Gen Con Retrospective

Gen Con Retrospective

The minimally-edited Big Red Couch Gen Con Report.
Or, more accurately, what Craig did on his holidays.

Gen Con (the event)
Gen Con (wikipedia)

QAGS (Hex Games)

Monarchies of Mau, from Onyx Path Publishing (early access edition)
Pugmire, also from Onyx Path Publishing

Cypher System, from Monte Cook Games

Masks, from Magpie Games

Trail of Cthulhu, from Pelgrane Press
Cthulhu City, also from Pelgrane Press

Eclipse Phase, from Posthuman Studios
Eclipse Phase: Transhumanity’s Fate, also from Posthuman Studios
Transhumanity’s Fate is more or less the ‘Fate Edition’ of Eclipse Phase, at least as far as Craig understands it.
It requires Fate Core to run ~ T. Jones

Fate Core, from Evil Hat Productions

They Might Be Giants

Norse Foundry
Craig badgered me until I put in a link to the folks who made the metal D20 & Fate dice he bought ~ T. Jones

Norse Foundry Metal D20 & Fate Dice

IGDN – Indie Game Developer Network

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About Testulon Jones

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7 thoughts on “Gen Con Retrospective

  1. Tim Soholt says:

    Role-playing games aren’t 50 years old. GenCon was a wargaming convention before RPGs even existed. Dungeons & Dragons was first published in 1974, and was sold at GenCon VII, according to the first volume of Shannon Applecline’s excellent book series “Designers & Dragons.”

    (And, incidentally, once a year with this one being the 50th would mean that it started in 1968, not 1967.)

    • Ben says:

      Yes! Someone finally called us out on something! I was worried we were doing something horribly wrong. Aside from being sloppy with the math, that is. 🙂

      I was definitely aware that GenCon started out as a war-gaming event. but if there was any disgust / disbelief in my voice it’s probably because I’m approximately of an age with the hobby ( born in between Chainmail (1971) and OD&D (1974) ) so the idea that we’re both approaching the half ton is a bit daunting.

      Thank you, Tim!

      • Tim Soholt says:

        I know the feeling; I’m in that window myself. 🙂

        • Ben says:

          Red box?

          • Tim Soholt says:

            *First* red box with the Otus cover. Christmas 1981. Sadly I don’t still have that, but I do still have my original Star Frontiers boxed set (before it was called “Alpha Dawn”), minus the dice, and my 1st edition AD&D hardbacks, both of which I must have gotten sometime in ’82 or ’83.

        • Ben says:

          In other news; today learnt that the ’81 and ’83 runs are being referred to as B/X and BECMI respectively. SMH FML ROLF, I guess?

  2. Ben says:

    I started out with revised Mentzer box set, with the groovy Elmore art. I then veered hard into MERPS and Judge Dredd, before GURPS, Palladium, and Paranoia in high school. I think I have the old box somewhere, though it imploded at some point.

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