Chicago Workings RPG Review
By Matt-M-McElroy | April 21, 2008
Chicago Workings is a World of Darkness adventure released under the Storytelling Adventure System from White Wolf Publishing. Written by Will Hindmarch (with a little help from Ken Hite and Bill Bridges) this adventure puts the player characters in the middle of an ongoing conflict between rival architects. At first that doesn’t sound like such a big deal, but what if these two designers had access to mystical writings? These writings allowed them to build geometric grids of power within the city, forever altering the flow of magic and power.
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Eat the Dark Fiction Review
By Flames | April 15, 2008
I had high hopes for this book. The author is a pal of one of my favorites, Mr Mark Henry. And he’s an MRI tech. That latter factor particularly perked me because I love medical thrillers, and people with medical qualifications are smart, and I like to associate with those more intelligent than I. I was thinking Mr Schreiber would be my kind of writer, a male Tess Gerritsen - and it certainly helped that the aforementioned Ms Gerritsen had a blurb right on the front cover.
Review by Tez Miller
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The Reincarnationist Fiction Review
By Flames | April 13, 2008
So what happens when you die: become a vampire, zombie or ghost? Or do you get reincarnated, no matter how many years later?
A novel that’s been years in the making, the author takes us to contemporary Italy, where photojournalist Josh Ryder - who works for the Phoenix Foundation, which researches children’s past life regressions - visits an archaeological dig. Josh has regressed before, but now the memory lurches are happening more often and in more detail. In Ancient Rome, he was Julius, who had an affair with Vestal Virgin Sabina, whose punishment was to be buried alive.
Review by Tez Miller
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Dead to Me Fiction Review
By Flames | April 7, 2008
In Dead to Me, reformed petty-crime naughty boy and psychometrist Simon Canderous (whose surname probably means something, but I haven’t checked the dictionary yet) works for New York’s Department of Extraordinary Affairs. Psychometry made me think of Kim Wilkins’s Gina Champion series, and the government made me think of Shane Maloney’s Murray Whelan series. But Anton Strout’s Simon Canderous is neither a teenage girl nor a political adviser (and not Australian, for that matter).
Review by Tez Miller
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The Tower Fiction Review
By Flames | March 27, 2008
The Tower is a supernatural horror story that reworks the traditional haunted house fable. In true demonic fashion Simon Clark takes a fledgling band to a secluded house in Yorkshire and proceeds to terrorize them. This is the kind of book where you don’t think of the participants as characters but a group of victims shuffling along to their demise.
The protagonist is Fisher, the bass player, who at first is only concerned with Fabian, the disruptive presence in the band. Fabian has ambitious plans and it seems nothing will put him off pushing the group towards stardom. It’s decided that the band need a quiet place to rehearse some new songs and a month long house sitting job is secured. However, The Tower has plans of it’s own and Fisher’s concerns suddenly become more tangible than just keeping the band together.
Review by Paul Leahy
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Wisconsin Road Guide to Haunted Locations Review
By Matt-M-McElroy | March 13, 2008
The Road Guide is well written and it shows that some research went into each of the locations featured throughout each chapter. A typical entry will feature a photo of the location, brief driving directions, a bit of ghost lore (i.e. what sort of ghostly activity is rumored to haunt the place), some local history and lastly, details about the investigation into the haunting. Not every entry follows this exact format; some of them have section switched around a bit or include extra notes on the topic. Generally, however, the book is easy to read and the information is offered in a useful format.
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Wind Chill DVD Review
By Flames | February 5, 2008
A Japanese terror movie remake is frequently a bad idea, but an American horror movie that looks like one is worst. “Wind chill” tries to tell a declared true story in a Japanese way. That means to use a claustrophobic atmosphere, an aesthetic style and especially a plot based on spirits that want revenge. But in the end, it’s just a nothing-happens movie with bad acting and lazy direction.
Review by Douglas Lobo
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Flash Fire Mini-Reviews! (Second Attempt)
By Matt-M-McElroy | February 1, 2008
Welcome to the second installment of the Flash Fire Mini-Reviews series on Flames Rising!
This week we’re talking about ghosts, werewolves, alien slugs and fantasy kingdoms in a mix of books, games and even a movie. Some of these are brand-new releases and others are items that caught my eye for one reason or another this week.
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Darkness Movie Review
By Flames | June 18, 2007
Upon watching the unrated DVD version of Jaume Balaguero’s Darkness (2002/2005), I experienced a first. It was the first time that I would rather have been watching a safely edited PG-13 version of a horror movie (U.S. 2004 theatrical release). It’s not because the unrated version of Darkness is too frightening, gory, or disturbing, but rather it’s longer and given this movie’s lack of originality or anything entertaining at all, length in this case is a negative attribute.
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Carnival of Lost Souls Review
By Flames | June 6, 2007
Nox Arcana’s newest CD in their collection is devoted to the grim, grotesque and the macabre all found within a dark carnival. The CD opens with an introduction; the ringmaster, voiced by Joseph Vargo, welcomes one and all to the “circus of the strange.” Indeed, this CD is “strange” for on it you will hear a blend of organ music, children’s voices and haunting melodies.
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Creep Chronicle Review
By Flames | March 1, 2007
There is a lot to like about The Creep Chronicle — indeed, in many ways, it’s the PG-rated successor of Little Fears that several people were hungering for back in 2001. If you’re looking for a “kid friendly” horror RPG that still has some teeth, you need look no further than The Creep Chronicle.
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Out of the Ether Review
By Flames | June 20, 2006
The intro track had set a wonderful feeling for the soundtrack, giving a nice intro and everything. As the CD got going though, I found my self increasingly tuning it out. Not because the music was boring, but because besides the first intro track, every track is well over 5 minutes a piece, most being 7-9 minutes in length. Now, this isn’t some mainstream CD, so track lengths aren’t really applicable here. But over 7 minutes of non-developed musical ideas makes for a very boring CD to listen to.
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An American Haunting Review
By Flames | May 5, 2006
Once again a horror movie was on tap for the evening. When in doubt, should you always go to the movies and see a horror film? Based on the title alone, We picked An American Haunting.
The introduction explained the film was based on actual events in Tennessee around 1820, but the action opens in 2006. The modern frame is a weak connection geared at today’s teens. I was not surprised to find out the movie is PG-13. Unfortunately, I don’t think you can make a quality horror movie today without an R rating.
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Silent Hill Movie Review
By Flames | April 28, 2006
Welcome To Silent Hill.
Director Christophe Gans (Brotherhood of the Wolf) has once again tackled a visually rich project and taken a challenge. Anytime a film is derived from a video game, skeptical thoughts cross my mind. Gans delivers with a mind-blowing product, but contacts a few aspects, which caused me to ask questions.
Review by Jeff Jacobs
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Ghosts of Albion: Accursed Fiction Review
By Flames | February 23, 2006
Ghosts of Albion: Accursed is the first full length novel in the Ghosts of Albion series by Amber Benson and Christopher Golden. Ghosts of Albion had been a wildly successful animation series appearing on the BBC Cult website, with Benson and Golden writing and Benson directing. While the animations set up the story at large, one does not need to be familiar with them to enjoy this story. The authors take great care to make sure that new readers are clued into the backstory. What one might miss out on is the internal voices you give the characters from the tale; it is difficult to imagine anyone else as the voice of Horatio Nelson other than Anthony Daniels (C-3P0 of Star Wars).
Review by Timothy S. Brannan
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World of Darkness: Ghost Stories Review
By Flames | November 1, 2005
Fear is the oldest emotion possessed by humanity. Death and what might or might not lie beyond the mortal coil is, quite possibly, the origin of fear in and of itself. As mortals, death is inevitable. We don’t have the luxury of actually knowing what happens when we die, therefore we have two options where death is concerned; we accept it as a part of life, or we live in fear of it for the duration of our living days. In the World of Darkness, however, there is always a darker shade of gray to be found nestled betwixt black and white absolutes. At the very least, the World of Darkness is a haunted place where ghosts sift through the shadows and walk amongst our settings and characters. Sometimes the dead come back. They can’t all be pleasant, as they are intense reflections of the situations surrounding their lives and subsequent deaths, and a lot of times they exist in spite of mortal belief as often as they exist being fueled by the passions of those who refuse to forget them.
Ghost Stories is, in many ways, a textbook that looks at the anatomy of the ghost and of hauntings in component pieces. The ghost story, at least as we know it in modern times, is quite possibly the eldest form of dark fiction that exists in our world. The concept of something beyond the stasis of death - the afterlife, if you will - takes on as many different forms and functions as there are cultures of humanity. This being the case, what Ghost Stories attempts to tackle is the basic formula of the ghost for the purposes of storytelling. Telling a ghost story for the purposes of game play is a heck of a lot different in many cases than just sitting ’round the campfire sharing re-hashed urban legends. At the same time, following the same old same old of the vengeful ghost who was murdered and who has come back for revenge time after time is no small amount of predictable, if not dreadfully boring… and Ghost Stories does a good job of both telling as well as showing where using ghosts and haunts in the World of Darkness is concerned.
Written by Rick Chillot, Matt Forbeck, Geoff Grabowski, Matt McFarland, Adam Tinworth and Chuck Wendig with some exceptionally inspiring interior artwork provided by Sam Araya, Jim DiBartolo, Anthony Granato, August Hall, Michael William Kaluta, Josh Timbrook and Jamie Tolagsun, Ghost Stories serves as a companion source for use with the core World of Darkness rulebook. Presented as a resource specifically designed for mortal characters in the World of Darkness, Ghost Stories is intended as a primer or, if you will, a starting block for World of Darkness chronicles that start out sometime before the sunset in a world that comes alive sometime around midnight. The supernatural doesn’t always have to be an in-your-face phenomenon, and some of the best chronicles that you can run are those where the World of Darkness embraces the player characters slowly into its caul over several sessions. Ghost Stories is the sort of book that lends perfectly to this sort of chronicle.
The Introduction of Ghost Stories serves as a breakdown of the ghost story into its most rudimentary parts. Covering the basics, such as why a ghost is a ghost, why a specific place or object might radiate with paranormal energy, how to plan out a ghost story of your own on paper or in your mind before the game begins, the first few pages serve to prime the Storyteller who might not have the slightest idea as to where to begin with a ghost story of her own. For more experienced Storytellers, the introduction provides a great model for an outline and for ensuring that all of an ST’s organizational needs are kept in order. Sort of a logistical checklist, if you will. Stats and background information are also provided for a handful of ghostly types that an ST might utilize in her own story, or for on-the-fly antagonists or NPCs at a glance.
The bulk of the book after the Introduction offer a series of ghost stories written as examples as well as for utilization within a chronicle. There are many different types of ghosts, and for each type, there is most definitely a story. While the types are presented along with ready-to-use accessories, the stories are up to the tellers to create. Basic plots that are very easily modified to fit the needs of the ST are included in each chapter, as are NPCs and descriptions of locales, etc. to beef up or to inspire a ghost story of your own.
Chapter One: Dust to Dust covers not so much an individual who has died and returned to haunt the living as a place. In this set of tools, the ghost story outline is for a town. Chapter Two: The Terrifying Tale of James Magnus gives up its ghost in the form of a Legend of Hell House-esque scenario. Chapter Three: No Way Out covers the conceptualization of the horror and happenings that might come from a ghost that is a result of a suicide. Chapter Four: Roots and Branches takes a look at the classic concept of the “haunted forest” or the “sour grove” or what have you, and finally, Chapter Five: Holy Ghost provides the skeleton for a story that incorporates the vengeful ghost driven by a mission. None of the chapters are written from the standpoint that they are THE way that a ghost story should run, but rather resources provided by professional story tellers to give the amateur a leg to stand on and some ammunition for her own chronicle in her own World of Darkness.
One of the best aspects of Ghost Stories, in my opinion, is the fact that it is a book that works as well with the current incarnation of the World of Darkness as it does with game systems of yesterday such as Wraith: The Oblivion and Orpheus. There’s a lot of exceptionally handy information within the covers of Ghost Stories, especially for anyone who might be new to utilizing ghosts in the World of Darkness. While veterans of Wraith: The Oblivion might not find the contents of Ghost Stories all that new and exciting, the manner with which the authors have presented their information - the step-by-step approach and the linear style to the information as provided within the chapters’ scenarios - is sure to help in the construction of the ghost story, which goes towards the betterment of the story being told as a whole.
This is the first of the “World of Darkness 2.0″ resources that I’ve picked up since the renewal of the World of Darkness as a whole by White Wolf. What I think that I like the best about this resource is the focus that, at least to me, seems to be placed on giving a Storyteller the best possible advice and guidance for becoming an even better Storyteller. Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of interesting information and a lot of creativity inclusive with the scenarios, and some of the setting elements in and of themselves are downright fantastic (Chapter Two is one of the best examples of a Haunt - or the foundation for a Nihil - that I’ve ever read, as an example). The general gist of the book is not so much on things to throw into your chronicle - kewl powerz, as such - as it is on how to tell a story that can scare the socks right off of your players if executed with a little foresight and finesse.
Given the textbook presentation and how-to feel of the book coupled with the sheer quality of the skeleton scenarios as written, Ghost Stories is a resource that is more than a little useful to anyone who wants to tell an all-Mortal chronicle or, if not, to incorporate ghosts and haunted locales into their existing World of Darkness to shake things up a little.
Reviewer: Shannon W. Hennessy
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Interview with actress and author Amber Benson
By Flames | October 5, 2005
Not only did she play Tara on the Buffy: the Vampire Slayer series, she has also directed, written and created a variety of other products that range from comic books to role-playing games.
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Bloodlines RPG Review
By Flames | July 27, 2005
Bloodlines is a handy pdf for d20 Modern from the folks at 12 to Midnight. This adventure is written with 5th Level characters in mind, but is not a requirement. With a little prep, a GM can do just about anything with this material. Bloodlines uses the OGL Horror magic system from Mongoose Publishing, but has everything you need included. Coming in both “Printer-Friendly” and “Full versions as a set. The Full version is packed with handouts, bookmarks and is one of the best looking pdfs I’ve seen on the market.
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Mind’s Eye Theatre Review
By Flames | June 23, 2005
White Wolf’s Mind’s Eye Theatre challenges us to enter a world just beyond the mortal senses, to look into the shadowy mirror of ourselves and find a world populated by the supernatural — vampires, mages, and others wage an eternal battle for dominance and survival. Choose your role in this World of Darkness … are you a defender of humanity, or a predator of the night?
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Ring 2 Movie Review
By Flames | May 2, 2005
Many sequels have a hard time living up to the original. “The Ring 2″ is no exception. However, it depends if you’re comparing it to the American version of the film, “The Ring” by Gore Verbinski, or the Japanese version, “Ringu” by Hideo Nakata. So, in this comparison the failure of “The Ring 2″ makes sense. Let’s face it, “Ringu” was bad, therefore it’s not shocking that “The Ring 2″ was bad as well. Maybe if more people had seen “Ringu” and compared it the “The Ring” they may not have been so eager to have Hideo Nakata direct it.
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