Confused about releases and ongoing support

[Weet-R-BIX]

Let me start off by saying I'm a game collector and Paranoia fan. I embraced 1st and 2nd editions with gusto (even if I found some of the later 2nd ed. supplements rather uninspired. I even own a copy of the 5th edition Rulebook, which is even more uninspired if that's possible.

Years later, and enter Mongoose, promising to return Paranoia to its far more entertaining roots with XP. Miniatures accompanying the range and a card game came and went with the speed of a lightning strike. Blink and you missed them. Support was good for the most part, with errata and deleted material from published expansion books made available for free on the Mongoose website. I was an early adopter for XP and continued to buy most of the books in the range by pre-order.

Then Matthew breaks the news that the XP line is to be dropped very quickly and to hurry and buy anything you want from the range before it's gone forever. PDFs remain available at DTRPG for longer than expected, allowing a better chance to grab what you were missing in electronic format, if you were caught by surprise by the abrupt news of XPs demise.

Then we get an announcement that a new edition is coming and the limited (expensive) versions will come with a CD contains some of the last XP books. Regular releases of the book will not carry the CD. The new range came and went with barely a whimper to announce its arrival and less still announcing its demise. Special offers also came and went. I would have jumped on board with the 'Bag of Holding' set, had I even known of its existence.

Then this Kickstarter that seems to be VERY late, and also appears to be a card game?!? Not really on board with that.

So, I have to ask; why are the PDFs of the XP product and the (whatever it was called) edition no longer available at DTRPG? Why have the supporting documents for the XP publications been removed from the Mongoose website?

XP was soured for me by the unexpectedly sudden removal of it from Mongoose's website with little advanced notice. I felt less inclined to support the new edition of the game as I had concerns regarding ongoing support after the cancellation of XP.

I would certainly have picked up the missing supplements from my XP collection, and probably what was available from the next edition, if the had been advertised or promoted as PDFs, or physical books for that matter from DTRPG.

In lieu of this next KS version of Paranoia being made available, can't the older legacy products be offered again electronically? I hardly think it will have any impact on new game sales when the KS version is not yet released. I would also like to see the errata and deleted materials restored to the Mongoose website.

C'mon Matthew, how about it? If not, can you let us know why? There are a lot of fans who were left disappointed by the way the product line was handled. Earn some brownie points!

Thanks 8)

 

[MongooseMatt]

There is a plan to get the old Paranoia PDFs up (all of them, not just XP), but there are a few too many things going on right now! We will get to that, I promise.

The new Paranoia, incidentally, is _not_ a card game - it is very much an RPG that just happens to feature cards.

 

[Weet-R-BIX]

Thanks for the reply Matthew. It's great to know that the legacy volumes will not be forgotten. I hope that will happen soon-ish as I'd love to complete my collection.

Apologies about my categorising of the new RPG edition as a card game.

 

[Clangador]

I hope it's good, but I am skeptical of the card aspect of it.

 

[DanDare2050]

All-new mechanics include a simple yet brilliant character-generation system, a bluffing-based card-driven combat system, a special Computer Dice which means even the simplest interaction can become hilariously fatal, in-game XP Point rewards, and more advice to GMs than you can shake a stick at2.

There is the source of the confusion bout cards. I would like to see previews of some of these mechanics before I would consider the game. I have always loved Paranoia for its setting and never much cared for its mechanics.

 

[saulres]

I have always loved Paranoia for its setting and never much cared for its mechanics.

You don't really need to worry about mechanics, you know. As the GM, just say, "Tell me what you're trying. If it's entertaining, it works in the way that I think would be most entertaining for me. If it's not entertaining, it may or may not work, in the way that I think would be most entertaining for me. Bribes are accepted. Bribes are also treason."

That's all you really need

 

[DanDare2050]

I have always loved Paranoia for its setting and never much cared for its mechanics.

You don't really need to worry about mechanics, you know. As the GM, just say, "Tell me what you're trying. If it's entertaining, it works in the way that I think would be most entertaining for me. If it's not entertaining, it may or may not work, in the way that I think would be most entertaining for me. Bribes are accepted. Bribes are also treason."

That's all you really need

In which case why buy the game at all. Seriously mechanical structure has benefits, especially for player GM interaction. Mechanics or the lack thereof can assist or break the players sense of engagement. I've been DMing this since 2nd edition but I play the "serious" approach where alpha complex works and the players don't just play a frag fest.

 

[saulres]

Well I've bought the game because of the environment and flavor, and the mechanics are nice but not my focus. But when I run it I do it in a lighthearted way -- not zapzapzap (usually) but not serious. I can see where the mechanics become much more important in a more serious take.

 

[Clangador]

I've run Paranoia under GURPS before and it went pretty good. I'm planning to run another game under the Mutant Crawl Classics RPG when it comes out.

I currently run Paranoia XP with my group. We play every month or two for a couple sessions. The tone of the game is Straight with a sprinkling of Zap at times.

I also find the specific rule system less important than the setting of the game.

 

[Zarathud]

I have run Paranoia with the early versions of the Kickstarter rules for the past 2 years at Origins Game Fair. In my experience, the cards are basically player aids to help the game's interactivity.

Rather than rolling for initiative, you can bid a number on action cards to go first -- and bluff what number is actually on the card. If everyone wants to keep their card, no one actually sees the bid and your bluff wins.

The cards also substitute for the notes that would constantly interrupt game play. Certain cards give bonuses from using an item or allow an interrupting action. A player with an awesome card will take more risks, and find ways to use the card.

What I like most is the ability to randomize the mutant powers and have the players turn them in after use. Once everyone knows that Bob is the Pyromaniac mutant, everything somehow involves a fire that is blamed on the mutant. Especially at my convention games, which became uncool very quickly.

A player who loses their equipment may have to turn in the card with the bonuses. It's the same thing as asking a player to cross it off their character sheet, but more fun. I think of the cards as built-in props, which is a Paranoia staple from way back.

 

[saulres]

Would you give a little more details about that "randomize mutations" comment? Is it no longer the case that a character keeps the same mutation throughout all their clones?