Reviews
This may come as a shock for those of you who know me or those of you who are familiar with my work, but I like horror. Horror in all its forms, with the exception of lame ass slasher flicks, is something I just really dig. When it comes to my tastes in gaming there's no difference: I just love to freak the shit out of my players.
In this film, the main actors play themselves not only in the real world, as geeky gamers, but as the noble characters they are role-playing within the game. It's a brilliant concept, and one wonders why it hasn't been done before now. Considering overall entertainment value, the sheer amount of extras included with the DVD, and the fact that I laughed till I cried even on a fourth viewing, I can do no less than give The Gamers the highest rating possible.
Whereas the other Gaming DVDs I've reviewed take occasional sharp pokes at themselves, the 60-minute-long Dungeons & Dragons Experience has no such silly laugh-out loud moments. This is a serious documentary which approaches the issue from a more scholarly point of view. Which is not to say that it's less entertaining -- far from it. It may very well be my favorite of the lot.
I feel I must say it takes quite a bit to shock me, but now that I have read the entirety of The Book Of Erotic Fantasy published by Valor Project, Inc. I am shocked. What I am shocked about is not the presence of exposed breasts, the usage of the word "fuck" or the presence of devices known as cock rings (these are all things I am already pretty familiar with) but the fact that the sexual content is handled in a mature manner suitable for game use.
Life With the Dice Bag is a documentary about Role-Playing Games and those who play them. Shot between 2002-2003, it is constructed almost entirely of interviews with actual game players, clumped together topically to give a rough overview of the hobby. For the role-playing gamer, this is an hour-and-a-half look in the mirror, warts and all.
Uber Goober is a 90-or-so-minute documentary about Role-Playing Games, taking a look (not quite in-depth, but a bit more than cursory) at the hobby itself through the eyes of the people who enjoy it. The overall tone of the film is of gentle self-mockery. The gamers, game designers and, indeed, the filmmakers all seem to be in on the joke.
Happen to be looking for a good time with some friends? Looking for an RPG-lite, beer and pretzels adventure game to play with the aforementioned friends? Do you look at the days of Heroquest and have fond memories? Well, do you want to know what will give you all of this? It just might be Runebound.
When considering the techno-futuristic cyberpunk genre there are really only two choices for gaming: Shadowrun and Cyberpunk 2020. Shadowrun is a world of magic and machine guns. Cyberpunk 2020 is more pureblood, leaving magic to the fantasy games. For the money, Cyberpunk 2020 is the better choice. The system is more streamlined, you don't get a mixing of genres, and who can dispute the enjoyment of thumbing through the latest Chrome?
Miniatures have long been a nice enhancement option for D&D campaigns. You head down to the local hobby shop, pick out the figures that catch your eye or that you need to fill up the monster slots for your weekly campaign and voila, you have instantly clarified combat, movement, and scale. Miniatures generally are made from pewter and part of the fun is to paint your miniature however you wish. So, you want a green fire elemental or a fuchsia troll? Anything you wanted to experiment with was fine. And you can always throw your miniatures into a bucket of Pine Sol overnight and in the morning ninety percent of the paint would be stripped off giving you the opportunity to repaint particularly poorly finished or hideously ugly figs.
When I first started role playing we used a handful of miniatures we got from our dad, and some of those Star Wars toys that were also miniatures. If you grew up in the 80's you might remember these toys: they were small miniature metal figures that came from classic scenes from the Star Wars universe. We also used a handful of plastic soldiers to represent villains and other bad guys. What I wouldn't have given at the time for a set of fantasy miniatures who were fully painted and ready to use. Today, you can have just that. These are the Dungeons and Dragons miniatures that come pre-painted and pre-assembled. They're functional, but is it enough?
