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Livingstone imagines video games having full motion animation with realistic graphics and sound. It is interesting to note that his description of the future matches the video games we have today, yet they have failed to replace TTRPGs and instead offer a very different experience. I’d offer...

In this issue’s editorial, Ian Livingstone asks if popularity in game system is the same as being the best. D&D is the front runner, but does that mean it’s a better game than Runequest or The Fantasy Trip? Of course not, but it’s nice to hear him say it. The best game is always the one you like...

In this issue’s editorial, Ian Livingstone gets very controversial! He suggests we should move away from the ‘Vancian’ model of wizards learning spells and forgetting them as they cast them to a more points based system like Runequest. Well, many years on we gained Sorcerers for D&D, but the...

This issue Ian Livingstone wonders if anyone is really paying attention to their character’s alignment. Can a pack of murder hobos really claim they are Lawful Good in all honesty? Do any of them wonder about the alignment of the monsters they meet before wading into battle? Personally I still...

The big news is that for this issue White Dwarf expands to add an extra four pages, although there is a price increase to a whopping 75p per issue. Fingers crossed the market can stand it. It also appears back issues of White Dwarf are already becoming collector’s editions. This is no surprise...

With it being three years since Star Wars got people talking about sci-fi again, it’s exciting to see Star Trek finally reaching the big screen. But in his editorial, Ian Livingstone is keener to discuss what makes RPGs so popular. He settles on the way they can be different every time you play...

In this issue, Ian Livingstone defends the price of games, which given the price they are now in comparison this does raise a smile. White Dwarf remains 60p per issue (these days much more pages but £6.99 per issue) and the new AD&D Dungeon Master’s Guide is £9.95 (compared to £41.99 today)...

White Dwarf slips into a new decade as this issue covers the opening of the 1980s. True to the spirit of self-examination at New Year the magazine contains a new questionnaire to see what the fans want. Interestingly the questions are not just about improving the magazine but what games people...

The editorial this issue is about awards in the industry. At this time there isn’t much for role-playing and many awards are still shared with wargames. Ian Livingstone mentions the Charles Roberts (founder of Avalon Hill) Awards, still running up to 2020 but very much awards for wargaming games...

This issue, editor Ian Livingstone talks about conventions and how the large three-day affairs in the US don’t seem to be mirrored in the UK where our cons are still one day events. I suspect the smallness of the UK in comparison that lets you travel somewhere and back in a day might have...

This issue, Ian Livingstone talks about how gamers can get in touch. With no internet yet, one of the biggest questions in this age of the hobby was “how do I find a group?” I remember local games stores often putting up lists of groups looking for new players. But White Dwarf is helping a lot...

The page count of the magazine increases issue to 32 pages, but the price remains the same (still 60p!). Editor Ian Livingstone makes mention of what I think might be the first form of gaming piracy, that of photocopying bits of the magazine or wargames rules. It might seem laborious now but...

This issue contains a ‘pull out and play’ game ‘Bar Room Brawl’ and a promise to include more adventures and similar scenarios in the future. Editor Ian Livingstone also calls for readers to share their opinions on the magazine and tell them what their most popular character classes are in D&D...

This issue has a convention theme with Ian Livingstone justifiably proud that Games Day is second only to Origins in terms of attendance (breaking the 2000 attendees mark…). It also celebrates the release of the new Player’s Handbook for D&D (the statue one not the wizard one). On the Cover A...

A slightly sparser issue this month, and a pause in the letters page. Editor Ian Livingstone addresses the arguments about how games ‘should be played’ by sensibly saying ‘whatever works for you’. It seems the ‘I’m the authority’ and ‘true fan’ stereotypes are not as new as we might have...

This month, editor Ian Livingstone notes that Origins had just finished with a record breaking 4,000 attendees. Surly Gen Con the next month will do something similar. Well, those records have been somewhat shattered. Amazing to see how the hobby has grown. The magazine also announced the first...

It’s time to gear up the nostalgia again and return to our irregular reviews of the granddaddy of British gaming, White Dwarf. This issue marks the first full colour cover for the magazine, and a shift to a more glossy magazine style. The fanzine style of the first issues is gone as the magazine...

Meet the Electric State This new Core Rulebook from Free League is another game based on the art of Simon Stålenhag, following on from “Tales from the Loop” and “Things from the Flood”. While they are at least tangentially set in the same world and use the same system, they are very different...

This irregular column looks at aspects of design and system that a particular game does especially well. In this case I’m looking at Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition. Developing Background First off, kudos for the designers for not retconning the game background in the new edition. They took...

Picture courtesy of Pixabay. Here's four more tips and ideas for your consideration when designing a game. Consider your skills list carefully It’s often very tempting to create a long skill list, pleased you have covered everything. But it can work against you. The more specific and numerous...