Newsworthy! Gamma world now under the S&SS banner!

[thomden]

Not to rain on anyone's parade here, but I am wholly unenthused at the prospect of seeing yet another incarnation of a proven failure like Gamma World. Frankly, I suspect that the only reason it was given so many chances by the old regime at TSR was that it was Jim Ward's game. Despite that, it never managed to remain in print for long.

That's because TSR/WOTC hasn't done a decent version of Gamma World since 2nd Edition. And the main problem with 2nd edition was that it wasn't well supported as a campaign setting. You can tell from the reaction to this news that there is a great deal of warm-fuzzy love for the IP out there.

It was successful enough to spawn several versions, but none of them were done with the proper amount of "love". If S&S does it with the kind of love they gave the Everquest book they could have a real hit. (500+ pages, hardcover, pretty art, hint...hint)

So far it sounds like Bruce has his finger on the core factor that can make this a lasting success: campaign potential. Let's just hope he's a fan of Delta Green and "gets" how cool Pagan Publishing translated typical "one-shot" CoC play into bad-ass campaign potential.

 

[Perpetrated Press]

Hoowha!

Now this sounds great! I was very impressed with d20 Modern, and now my queue of must-play d20 games continues to grow, I wonder how I will ever get to them all.

I love Gamma World, but rarely played it. None of the 5 editions had systems that really clicked with me. But, a d20 Modern Gamma World sounds very promising!

Oh, for the triumphant return of the Knights of Genetic Purity, my favorite evil band of scum-sucking maggots.

I can't wait to shoot some Hoops!

 

[BruceB]

Me, a fan of Delta Green? Well, I wrote a narrative poem for the first DG fiction collection, and I was having dinner with John Tynes just last night and hashing over GW ideas....

 

[Legion]

Actually no, I didn't see his editing in Nobilis... but then again, I consider that the mark of a good editor, not seeing it, that is. If I can see the editing job, it's because they made mistakes.

Thanks for clearing that up for us. Yes, obviously my mistake in using an improper word choice to describe what I thought was a seemless and wonderfully clean book. I guess I was hoping everyone would take the spirit of my words not necessarily the letter of the words. I'll be much more careful in the future. Thank you again.

 

[Legion]

Gamma World and environment.

This talk of GW has got thoughts running through my head, dangerous I know.

Anyone remember Morrow Project? One of the things I loved about that, was that the longer you lived, as a result of the radiation, the more difficult it got to survive. Sort of a Cthulhu-esqu like feel to it in that 'eventual doom' sort of thing.

Back in the 80s with the first GW, I sort of incorporated this feel in my GW game i ran for about a year and a half. Any thoughts on that Bruce?

 

[Shallown]

All I want to know is where do I sign up to Playtest Gamma world. I played for years and even did a D20 conversion sort of game last year becuase I liked the world/genre so much for my D20 group. They had a blast. I have run several long term/campaign games. I have played every edition except the alternity conversion with 4th edition being the best and the closest to D20 if not the basis of D20.

Keep me in mind Brice.


Later

 

[Brutorz Bill]

Playtesters?!

I'd really love to be a playtester for D20 Modern Gamma World as well. Not that you could tell from my Handle! LOL
I've played every version from 1st. Ed. to Omega World, have an occasionally updated Gamma World Web-site : http://www.angelfire.com/games/Alterniverse/
Call me crazy but I even framed and hung up the black & white cover from my old first edition Gamma World. GW is what got me into role playing. I ran GW Campaigns way before I tried out D&D.
Like I said I'd love to be a play-tester, but even if that's not to be I'm still very excited to see this coming out. I just pray this version does GW justice. So many previous editions fell short of the mark of what Gamma World really could be.
Thanks,
Brutorz Bill

 

[Darrin Drader]

Hooray for the return of Gamma World (finally...)

What I want to know is how much support SSS is planning for it. Can we expect to see adventures, sourcebooks, etc, or is this going to be a one-shot deal?

 

[William Ronald]

I am looking forward to the game, despite some misgivings from friends.

Part of the problems we had with Gamma World were rules that changed from edition to edition, and that sometimes got in the way of fun.

Gamma World can be done in several different ways, from humorous to epic to a mix of both. (You can have a long term plan to rebuild and still have sidebar adventures such as a band of heroes finding an amusement park. I am having horrid visions of giant mutant mice... )

Bruce, are there any plans to cover different parts of the world beyond North America? The RPG market is international in ways that it wasn't when Gamma World was introduced. It might be a good idea to have the game have a world wide (or larger) scope. (There was an adventure in an old GM screen largely set on a space station.)

I think the more area for characters to explore, the better.
(Indeed, characters learning there are other continents would wish to explore them.)

Good luck, Bruce and thanks for bringing an old favorite back to life.

 

[BruceB]

There will be supplements - two or three a year, I think, though I'll see about that.

I'll let folks know when playtest time closes in. I have some wide-open tolerances in that regard and some very finicky expectations, which I'll expound on later.

Yes, I'm aware of Morrow Project (and of Cadillacs & Dinosaurs), and will see what feels appropriate to draw on.