Roadwar Part 2

I have the first sketch of the rules to about 35%. I'm trying to decide how big a player should get. should a gang be like a character, or like an army. The biggest thing there being should one player have one token on the board or several, and how much record keeping should there be.

The map is actually starting to take form. I am reverse engineering society, so I have a lot of stuff to remove.

I'm trying to decide on a doomsday scenario. Is the world in this state because of a pandemic? NBC warfare? Alien invasion? I may put a poll up to see what folks think. Look for it.

Roadwar

As you may remember from previous outings, I'm a bit of a fan of the Mad Max style post apocalyptic setting. And I was there when they shut down the Auto Assault server for the final time.

Lately, I've had a hankering for some car/gun action. This lead me to Roadwar 2000, a game I actually vaguely remember from back in the day. It's pretty dated, and I think the combat may be totally broken on my copy, but the core idea is pretty cool. So I'm building a strategy game based on it. Sort of.

I've settled on a hex map of the U.S. and Southern Canada for the setting. This is actually going to be a great pain, due to an overwhelming lack of high quality affordable (read FREE) map assets. The core of the game play revolves around you as a gang leader recruiting a gang, finding useful stuff in the aftermath (like vehicles, guns and food) and rebuilding civilization. Of course the mutants, cyborgs and invaders are all against you in this.

I'm still looking for a name, too.

Are you a Gameholic?

Adapted shamelessly from another quiz.
Oh, and by gaming in this case, if you're being particularly obtuse, I mean video and parlor games, not gambling. Gambling addiction is a serious thing. I refuse to be taken seriously.

1. Do you lose time from work due to gaming?
2. Is gaming making your home life unhappy?
3. Do you game because you are shy with other people?
4. Is your gaming affecting your reputation?
5. Have you ever felt remorse after gaming?
6. Have you ever got into financial difficulties as a result of gaming?
7. Do you turn to lower companions and an inferior environment when gaming?
8. Does your gaming make you careless of your family's welfare?
9. Has your ambition decreased since gaming?
10. Do you crave a game at a definite time?
11. Do you want a game the next morning?
12. Does gaming cause you to have difficulty in sleeping?
13. Has your efficiency decreased since gaming?
14. Is gaming jeopardizing your job or business?
15. Do you game to escape from worries or trouble?
16. Do you game alone?
17. Have you ever had a complete loss of memory as a result of gaming?
18. Has your physician ever treated you for gaming?
19. Do you game to build up your self confidence?
20. Have you ever been to a hospital or institution because of gaming?

Apparently, if you answer yes to 3 or more, you are definitely suffering a problem. Unless you're a teenager, in which case that's just life.

Friday is PSA day. I can't guarantee that the sarcasm quotient won't be very high to extreme, but you may find help here. Of course if you're looking for help here, oh boy. If you like this post you may be interested in some earlier posts like CAFFEINE WITHDRAWAL RECOGNIZED AS A DISORDER or Harsh lesson in the InterTubes. On the other hand, if you're marginally offended and vocal, feel invited to leave me a comment. It's a low cost Internet.

Zero Punctu...

Normally I would post the newest edition of ZP here. Today however, I find myself confused and wracked with guilt. This very much resembles dating in high school for me and is somewhat uncomfortable.

My confusion comes from this. Below each post are the words:

To embed this video on your blog, please click the MENU button at the bottom of the player, and select the GRAB THE CODE option.

For information on submitting your game for review, or if you want to insult our mothers, please contact ZP@escapistmag.com

Please note that any reproduction of Zero Punctuation without the express written consent of The Escapist is expressly forbidden.

Right? Ok, so we're on the same page, I'll explain it (I also feel my posts have been too short and must attempt to torture both of us by dragging them on a bit more). The first line gives you the instructions on how to put a copy of the video on your blog. And even though this really isn't a blog anymore, it's on blogger so I figure it still qualifies.

The second line I usually ignore. It's not all that confusing for me because I don't have any games I've made that would be eligible for review and I have no basis on which to insult anyone there's mother. And insulting people moms is really not my style. Usually.

And then the third line says "Don't you bloody dare make copies of this!" Did you just hear the record scratching sound?

Let me work this out again (they told me I should tell you things three times in college). Here's how to make a copy of this for your own sad sack corner of the intertubes. We'll sick nasty ninja assassins on you if you do. Did I miss a meeting?

Anyways, there is a new "Devil May Cry 4" related Zero Punctuation over at The Escapist. Go watch it there. The advertisers will no doubt adore you if you do, and I won't see any ninjas. Today. Yet.

This post is yet another shameless attempt by the author to buy some cool. You can look forward to further such posts on Thursdays. You may be interested in the Iron Man or Star Trek trailers if you liked this post. If you vote "Nay" please feel free to do so in the comments.

The LAN Game

It seems to me that one of the most attractive things about PC gaming was the local area network game. Attractive because it was like graduating from the sandbox to real weapons and "was" because I've noted an alarming trend. In the last year or so 3 titles I've been drawn to have not supported multi player LAN servers, instead opting for internet play only. Ok, I'm stretching a bit. Two of the games I'm giving the eye to are technically LAN capable. One requires an online connection to play at all (Battlefield 2142), and the other is as coy about setting a server up as it can be (World in Conflict).

The third, and most irksome, is Hellgate: London. In fact the only way to play online is to force yourself to connect to the giant hub. It seems as if the Diablo team forgot a layer from Diablo II. In many other respects Hellgate is a larger, newer Diablo. Some would argue it is a lesser manifestation, I generally disagree, except for the lack of a LAN server mode. The lack of local network support means I must put up with the likes of 'iEttsN00bs' and 'NeO436' just to get connected with my buddy. Not to mention I now lack access to my whole list of cool names! Petty, I know, but true.

Fortunately my broad band connection is sufficient to let both of us out at the same time. In the face of this trend towards web only games, which I suspect is simply DRM in sheep's clothing, the split screen extravaganza of the XBOX 360 looks even more appealing. Now I only need one copy of the game and an extra controller or two and we're good to go. A fun day of smack talk, soda pop and pizza. And a somewhat disgruntled wife, but that's a whole different post.

The PC is losing ground. I still consider myself a PC gaming enthusiast, but given the opportunity, I will take the path of least resistance.

2008-03-06 Footnote on this one: Seems Tycho and I are on the same page on this issue. Sort of. Look down at the bottom of the two posts.

Tuesday is Officially rant day. If you enjoyed this rant feel free to consider some of my earlier works such as Starcraft An MMO and Spiritual Successor. If you didn't like it, well that's what comments are for.

Steve Jackson on Gary Gygax

I subscribe to Steve Jackson Games daily email update. Today's update has a spot from Steve about Gary. I think it deserves to be shared:

Gary Gygax, co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons and a gaming icon for more than 30 years, died yesterday after repeated strokes and heart problems. He was 69.

Like the rest of my generation, I was introduced to roleplaying via Dungeons & Dragons because there wasn't anything else back then. My first, very lame, Dungeons & Dragons game was in college. Shortly after I became a (semi)professional and joined the Metagaming group, we started a D&D campaign, with Robert Taylor as the GM, and it was excellent. Decades later, I can still say that my biggest-ever thrill in roleplaying was when my first character got chainmail. No longer would I face certain death if I met an orc.

If not for Dungeons & Dragons, "adventure game" would still mean "cardboard chits on a hexmap." Which I love dearly, but would it ever have gotten out of the garage? And that's the least of it. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson didn't just remake a hobby. They impacted all of Western culture. Fantasy fiction would still be a backwater had not D&D built an audience and a new generation of writers. Lord of the Rings would be something taught in college English classes, not a blockbuster movie trilogy. And consider: The direct lineal descendant of D&D is Worlds of Warcraft, which is, all by itself, what? A billion-dollar business now?

For the last few years, roleplayers have celebrated March 4 as "GM's Day." And now it's the day when the best-known GM of all time put down his dice. Going forward, this should also be a particular date on which we recall Gary and his contributions.
Steve Jackson

Not the post I wanted to make

And you probably didn't hear it here first but;

http://www.sliceofscifi.com/2008/03/04/e-gary-gygax-remembered/

It all started with Dungeons & Dragons. For good or for bad, D&D got me here.

E. Gary Gygax

Iron Man Trailer 2008-02-29

New Iron Man Trailer:


via videosift.com

Looks pretty good. I mean great.

Not back from Hiatus yet, but planning the new schedule. Things should be much improved once I work out the new schedule.