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Ignotus is Sacred Wolf’s game of modern horror, in which potent conspiracies exist to render miserable the lives of the ordinary people and dark secrets are revealed to show that man is not alone. In the Ignotus Player’s Guide, all of the information required for players to take part in this darkly present world is provided. From formative experiences to feats and skills, prestige classes to starting occupations, the book lays out in plain terms what is what. The emphasis is primarily on the nitty gritty of gameplay rather than the flavour of the setting and it is sometimes difficult to envisage exactly how characters can be made to come alive.
Throughout known history, mankind has been threatened by the malevolent plane known as the Ignotus. How the Ignotus came into being is not clear – some believe it was a remnant of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, while others consider it to be a punishment from God. What is known, though, is that the Ignotus is the source of numerous trials and tribulations, including manifestations of evil spirits, ghosts and all manner of frightful things. As the Ignotus moves closer to the earth, its effects multiply and inevitably it is the innocent who suffer the most.
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.
Imagine everything is quiet. You’re a foreign exchange student from American in Japan subbing for a nurse who disappeared. You enter the house of a woman who is mentally unstable in the middle of Tokyo. Of course something isn’t right. All that is going on in your mind is summed up in one thought: “The whole time I was in that house, I knew something was wrong.” You are now in the world of “The Grudge”.
If zombies took over, would you fight? One of the Living is a supplement for All Flesh Must be Eaten that focuses on the survivors.
The opening fiction sets the tone for this dark, survivalist supplement. While there were a few grammatical errors, the language is vibrant and photographic. You feel as if you are right behind Jack, with a hand on his shoulder, as he struggles to retell his story. When you realize that Jack’s hope orbits around the impending daybreak, you understand that this is not your typical All Flesh supplement. Overall, the flavor text is well-written and does a good job of enhancing the desperate setting.
Oft times in horror role-playing, characters endure deadly consequences to the blood, guts and gore that bleeds through so many games. Every once in a while a horror rpg strives to create the mood and theme of horror through fear, manipulation, and growth of character. Dead Inside: The Roleplaying Game of Loss and Redemption, is a game that steps away from combat and mechanics and focuses on “the reasons for and the manner in which tasks are attempted.”
The War of the Flowers is written in such a way that you forget the fae archetypes that run amuck in this novel. Williams’ quality of writing gives a visual feel to the book that lets you revel in the myriad of faerie types he describes. Sprites, pixies, hobgoblins, tommy-knockers, ferishers, selkies, goblins, trolls, poleviks and nixies are just a small part of this tale. Each type of faerie has been distinguished from its archetype in such a way you feel that Williams collected several as if they were fragile butterflies. Not so breakable are the trolls. While ugly and useful for their strength, their endearing quality is that they are named after their favorite childhood “toy.”
Grimm is a d20 setting part of Fantasy Flight Games’ Horizon line. It’s self-contained and only needs the 3 Core books. It’s designed with 3.5 in mind but I imagine the 3.0 Core books could be used without difficulty. The premise is that you play children who have been drawn into the lands where the Grimm fairy tales took place. It was the setting that caught my attention and is the reason I decided to buy it. Grimm definitely gets points for uniqueness.
This game won’t win any awards, oh sorry, it’s hard to not blurt that out while playing this game. This commercial on TV for this “treadclimber” says it’s fast, easy, and makes me feel good. Evil Dead doesn’t make me feel any of these, it makes me feel bored, annoyed, and sick. First the CG’s, the pre-rendered’s are pretty good, not OddWorld good, but good none the less. But there are only like 3 of them. Speaking of 3’s, that’s how many bosses are in the whole game, 3, and that’s including the end boss. The game has 5 levels which are massive though.
The cover continues the usage of a stark white background, which stands out on the FLGS shelving. On which the picture of the back of a rough looking sort with his back covered in tattoos stands. The cover is made of (and I don’t know the technical term) Shiny thick paper or thin cardboard. (I’m sure someone will inform me).
At first glance, Cursed Empire is a lot of information. I would even go so far as to say that this book holds more information and mechanics than a lot of the D20 products out there on the market. Steven Preston, a fan who’s played Cursed Empire writes, “The system is much more in depth than your standard d20 types. It is very realistic.” Realism is the core of this game. The mechanics, while not D20, are based on percentages. For someone who plays games that are not mechanics-intensive, Cursed Empire can appear intimidating. The rules system covers everything you can imagine, from the weight of your satchel to the effects of weather (p. 167). However, the percentage mechanics has an appeal to many D20 players. James Holden, another fan who’s played Cursed Empire writes, “As far as the percentile system goes it is superb. We had no probs as d20 gamers getting into this and have picked it up really easily.”
The first fiction novel for Vampire: The Requiem, a game line produced by White Wolf, A Hunger Like Fire sets the tone for some colorful characters and intriguing plot twists.
Written by Greg Stolze, the novel begins with a character narration by Bruce, a newly-changed vampire. New to being an undead, but not authorized by the Prince of Chicago, Prince Maxwell. After reading the first two pages, I felt compelled to read further. While first person narration can get tricky, Stolze handles it well by adding some interesting character quirks. For example, the undead Bruce Miner has an attachment to his dog, Peaches. Of course, he has to use his special vampiric ability to get close to animals, but nonetheless it’s a good tie-in between game mechanics and a fictional character.
I’ll be honest; this book snared me as an impulse buy for 2 reasons. First, I needed something to read on the bus ride home from the mall; second, well, I love werewolves and it’s so painfully rare to find a half-decent werewolf story. I’m not sure why it is, but nobody seems to be able to really nail the heart and soul of the werewolf story. The original Howling did it; An American Werewolf in London was a classic, despite its camp, and An American Werewolf in Paris to this reviewer’s mind was a very underrated werewolf film. But other than those three films, good werewolf stories seem to be slim pickin’s. I didn’t expect much better from Bitten, but I picked it up simply because I love werewolves.
Vampire: Gehenna, the Final Night is the first act of the Time of Judgment, telling the story of a wide-ranging Armageddon among the supernatural entities of the World of Darkness.
The end of the line for Vampire: the Masquerade and the Kindred characters of that part of the World of Darkness. Several signature characters, such as Lucita and Theo Bell and make a final appearance in this book. As Ari Marmell’s first novel, this is quite an undertaking. How do you sum up all those years of books, characters and events in the plot of Vampire: the Masquerade? Quite simply, you can’t. There is simply too much. So many characters and plots have been introduced over the years that it would take volumes to cover them all. What Ari Marmell does with this book is tell a great story of a select few of the characters we’ve known over the years.
The cover is beautiful, the main figure is of a night caste called Harmonious Jade, in the background you might be able to see the faces or other exalted, each one of them as a life and a personality of it’s own.
White wolf’s favorite theme is transformation, and here is not the exception, but the world of exalted is much more than that.
In recent years a host of post-apocalyptic games have flung themselves at the mercy of the gaming market. Rapture: The Second Coming is a setting created by William Spencer-Hale. Its post-apocalyptic echoes have strong religious overtones. While some games with a religious feel have lent themselves to popular Christian theology, Rapture flies in the face of such traditions through its conspiracy and depiction of the Vatican as the basis for all evil. The writers of Rapture are aware of its controversy, “Rapture does not attempt to embrace a religious ideal or promote one form of theology over another. On the contrary, in the context of the game, all religions have their truth, no matter what their view of God may be.” (Page 24) The game is no less controversial for having the explanation, however. Its character classes span the realm of modern-day religion and stereotypes.
Normally I’m not one who likes many D20 products on the market, as I am not a regular user of that system. Also due to the fact that many of the products out there are not of the highest quality that they should be, more of an attempt to make a few dollars off of the D20 logo with a halfway thought out ideas done with shoddy writing.
However this particular book does not fall among the ranks of those.
Without even reading a word of text, this book is gorgeous. Crimson red cover, portraying a hand dipping into blood, with red rose petals drifting atop; it’s easily one of White Wolf’s best. Internally, the art is the usual Gothic fair. Some of the art is more mature in nature, which is becoming a trend, even in mainstream Wizards of the Coast books.
The book is mostly black and white, with a touch of red here and there, which technically makes this a full-color book. That being the case, $34.95 for 302 color pages is not a bad deal. The presentation for this book is great, and I could recommend it on a completely separate aesthetic level.
Public synopsis: A powerful virus escapes from a British research facility. Transmitted in a drop of blood and devastating within seconds, the virus locks those infected into a permanent state of murderous rage. Within 28 days the country is overwhelmed and a handful of survivors begin their attempts to salvage a future, little realizing that the deadly virus is not the only thing that threatens them.
Well that’s just the blurb that is given to the general audience via the back of the video box. But this movie amounts to so much more than most people could have anticipated. A very finely crafted movie with a cast that delivers some top-notch performances and a story that’s sure to keep you in your seat. I’ll try not to give away too much in the way of spoilers but I’m sure a few will leak their way in.
If you are looking for tens of new rotes and tons of cool rules for initiates you are looking for the wrong place. Initiates of the art consist of stories and dialogs as if It has been written by a group of mage. You can also trace two characters from Initiates of The Art to Masters of The Art, Lee Ann and the kid called Kyle. Other character of notice is Sir Lawrence.
