tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post3140164524911355363..comments2023-11-03T02:44:56.790-07:00Comments on Fortress: Ameritrash: The Beast WithinMatt Throwerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04426055092986158446noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-14493646527035097842007-06-15T07:10:00.000-07:002007-06-15T07:10:00.000-07:00Playboy has articles? I thought I was totally maki...Playboy has articles? I thought I was totally making that up....huh.hughthehandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03752711237682281181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-50263342934491993522007-06-14T23:01:00.000-07:002007-06-14T23:01:00.000-07:00What Frank said. I totally Fing agree. I love th...What Frank said. I totally Fing agree. I love the Beast Within. I've heard a rumor that the new video game is coming out. Any truth to that? Gabriel Knight 4? <BR/><BR/>Great posts. I love this column. Especially Frank.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-1811148435242593632007-06-14T16:57:00.000-07:002007-06-14T16:57:00.000-07:00Hugh also claims to read playboy for the articles....Hugh also claims to read playboy for the articles.Mr Skeletorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17641339798508135450noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-38180290366521081402007-06-14T09:41:00.000-07:002007-06-14T09:41:00.000-07:00I'm just gonna jump in here and throw my 2 cents i...I'm just gonna jump in here and throw my 2 cents in. Which is probably worth about $0.0003254 since I am mainly a euro gamer.<BR/><BR/>I think the non-aggressive, non-violent thing in euors is really talking about the game itself, not the group. Cause let me tell you, in my group, Puerto Rico gets violent. Maybe not in the game play but in the table talk. "I just fucked you hard by taking that role, you coffee rich bastard! Try taking that to the bank and cashing it, you two bit whore!" Stuff like that is very common and expected in my group.<BR/><BR/>Caylus can get worse....trust me.<BR/><BR/>I personally don't think the games are violent themselves at all.<BR/><BR/>Barnes said:<BR/><I>because I never really regarded ToI or any other wargame as "violent".</I><BR/><BR/>I 100% agree with this. I never actually think I am killing anything, because games like that seem so abstract to me. I'm only moving plastic bits. What I do find violent is me saying, that move I just made? Ya...that is me kicking in you nuts, then taking your mom, having my foul way with her, while you watch....and she is loving it!<BR/><BR/>The violence to me is really what I am doing on the board to hurt YOU. Not that I am actually a Nazi killing your hapless American troops.<BR/><BR/>Why do I like to play the so called "bad" side, like Germany in a wargame? I like trying to change history, and prove that there were some very lucky decisions involved in the real war. Or that I could have done a better job at it.<BR/><BR/>Being an underdog in an AT game and winning....$70...telling your opponent that he sucks all forms of ass and his playing is inferior to your awesomeness? Priceless.<BR/><BR/>Either way, euro or AT...the game itself isn't the violent part. Its the table talk and heated discussions during the game that is.hughthehandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03752711237682281181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-362019350220313272007-06-14T08:31:00.000-07:002007-06-14T08:31:00.000-07:00ubaroseHere comes Ted. Nipping at your ears. Showi...<B>ubarose</B><I>Here comes Ted. Nipping at your ears. Showing us his inner beast. He feels like the Big Dog now. This is what I'm talking about.</I><BR/><BR/>It's comments like this that make me wish Blogger had thumbs-up like BGG.Pawnstarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14138454253813433739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-77380218809039164882007-06-13T14:25:00.000-07:002007-06-13T14:25:00.000-07:00Mike Dowd: As far as killing and violence, I find ...Mike Dowd: <I>As far as killing and violence, I find much more satisfaction in kicking someone in the money bag than in the nut sack, which is why I really like the waro genre, you get to choose.</I><BR/><BR/>The money bag? Isn't that where the money shot comes from?Shellheadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02023484901650550355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-20691614914007565092007-06-13T06:25:00.000-07:002007-06-13T06:25:00.000-07:00BTW Ted, way to go leaving your name on an "anonym...<I>BTW Ted, way to go leaving your name on an "anonymous" post.</I><BR/><BR/>Not sure if that's meant to be sarcastic or not? If it is he's not the first to do it - People do it either because they can't be bothered creating an account or forget to log in.Mr Skeletorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17641339798508135450noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-29042535147837978862007-06-13T06:08:00.000-07:002007-06-13T06:08:00.000-07:00Further east of Germany is doing odd things. I've ...Further east of Germany is doing odd things. I've got a copy of a Polish gaming magazine last week with a mix of Euro and wargame reviews. Here I stand got a 9. <BR/><BR/>Zvezda in Russian has also been doing very FFG-style games for awhile alongside their odd miniature offerings. The only thing we got was Robogear, which includes giant mech plastic models that actually shoot.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-9828792576326795302007-06-13T05:59:00.000-07:002007-06-13T05:59:00.000-07:00You guys are lame. Do you really think rolling a h...<I>You guys are lame. Do you really think rolling a handful of dice releases your inner beast?</I><BR/><BR/>No. I think screaming "take that, fucker" across the gaming table, or gloating as you tear chunks out of a former ally are what actually does it.<BR/><BR/>BTW Ted, way to go leaving your name on an "anonymous" post.Matt Throwerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04426055092986158446noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-10521112194535909012007-06-12T21:38:00.000-07:002007-06-12T21:38:00.000-07:00Not according to URSUPPE, the seminal shit-eating ...<I>Not according to URSUPPE, the seminal shit-eating game.</I><BR/><BR/>Aha, I figured at first you must be referring to Ursuppe, but I've never played it so I wasn't sure. Plus, it seemed a little, you know ... euro. I thought maybe you were playing Prison Bitch, or had come up with some truly innovative custom cards for Munchkin.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-6780057234296741782007-06-12T20:44:00.000-07:002007-06-12T20:44:00.000-07:00You guys are lame. Do you really think rolling a h...<I>You guys are lame. Do you really think rolling a handful of dice releases your inner beast?<BR/><BR/>Ted T.</I><BR/><BR/>Here comes Ted. Nipping at your ears. Showing us his inner beast. He feels like the Big Dog now. This is what I'm talking about.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01990801735325411116noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-67574656765791790822007-06-12T20:34:00.000-07:002007-06-12T20:34:00.000-07:00I'm a vegetarian and I love puppies. Politically I...<I>I'm a vegetarian and I love puppies. Politically I'm pretty libertarian although I'm still an anarchist at heart. I'm antiracist, antihomophobe, antisexist, and totally pro-choice. </I><BR/><BR/>I'm an animal lover. In fact they're delicious. Male and female are coded to behave differently in almost every species, except of course humans, where to even to suggest such an idea is offensive. Gay people are wonderful and would be even better if there were a cure. By choice do you mean fries or chips? If you're talking abortion I think the baby should have the choice, once it reaches 18, to terminate itself.<BR/><BR/>You guys are lame. Do you really think rolling a handful of dice releases your inner beast?<BR/><BR/>Ted T.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-9667860886608885422007-06-12T20:19:00.000-07:002007-06-12T20:19:00.000-07:00We got this great thing in the US called Nickelcad...We got this great thing in the US called Nickelcade where you can play all the classics for 5 cents.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-39964002901423720582007-06-12T19:56:00.000-07:002007-06-12T19:56:00.000-07:00That was 40 Aussie cents, back when Double Dragon ...That was 40 Aussie cents, back when Double Dragon first came out. <BR/>"Have you heard about the end boss? He has a machine gun!"<BR/><BR/>Now days you are lucky if you can find an arcade machine that you could play for $2.Mr Skeletorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17641339798508135450noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-73111473647634051102007-06-12T18:57:00.000-07:002007-06-12T18:57:00.000-07:00After playing Double Dragon I never felt any more ...<I>After playing Double Dragon I never felt any more or less violent than before I put my 40 cents in. </I><BR/><BR/>You pay 40 cents to play Double Dragon? Ripoff!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-71252375911076731912007-06-12T18:49:00.000-07:002007-06-12T18:49:00.000-07:00I'm really a pretty nice guy, I think. I'm a veget...<I>I'm really a pretty nice guy, I think. I'm a vegetarian and I love puppies. Politically I'm pretty libertarian although I'm still an anarchist at heart. I'm antiracist, antihomophobe, antisexist, and totally pro-choice. Thanks to Robert Martin, my pink cellphone has become more famed than his pink cellphone that plays Andrew Lloyd Weber showtunes.</I><BR/><BR/>What a pack of wankers. <BR/><BR/>I never really brought the whole "Violence in entertainment is a release" argument - just sounds like a shitty excuse to me. After playing Double Dragon I never felt any more or less violent than before I put my 40 cents in. After watching a Slayer concert I don't feel like helping old ladies across the street because all my violent tendencies are now gone. I don't feel like punching my opponent in the face after playing a 'peaceful' game like Purto Rico then I do getting fucked over n Game of Thrones. <BR/><BR/>I will agree that non-violent themes are a german only thing. In fact if you took FFG out of the equation most AT and violent stuff seems to be coming from France these days.Mr Skeletorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17641339798508135450noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-55778087647397893422007-06-12T18:23:00.000-07:002007-06-12T18:23:00.000-07:00It's not about violence or evil. It's about domina...It's not about violence or evil. It's about dominance (there's a word that makes people twitch). Humans are pack animals. We are like dogs. We want to stare each other down, or nip each other's ears to establish ourselves as the Big Dog, but we don't actually want to seriously injure a member of our pack, because that will weaken us as a whole. Men are always trying to establish dominance - whether at work, or on the golf course, or the bowling ally, or over a game board, or driving their big ass car, are banging heads at local dive. Some guys actually have to win at something to feel like they are big dogs, other guys just nip at each other by talking trash. Channeling those instincts by knocking off plastic soldiers, and laughing about it, is far more civilized than doing something that requires bail money.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01990801735325411116noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-63074408378962897742007-06-12T15:32:00.000-07:002007-06-12T15:32:00.000-07:00I still would be interested in real comparative nu...I still would be interested in real comparative numbers of sales from, say, GMT, FFG and Mayfair or Rio Grande's top releases. <BR/><BR/>Video games suffer from this too; all they have are NPD numbers for sales which are a little fishy. I'd be interested from an informational angle what is really selling.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-11130683616326924462007-06-12T15:20:00.000-07:002007-06-12T15:20:00.000-07:00There is definitely a dark side to human nature. ...There is definitely a dark side to human nature. But then again the notion of "dark" being bad, evil or wrong is only one interpretation. There is no good without evil for comparison. No joy without suffering to measure it by. There always will be evil and dark. Terrorists and killers. What impedes human development is when these things get out of their natural balance. I think mortal kombat, doom, cnn, horror films and AT serve a VERY important part in maintaining the balance for those of us born into a relatively benevolent western society.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-46730403984306406452007-06-12T15:00:00.000-07:002007-06-12T15:00:00.000-07:00Yes, former Eastern Bloc countries are making a pr...Yes, former Eastern Bloc countries are making a pretty impressive showing lately with some very high quality (Slavitrash?) titles like PROPHECY and THROUGH THE AGES. Rich with stabbing and shooting, too.<BR/><BR/>Jack points out something that isn't so much connected to any kind of national characteristic...that what we call "Euro" or "German" style games with nonviolent/pacifist themes are pretty deeply connected with the hobby game industry's attention to the supposed "family game" market- which I'm not entirely convinced has ever really existed on the level it was purported to based solely on the sales of three or four titles. I think in the US in particular, where hobby retailers and wholesalers are always looking for the next D&D/Magic/Pokemon phenomenon, this idea that the "family game" was the next big thing never really took off...and now we see games like the FFG titles selling gangbusters and Rio Grande doing well enough in its niche but still not selling 3000 or so copies of its top releases.<BR/><BR/>Sales figures for last week- I sold 10 copies of TIDE OF IRON (and could have sold 10 more if they weren't short-shipped) and 2 copies of NOTRE DAME, and I have one gathering dust in the back of my car. Likewise, COLOSSEUM failed to spark any interest whatsoever and is an almost complete dud (not to mention a really shitty game). Big box, violent-themed games have not only a built in hobby nerd appeal, but they also have a LOT more crossover appeal into other markets. Kids brought up on HALO will likely enjoy TIDE OF IRON, but what the hell are they going to think of IF WISHES WERE FISHES? It's good that there is a backlash and the return of violent and conflict oriented themes because frankly, all these games designed to appeal to Mormon families and 50 year old men don't provide much hope for the future of the hobby.<BR/><BR/>On Jorg Buttgereit- You're right, but I dunno man, SCHRAMM is pretty violent...and the cock-trimming scene in DER TODESKING definitely qualifies as violent...I guess the Nazis didn't ruin sex and death for future generations like they did violence.Michael Barneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01465993224831900150noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-38735073512164933002007-06-12T14:52:00.000-07:002007-06-12T14:52:00.000-07:00"growing up a nerd in the 1980s and nerd culture w..."growing up a nerd in the 1980s and nerd culture was pretty much all about violence in one form or another"<BR/><BR/>Yeah I agree I think part of this depends on when you grew up. I saw Star Wars in the cinema and all my heroes back then were violent, except for the A-Team where no-one died _ever_. I played with toy guns when they looked like guns dammit. Again I think we are back to people who place far too much importance on a game compared to people who know it's only a game. It doesn't define you or me but it seems like for so many people it is exactly that. It reminds me of way back when anyone playing D+D was worshipping the devil.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-63650727537895884242007-06-12T14:26:00.000-07:002007-06-12T14:26:00.000-07:00I never pondered this issue until maybe two years ...I never pondered this issue until maybe two years ago, the first time my current girlfriend went looking through my board game collection. She asked some questions and looked at the box art, and after about five games, she shook her head and murmured, "so much death."<BR/><BR/>Still, I didn't feel guilty about it, because I know that I'm a nice guy who likes helping people. I enjoy playing games of death and deceit, but in real life, I am kind and honest. Sometimes I like to listen to punk or heavy metal, and roll some dice while engaging in simulated warfare, but that's just fun, nothing serious.<BR/><BR/>And when I look around, I see that I live in a place with a lot of uptight scandinavian and german types who tend to be calm and excessively polite. But they also love to drink heavily, gamble at the indian casinos and, when still young, play that excessively violent sport known as ice hockey. Even lutheran pillars of the community need to go wild once in a while.Shellheadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02023484901650550355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-64995729387974288592007-06-12T14:20:00.000-07:002007-06-12T14:20:00.000-07:00Matt: The whole nonviolence is definitely a German...Matt: The whole nonviolence is definitely a German thing. <BR/><BR/>French and Italians make games that are just as violent as us US folks. Look at Tannhauser. (Even if they INSIST that it is an alternate world where the Wehrmacht never existed. Part of this is likely so that they can sell the game in Germany, where anything with Nazi imagery is illegal.)<BR/><BR/>I don't think the rise in German game design is a nonviolence thing. <BR/><BR/>When you go back to the 80's there are mostly family games, as well as a few hobby game companies making stuff a lot like American companies. <BR/><BR/>Hans im Gluck's first few games included a Dungeon Crawl (Samaris), and a sort of odd western shootout / gambling game (Dodge City.)<BR/><BR/>Moskito's first game is a 3 player wargame. <BR/><BR/>What you got is a weird kind of merging where the toy companies began to make more complex games (starting mostly with Settlers), and the hobby companies started trying to make lighter games to get part of the family crowd business. <BR/><BR/>The entire trend has been towards lighter games---enough that we are seeing a bit of a backlash with new companies that are making games that are definitely gamery. Still not quite violent...but you are now getting the occsional End of the Triumvirate.<BR/><BR/>Personally, I think we need to watch all of the old Eastern block countries. The stuff coming out of there is so much more interesting.<BR/><BR/>Barnes: Jorg is not really about violence. Just death, and sex...in every combination possible.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-85639847022030574662007-06-12T14:02:00.000-07:002007-06-12T14:02:00.000-07:00I think you'll find M&Ms are a much better board g...<I>I think you'll find M&Ms are a much better board game snack.</I><BR/><BR/>Not according to URSUPPE, the seminal shit-eating game.<BR/><BR/>Jay Dee- Ha! You're right...it's like there's a vegetarian escape clause...like any time someone mentions the classic grindcore band Carcass, vegetarianism invariably creeps into the conversation. Good thing to know, I can commit atrocities and release albums like "Heartwork" and always have a redeeming quality.<BR/><BR/>Matt- Hmm. That's interesting to think of it in a more specific frame but it does seem to be a "German" thing. Of course, in the US, it's sometimes hard not to think of the UK as somehow separate than the continent. But god knows the UK has brought us some of the most delirously violent board games ever. For that, we salute you.<BR/><BR/>There's really nothing wrong with nonviolent themes at all though, and I definitely appreciate their place and appeal to a lot of different people...but you know, growing up a nerd in the 1980s and nerd culture was pretty much all about violence in one form or another except for those weird kids that went to Space Camp. I was never interested in the Space Shuttle and all that because it didn't have railguns or torpedo launchers. I grew up with death merchants like He Man, Transformers, and GI Joe...along with D&D, AXIS & ALLIES, etc. so violence was always a part of it for me...when I was 15, if you asked me to play a game about bean farming I probably would have beat you over the head with my black Powell Peralta Tony Hawk (fishtail, as god intended).<BR/><BR/>Those Space Camp kids are likely the American Eurogamers of today.<BR/><BR/>Don't get me started on violence in German media though...two words, JORG BUTTGEREIT.Michael Barneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01465993224831900150noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-45098726540573633582007-06-12T13:48:00.000-07:002007-06-12T13:48:00.000-07:00...which is an odd contradiction to me, considerin...<I>...which is an odd contradiction to me, considering that some of the most violent and hateful music I've ever heard in my life has come from Europe (Black Metal, anyone) and some of the most violent and hateful films I've ever seen are European (CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST- 'nuff said).</I><BR/><BR/>It's not about the games being European - this is a specifically German thing. The guilt-hangover from the days of the Reich is still very strong in Gemany, to the point where video games that depict humans killing other humans are banned. I wouldn't be surprised if that legislation extended to boardgames. Anyway, since the majority of Eurogames come from Germany, it's entirely unsurprising that they feature a rejection of violence as a hallmark design aspect.<BR/><BR/>I've often pondered whether this aversion to bloodshed isn't partly what inspired German game design in the first place. When everyone else was having a blast playing AT games back in the eighties, the German game fans were probably appalled by some of the themes that got used and maybe it inspired some designers to try and make games based around some nonviolent themes.Matt Throwerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04426055092986158446noreply@blogger.com