Google Blog Search

Never one to leave any stone (ever) unturned, Google now has a Blog Search in Beta. I'm sure this this old news to some, but not to me. Enjoy.

Google Blog Search

GURPS Powers

This is something that I want to plug for a couple of reasons. First, it is going to be a kick-ass book. Finally, with Fourth Edition, GURPS is able to handle super-powered characters. Second, I get my first GURPS Playtest credit in this (check the Table of Contents preview) which is pretty darn cool for me.

My first "professional" attempt at becoming a game designer was back in 1986. After seeing a "want list" for proposals (back in Roleplayer, the zine for GURPS that SJG originally published) for the first edition of GURPS Supers, I sent in a proposal. It was awful and, rightly so, I received a rejection letter about it. It was a personal rejection from Steve Jackson though, which I actually thought was pretty cool.

If you haven't yet, you really need to check out GURPS 4e, it is the best version of the system to date.

GURPS Powers

"Save the World . . . or Destroy It!

"GURPS Powers is the ultimate book for the ultimate characters in the new Fourth Edition of GURPS! Here's everything you need to create every kind of amazing, off-the-chart superhero you can imagine . . . as well as amazing wizards, wuxia fighters, shamans who command spirits . . . even gods!

"Written by GURPS Line Editor and Fourth Edition co-author Sean Punch, GURPS Powers introduces some new rules, but it is mostly about using the rules that are already in the GURPS Basic Set to cover superpowered characters, megawizards, and earth-shattering psionics. GURPS Powers also include guidelines for 'special effects' and several different ways to vary a power on the fly -- two crucial concepts for comic-book superheroics.

"GURPS Powers is a Fourth Edition GURPS book that completely replaces the Third Edition books GURPS Supers and GURPS Psionics. Like our other Fourth Edition supplements, it's a gorgeous 240-page, full-color hardback.

"If you've got a high-powered campaign . or high-powered players . you want GURPS Powers!"

Get Killed By Stephen King!

Here's a cool one for geeks...win an ebay Celebrity auction and become a character in a book by one of your favorite authors.

Writers' Plot Thickens Into Auction for Free Speech

"Now's your chance to die in a Stephen King novel or be portrayed 'in a good light' in the next thriller from John Grisham -- while championing the cause of free speech.

"That's the idea behind a charity auction on eBay that starts Sept. 1 and features 16 authors selling character names to the highest bidders. All proceeds go to the First Amendment Project, a nonprofit legal group dedicated to free speech."

Gamers Seeing Glitches in New Xbox

I'm not really a computer gamer, but I figured that this was worth passing along, since I am sure that there are video game playing dorks out there.

Gamers Seeing Glitches in New Xbox

"Microsoft's Xbox 360, the much-anticipated video game system that made its debut earlier this week, is apparently experiencing some technical glitches -- screens freezing only minutes into a game, for example -- and that has left some users pretty upset.

"At gamer-oriented Web sites, Xbox 360 owners have reported system crashes in games such as the space-marines-vs.-aliens title Quake 4." [Washington Post site does pop-ups]

William S. Burroughs: A Thanksgiving Day Prayer

The link is a direct link to a .mov file of William Burroughs' Thanksgiving Prayer. Not your traditional prayer, but then Burroughs wasn't a very traditional person. I do, however, think that it is still pretty relevant in America today. It is well worth checking out, particularly if you aren't familiar with Burroughs' work. Just keep in mind that the link isn't very work-friendly.

Enjoy, and Happy Thanksgiving.

William S. Burroughs' Thanksgiving Prayer

Sustainable Housing for Refugees via Mass Production

While this may, or may not, take off here in the real world, this is something that could be of great use conceptually in Cyberpunk or other "dark future" types of role-playing games. Reading this reminded me of some of the imagery from Neal Stephenson's novel Snow Crash. Pile enough of these onto a decommisioned naval battleship and you have the Raft. Of course in a cyberpunk world, this type of thing would most likely end up being used for permanent housing.

Vestal Design

"The SHRIMP (Sustainable Housing for Refugees via Mass Production) is an attempt to bring housing and other relief to large displaced or homeless populations, especially those who have suffered in a natural disaster. Providing shelter to a family of four, it folds up into 1/4 of a shipping container for efficient deployment."

By the way, for those who haven't heard yet, R. Talsorian Games has announced that Cyberpunk v3 is finally done, and about to go to the printer. Will this actually happen in our lifetime? Who knows.

Open Core Quick

I am putting the finishing touches on my next project, and more "rules light" approach to a system. Like the baseline Open Core System, OCQ has been developed from the best in available open content. However, this is not just the Open Core System with some of the options cut out. OCQ is a complete role-playing system that has been structed from the ground level to be fast and robust, with many system difference between it and the parent system.

Playtesting of the book is winding down and I am finishing the layouts...getting them into just the look that I want them to have. People who have been playtesting and people who have seen the early layouts have been really impressed with things. I think that I have developed the system that I really want with this one (not that I don't want the other system).

OCQ will be available through the usual outlets, as well as our new online retailer of Steve Jackson Games' e23 store...once we've finished all of the paperwork for the site. Keep your eyes open for more information.

Baen Books to launch online sf mag edited by Eric Flint

Boing Boing: Baen Books to launch online sf mag edited by Eric Flint

"Copyfighting SF writer Eric Flint will be editing a new online adventure sf magazine for his publisher, Baen Books. The magazine will be called Baen's Astounding Stories.

"The magazine will focus on publishing side-stories from the long-running serials that are Baen's stock-in-trade, and promises to pay enough that writers could make a substantial portion of their living from for them."

Boing Boing: Sony anti-customer technology roundup and time-line

Here's a round-up up what Sony's been up to lately:

Sony anti-customer technology roundup and time-line

"Since Hallowe'en, we've been posting the details about he revelations relating to Sony's DRM systems, which show jaw-dropping contempt for their customers, for copyright law, for fair trading and for the public interest. With all these posts strung out over a couple weeks, I thought it was high time we put together an omnibus post, summing up all the posts to date."

The 4 Ways to Choose Your Next Game

Some interesting advice on techniques to use in swaying your group towards playing the game that you want to GM. Reading it makes me glad that it is a concern that I really don't have as a GM>

The 4 Ways to Choose Your Next Game

"When your group is ready to start a new game, there are a numbers of ways to handle deciding what to play. By far the most common approach I?ve seen is this one: The GM says, 'I?m going to run this game,' and the rest of the group says, 'Okay' (or sometimes, 'No thanks, we?re going to go play World of Warcraft').

"There are some obvious downsides to this approach, though ? so let?s look at the 4 ways to choose your next game (and there really are only 4 ways!), and then ask an open question: How does your group tackle this?

"This list assumes that you?re not in the market for a new group ? in other words, you want to start up a new game with your regular group. (Things are a bit different if you want to GM, but don?t have any players. In that situation, joining another group and waiting for your chance to GM, or picking a game and looking for folks who want to play it, are the two best approaches.)"