Any folks here familiar with the game Orbital Blues? It is a rules-lite RPG that has received lots of good reviews online about "sad space cowboys," meant to mimic such space western properties as Firefly and Cowboy Bebop. 

Page 5 of the book contains an entire page devoted to a content warning about the kinds of subject matter this game might explore including: anxiety, death, depression, gambling, mental illness and associated traumas, poverty, smoking, substance abuse, violence.  It then goes on to give the 2020's era typical warnings against not touching upon any themes or topics that might distress any of your players, and recommends various safety tools.

I started to see it was pretty political and leftist when I read these descriptions in the text beyond in regard to the setting:

"Despite being a universe with interplanetary travel, data
networks and personal spaceships, the Frontier Galaxy of
ORBITAL BLUES partially styles itself on mid-to-late 20th
century aesthetics—from faded 1950s and 60s "Golden
Age of Capitalism" looks to the landscapes of the early 90s
and the closing of the "Decade of Greed," when the glossy
paintwork of late-stage capitalism began to chip away.
Though these decades have an exciting look and feel,
remember that they were times of great socioeconomic
inequality, injustice for women, people of colour, LGBTQ+
people and people living with disabilities, among others.
The people who made this game explicitly condemn these
attitudes, and do not seek to emulate them or encourage
their recreation."

Like in the real world, social systems in the world of
ORBITAL BLUES have failed vulnerable people. Safety,
money and power have been taken from these people
and stockpiled by a small political and economic minority
of capitalist elites. Your characters have fallen out with this
way of life, if they were ever in it at all, and have chosen to
live a life as Interstellar Outlaws.
Our goal is to tell the stories of those marginalised in this
setting, not glorify their marginalisation

I then knew I was really in for it with this one.  I kept reading and stopped after character creation was finished on page 52.  In this section was the most extreme super lefty quote I'd read in the book yet.  There is a note in regard to one of the Gambits characters can choose during character creation.  Gambits are this game's version of feats or talents.  There are Gambits where you might have been previously part of an organization in your past, and that can be used in the game to create Troubles and Blues for you.  Blues are the game's emotional weights carried by characters.  The side note regarding organizations reads:

Crooked Establishments:

There are many types of organization you can be in Too Deep with: criminal gangs, mercenary companies, military units, police departments, corporations.  In Orbital Blues, the only difference between a gang member and cop is that one of them is definitely a fascist.

I think this one was way, way over the top, and shows exactly the kind of politically motivated leftist spew we are dealing with here, placed right into the middle of the game they are trying to sell to gamers.  The company that produces this game is SoulMuppet Publishing.  This was a HUGE turnoff to me and might prevent me from spending over $215 to purchase all the materials for it, as I had planned to do previously.

"Our goal is to tell the stories of those marginalised in this
setting, not glorify their marginalisation"

Meh... Don't tell me what stories I can tell at my own feking table. Especially in a silly elf-game of pure imagination.

Sigh, well this is disappointing. It seemed like an interesting premise, and possibly some interesting mechanics.

The last one you (Batjon) provided really is rough.

Can a police force be corrupt? Sure. Could they attract bad actors? Sure. Do they also attract the very best of us and espouse excellent and inspiring ideals? Also yes. Is it an incredibly hard career? Also yes.

Finally anyone who thinks that society can exist without some sort of policing is incredibly naive.

The first part wasn't bad (subject matter and the like; I no longer consider that "woke" because there's a lot of weirdos playing RPGs now) but the next part was 100% virtue signaling woke crap, and the last solidified it as being an agenda.

 Never heard of this and it seems that was for the best.

So its "Soyboy Bebop" then.

One of the major themes of Cowboy Bebop is that wherever you go, people are just people. Everybody's got it rough; everybody gets a long as well as they can. I would say they missed the point, but I doubt they even tried. "All cops are fascists" is one of those statements that could only be unironically made by a person of limited intelligence....so limited that they probably missed the fact that the protagonists of Cowboy Bebop are bounty hunters.

I liked the idea behind this game up until I read those bits. I lost interest shortly after. I had already bought it by then.

Another triumph of style over substance, how is "sad" on the table for space adventures tone?
If you want a new space game that can do Firefly and Bebop as well as Farscape, Lexx, and Outlaw Star check out Bound to None. No political lectures, no pronoun shittery, it even tells you not to use safety tools. And it's free.
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/486153/bound-to-none

Quote from: Hixanthrope on September 01, 2024, 10:43:34 AMIf you want a new space game that can do Firefly and Bebop as well as Farscape, Lexx, and Outlaw Star check out Bound to None. No political lectures, no pronoun shittery, it even tells you not to use safety tools. And it's free.
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/486153/bound-to-none

The name says it all!

Quote from: Hixanthrope on September 01, 2024, 10:43:34 AMAnother triumph of style over substance, how is "sad" on the table for space adventures tone?
If you want a new space game that can do Firefly and Bebop as well as Farscape, Lexx, and Outlaw Star check out Bound to None. No political lectures, no pronoun shittery, it even tells you not to use safety tools. And it's free.
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/486153/bound-to-none

Nope. Dice ladders suck ass IMHO.

Quote from: Batjon on September 01, 2024, 07:44:07 AMAny folks here familiar with the game Orbital Blues? It is a rules-lite RPG that has received lots of good reviews online about "sad space cowboys," meant to mimic such space western properties as Firefly and Cowboy Bebop. 

Page 5 of the book contains an entire page devoted to a content warning about the kinds of subject matter this game might explore including: anxiety, death, depression, gambling, mental illness and associated traumas, poverty, smoking, substance abuse, violence.  It then goes on to give the 2020's era typical warnings against not touching upon any themes or topics that might distress any of your players, and recommends various safety tools.

I started to see it was pretty political and leftist when I read these descriptions in the text beyond in regard to the setting:

"Despite being a universe with interplanetary travel, data
networks and personal spaceships, the Frontier Galaxy of
ORBITAL BLUES partially styles itself on mid-to-late 20th
century aesthetics—from faded 1950s and 60s "Golden
Age of Capitalism" looks to the landscapes of the early 90s
and the closing of the "Decade of Greed," when the glossy
paintwork of late-stage capitalism began to chip away.
Though these decades have an exciting look and feel,
remember that they were times of great socioeconomic
inequality, injustice for women, people of colour, LGBTQ+
people and people living with disabilities, among others.
The people who made this game explicitly condemn these
attitudes, and do not seek to emulate them or encourage
their recreation."

Like in the real world, social systems in the world of
ORBITAL BLUES have failed vulnerable people. Safety,
money and power have been taken from these people
and stockpiled by a small political and economic minority
of capitalist elites. Your characters have fallen out with this
way of life, if they were ever in it at all, and have chosen to
live a life as Interstellar Outlaws.
Our goal is to tell the stories of those marginalised in this
setting, not glorify their marginalisation

I then knew I was really in for it with this one.  I kept reading and stopped after character creation was finished on page 52.  In this section was the most extreme super lefty quote I'd read in the book yet.  There is a note in regard to one of the Gambits characters can choose during character creation.  Gambits are this game's version of feats or talents.  There are Gambits where you might have been previously part of an organization in your past, and that can be used in the game to create Troubles and Blues for you.  Blues are the game's emotional weights carried by characters.  The side note regarding organizations reads:

Crooked Establishments:

There are many types of organization you can be in Too Deep with: criminal gangs, mercenary companies, military units, police departments, corporations.  In Orbital Blues, the only difference between a gang member and cop is that one of them is definitely a fascist.

I think this one was way, way over the top, and shows exactly the kind of politically motivated leftist spew we are dealing with here, placed right into the middle of the game they are trying to sell to gamers.  The company that produces this game is SoulMuppet Publishing.  This was a HUGE turnoff to me and might prevent me from spending over $215 to purchase all the materials for it, as I had planned to do previously.

Wow. How to break down how incredibly WRONG the author of this game is, in regards to history:

1. it's obvious he comes from the Marxist school of history, which is categorically incorrect. Reason why would be a whole thread on it's own, and beyond the scope of discussion.

but to get into the stupidly categorized bits...

2.

Quote1950s and 60s "Golden Age of Capitalism"

: I have never heard of this period referred to in such a way by any historian, or in any historical context. In regards to the 20th century, you can break things down into pre-ww2 and post-ww2 eras, which there are distinct differences when analyzed. the 50s and 60s are definitely post-ww2. The details of which can be easily researched and can quite easily debunked the juvenile, simplistic, and Marxist historical view the author holds.

3.

Quotethe early 90s and the closing of the "Decade of Greed," when the glossy paintwork of late-stage capitalism began to chip away.

: even more so than the previous statement I covered, this is just pure fiction. Nobody but a leftist boob would call this decade the "Decade of Greed". What a preposterous statement. So to a Marxist, the decades following the post-cold war era, where the obvious failed utopias of Marxist-Leninist-Moaist ideology crumbled to dust, which led to one of the greatest economic booms of the 20th century since the end of both world wars, is a decade of greed. If that's the case, then we need to shut down every McDonald's, Starbucks, and any other Western company east of the Volga. I'm sure folks in Poland and Romania are pining for the glory days of standing in line for toilet paper and bread. Right...

4.

QuoteThough these decades have an exciting look and feel, remember that they were times of great socioeconomic inequality, injustice for women, people of colour, LGBTQ+ people and people living with disabilities, among others."

Herein is the biggest lie the author promotes. More propaganda perpetuated by Marxist historians. Anyone who has any skills in research can easily debunk the statement the author made. Being the true believer he his, his cognitive reasoning skills have atrophied, and drank the Kool-Aid.

I could have gone into great detail how stupid the author's statement is, but for those of you who have a clear understanding and knowledge of history don't need me to bore you. IT's all out there, easy to find, and yet the author wishes you to believe that this era was nothing more than a era of bigotry, racism, sexism, and whatever -ism he thinks. The problem is, yes they existed. Past tense. They were dealt with in those years with laws and social movements. The LIE he perpetuates is that they were never confronted and STILL exist. Did Selma Parks bus trip not exists? MLK's march on DC? The equal rights for women movement?

The author is a disingenuous hack and a grifter for the left. Nothing more. I'm sure he'll find a market for his "game". There's always gullible blue-haired dipshits to fleece for money. IMO, he's just another soy-boy who is being a grifter, is really that unaware of history, OR truly believes the bullshit he's shoveling. That fact he has the gall to put this out and have people pay for it, makes me think this jackass buys into his own bullshit.   

EDIT: I'm not even going to go into the "fascist" statement. That's just a childish view of the world. Period.

Quote from: blackstone on September 01, 2024, 12:26:04 PM...

2.

Quote1950s and 60s "Golden Age of Capitalism"

: I have never heard of this period referred to in such a way by any historian, or in any historical context. In regards to the 20th century, you can break things down into pre-ww2 and post-ww2 eras, which there are distinct differences when analyzed. the 50s and 60s are definitely post-ww2. The details of which can be easily researched and can quite easily debunked the juvenile, simplistic, and Marxist historical view the author holds.

Late stage capitalism was initially defined to begin immediately after WWI, so technically all of those periods are late stage capitalism. But like all groups that declare the end of the world is coming, socialists have to keep moving up the dates when it frustratingly fails to happen.

Quote from: blackstone on September 01, 2024, 12:26:04 PM...
EDIT: I'm not even going to go into the "fascist" statement. That's just a childish view of the world. Period.

The guy who came up with this idea of stages of capitalism, including late stage capitalism, (Werner Sombart) was a Nazi sympathiser.

Can they go on the Consumer's Guide to TTRPGs as red with a note that they use Nazi terminology, I wonder?

Quote from: Hixanthrope on September 01, 2024, 10:43:34 AMAnother triumph of style over substance, how is "sad" on the table for space adventures tone?
If you want a new space game that can do Firefly and Bebop as well as Farscape, Lexx, and Outlaw Star check out Bound to None. No political lectures, no pronoun shittery, it even tells you not to use safety tools. And it's free.
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/486153/bound-to-none

Nice! Grabbing it to check out now. I like BRP but other than my own himebrew game I've been working on I have yet to see a setting for it that I liked.

Nope. Dice ladders suck ass IMHO.
[/quote]
why tho

It seems like a violation of the setting premise to assume that police in general are corrupt. Cowboy Bebop specifically isn't out to portray cops as negative. Even Firefly which does have an angle in showing the Alliance negatively doesn't pretend like all law enforcement everywhere is fundamentally corrupt.

Quote from: Zelen on September 01, 2024, 04:39:49 PMIt seems like a violation of the setting premise to assume that police in general are corrupt. Cowboy Bebop specifically isn't out to portray cops as negative. Even Firefly which does have an angle in showing the Alliance negatively doesn't pretend like all law enforcement everywhere is fundamentally corrupt.

The Sheriff in Train Job springs to mind.

Yes, these excerpts read like current day woke buffoonery. The only good thing about it is that these useful idiots wear it on their sleeves now.