I found this on newsgroups.rec.games.frg thought some of you may find it
interesting. The question being responded to initially was what is your
favorite SFRPG?
>In article [email removed] [email removed] (Pierre
> Savoie) writes:
>>In-Reply-To: message from [email removed]
>>
>> J.D. Frazer has uncovered an interesting point: there are several dozen
>>RPGs covering science-fiction, but none of these really stands out as the most
>>popular. I admire stuff put out by GDW (MegaTraveller; 2300; even SPACE 1889!
>>despite the obvious pun in the title) because they do a thorough job before
>>they release a product. But there's so much else.
>
>As a store owner and rpger, I have to strongly disagree with your
>comment about GDW doing a thorough job on their rpgs. MegaTraveller has
>seven official pages of errata, and at least 100 K of unofficial errata.
>Ask anyone on the Traveller mailing list how well thought out MT is.
>
>2300 AD (Traveller 2300 in a former life) was a nice outline for
>an rpg in its first edition; the second edition is more complete, but
>manages to keep all the endearing stupid cultural details concerning
>the non-european cultures, like the languages the Indian nations speak.
>The Colonial guidebook is a mish mash of styles. Couldn't they afford an
>editor?
>
>1889 is a gross waste of money. Why bother having colour plates
>if all you're going to put on them is pencil crayon drawings? I'll give
>1889 this: they did put out some good modules for it. However, the
>basic game sucks and is blatently padded with useless ugly art.
>
>Now, GDW isn't a *bad* company, just grossly lazy. I can't
>recommend their games to people, though, especially first edition
>GDW games, because quite often, their games are poorly thought out,
>badly playtested (If they *do* playtest their rpgs) and far too likely
>to require either massive amounts of house rules or the purchase
>of the second edition that almost inevitably follows a year or two
>after they publish their outline-style first edtion rpgs.
>
>
> James Nicoll
TLH
- - --
T.L.Hayes |
MIT/Lincoln Laboratory |
Lexington, MA |