi-Oh, discovered that someone was creating bootleg cards, thereby both profiting from their creation and polluting the market with counterfeits. Little did they suspect that someone was their partner, Upper Deck… Cult-Stuff has all the details.
At long last, the annual Origins episode of The Vintage Gamer. As this is the third year, this officially makes it a cherished tradition. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) there was no podcasters panel so instead I went around and did some interviews at some of the small press booths. A big “Thank You” to all who participated — if what you hear interests you, please support them with your dollars.
For a fuller picture of the show, I recommend you check out The Spiel Origins episode for a lot more show floor interviews, and the Dice Tower Origins episode for more info and a nice interview with (Spiel des Jahres winner!) Reiner Knizia.
Featured interviews:
- Matt Duhan of Gozer Games discusses: Collateral Damage
- Rob Balder of many things discusses: The FUnny Music Project, Erfworld, Partially Clips, Get Nifty
- Peter Hansell of Tablestar Games discusses: Wealth of Nations, Martinis and Men, HeroCard Orc Wars
- Fred Hicks of Indy Press Revolution and Evil Hat Productions discusses: Heaven and Earth, Archaia Studios, Avenues and Alleyways, Solipsist, Spirit of the Season, Spirit of the Century, Don’t Rest Your Head, Don’t Lose Your Mind, Monsters and Other Childish Things, GODLIKE, Wild Talents, Dresden Files RPG
- Curt Covert of Smirk and Dagger Games discusses: Cutthroat Caverns, Run For Your Life, Candyman, Hex*Hex, Hex*Hex Next, Cutthroat Caverns: Deeper & Darker
- Greg Lam of Pair Of Dice Games discusses: Chopstick Dexterity Megachallenge 3000, Warp6, Knockabout, Marvin Marvel’s Marvelous Marble Machine
Pictures of my trip to Origins including most of these folks can be found on my flickr feed. You can also see the lovely new sewer line.
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Oh my stars and garters, it’s another Vintage Gamer! This time I cover the 80s conspiracy game, Illuminati. Lie to your friends, stab them in the back, all to take over the world (sounds like Diplomacy — or a bizarre version of Lifeboats). All this, plus some Vintage Gamer news and feedback!
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Back from the abyss with an actual game review show. This time I talk about the darkly humorous game Nuclear War, designed by Doug Malewicki and published by Flying Buffalo, Inc. I also cover what’s been happening with me over the past few months, discuss some recent gaming news (vintage and otherwise), and talk about possibilities for future shows.
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And right on the heels of the last episode, a Halloween-themed show, where I cover some vintage board and card games with horror themes.
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This week on The Vintage Gamer, there is a distinctly non-vintage theme as I review or give impressions of many of the games I saw at Origins. A bit late in coming, but hopefully still appreciated. Start your timers as I cover 14 games in about half an hour…
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My Origins report show is coming soon, but until then, enjoy this recording that I made of the Saturday podcasting panel, organized by Paul Tevis. The panelists were:
Paul Tevis (Have Games, Will Travel)
Mike Sugarbaker (OgreCave Audio Report)
The Mad Three (Gamer: The Podcasting)
Don Dehm (Pulp Gamer)
Yours truly
Tom Vasel (The Dice Tower)
Mike Stackpole (Podcast Entertainment Network)
Many thanks to Paul Tevis for organizing this — it was fun! But boy, can podcasters talk…
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This week, I go back to old card games, and cover Parker Brother’s Pit (currently published by Winning Moves), and its predecessor Gavitt’s Stock Exchange (currently published by Out of the Box).
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In this episode, I discuss the card game Rook, originally published by Parker Brothers in 1906 and now available from Winning Moves (you can also buy the non-deluxe version from Hasbro).
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