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[D-U-NAM]

The new paranoia XP book is fun.... but I feel a certain lack of crazy jokes from the book. On the other hand, I know much better how to run a succesful game now. I guess you guys struck a good balance

The service services are kinda hard to grasp and I think I will just ignore them. They are being fleshed out too much to the point of boringness. Yes, the book said they would be boring, but I don't expect to get what is promised in alpha complex, I expect hot fun or smoking boots no matter what is promised.

Still paranoia XP has managed to recapture its atmosphere as well as merging it rather nicely with developments over the last 10 years. Therefor, it receives the D-U-NAM honorary seal of proudness. I mean the D-U-NAM's proud honor of sealing. No wait, the honorary prou....shucks!
Well 'good job' would do this time.

 

[Allen Varney]

Thanks, D-U. I admit the new XP edition strikes a less constantly comic tone than did the much-loved West End second edition of PARANOIA (1987) and the classic adventures. This was partly due to deadline pressure, but mainly stems from my wish to broaden the range of experiences players associate with PARANOIA. The game needn't be all slapstick and whimsy; if the rulebook text were entirely comedic, it would be harder to convey the possibilities of the darkly satiric Straight play style.

About a year from now Mongoose will publish a service group supplement that should flesh out the service firms strongly enough to satisfy any curiosity. They're certanly NOT all boring; only a couple of entries, such as the Food Vats, are described as literally boring.

Meanwhile, you can get some idea of the possibilities the service firms afford if you look at Crash Priority, the new mission collection. Hope you enjoy it!

 

[Anonymous]

I ran Paranoia XP for the first time this weekend. Not bad for someone who just picked up the book on Monday. I am so glad the rules were simple enough to let my players have fun and let me be creative without worrying about building a proper B3 DispensorBot.

I never owned any of the original Paranoia books though I had played the game years before. I thought the art was great and the layout was really easy on the eyes. I appreciated how there wasn't any long fiction pieces but there was plenty of little tidbits that fired my imagination as a GM.

One part that struck me was the attitude that the players should be the ones killing each other, not a homicidal GM. That wasn't the way my GM ran it! I don't know if that was how old Paranoia should be played, but I really like this direction better. I kill players for doing stupid things <Like threatening a Blue Service Firm Manager> but it is far more fun for a player to get killed when the rest of the party conspires to get rid of the Loyalty Officer to get a chance at her notes.

I didn't like the Service Firms economy at first, but that changed when I had to make an adventure. Once you realize that identical Service Firms are natural enemies of each other, the plots write themselves. I had the players transport a prototype batch of B3 for the company, Bubble-Up!. They were harrassed along the way by the Bubble-True firm, who had lost the bid to make the New and Improved B3. Instead of R&D, I forced the players to snatch up goods from the Bubble-Up! store. Now they are toting weapons that sing the Bubble-Up! slogan and their armor comes with cup-holders. I honestly am not sure what I would do without the firms to give inspiration.

All in all, I'm very happy with the game. I'm not sure what I think of Straight version yet, but I think I will have to see an entire module done in that style before I can make a decision.

 

[Allen Varney]

Excellent use of service firms there, Shon-R. That's a funny and characteristically PARANOIA plot element.

One part that struck me was the attitude that the players should be the ones killing each other, not a homicidal GM. That wasn't the way my GM ran it! I don't know if that was how old Paranoia should be played, but I really like this direction better.

The classic first (1984) and second (1987) editions of PARANOIA advocated an openly malign relationship between GM and players. That was fun and innovative -- and, by and large, unique to PARANOIA to this day -- but the new XP edition suggests a more interesting GM-player relationship, something like a scientist with a bunch of lab rats. This approach maintains fear and ignorance, the quintessence of PARANOIA, yet also helps players feel a bit more comfortable with the Gamemaster, so they can focus their attention on messing with rival players. I'm glad this adjustment has worked for you.