SPI's Universe

arminius · June 20, 2007, 05:18:36 PM

Other candidates, working from John's encyclopedia-by-year:

Space Quest (Hume & Nyhen, 1977)
Space Opera (Simbalist, Ratner, & MacGregor, 1980)
Star Patrol/Space Patrol (Kurtick & Russo, several editions through 1982)

Ian Absentia · June 20, 2007, 05:30:58 PM

The problem, I think, is that it may be a stretch to call it a "roleplaying" game. In many ways, it was more of a board game where you reandomly determined the racial characteristics of your team.

!i!

arminius · June 20, 2007, 05:43:56 PM

Hm. Can't think of anything else.

Getting back to the main topic: http://members.iinet.net.au/~avalon11/Universe/Universe.htm

Abyssal Maw · June 20, 2007, 06:12:03 PM

Quote from: Elliot WilenHm. Can't think of anything else.

Getting back to the main topic: http://members.iinet.net.au/~avalon11/Universe/Universe.htm

OMG this is a great link! Whoever this guy is he's compiling all of the old stuff and putting it on CD roms..

I want to run a 'Biological survey mission' adventure...

arminius · June 20, 2007, 06:29:24 PM

Yeah, in fact that was also the subject of an Ares boardgame (two in fact), though I'm not sure they ever explicitly tied them to the Universe universe. One, Wreck of the B.S.M. Pandora, was about a returning BSM that goes awry, leaving the crew trying to restart their ship's engine and round the critters back into their cages. The second, Voyage of the BSM Pandora, was a "strategic" level view of the mission, with two different levels of resource management, first as you jumped from star to star, and second as you landed on planets and explored them. Voyage is a classic meld of hexmap/table mechanics with a paragraph system, and solitaire to boot.

Abyssal Maw · June 20, 2007, 08:55:11 PM

well, I just bought the Universe "Master Collection" for $25.

Now all I need to do is create a hack of FantasyGrounds and convince some people to play it online...

David Johansen · June 20, 2007, 11:45:22 PM

Quote from: Ian AbsentiaDoes any of this sound familiar?

!i!

Two booklets might have been Starfire and Starfire III from Task Force Games. Though I'd place them more around 82.

Ian Absentia · June 21, 2007, 12:19:28 AM

Quote from: David JohansenTwo booklets might have been Starfire and Starfire III from Task Force Games.

Gentlemen, I believe we may have a winner. The publication date is listed as early as 1976, with subsequent products released at later dates.

!i!

Settembrini · June 21, 2007, 05:24:52 AM

WTF?
Why didn´t I get the memo?

I ordered it immeadeately, how terribly cool is this shit?!

Zounds, what other gems exist from that era?

David Johansen · June 21, 2007, 09:34:47 AM

Starfire III was actually the main inspiration for my Galaxies in Shadow world generator. I wanted something quick and easy instead of the hour or two it takes in GURPS Space. Even so I wanted real details and not Traveller's, little string of incoherent numbers.

Ian Absentia · June 21, 2007, 10:09:33 AM

Quote from: SettembriniWTF?
Why didn´t I get the memo?

I ordered it immeadeately, how terribly cool is this shit?!

Which one? Universe or Starfire? By the way, David, after corresponding with my old friend and doing a little more online sleuth work, I've determined that the game I was recalling was Star Probe and it's follow-up, Star Empires.

I thought I recalled them being old TSR products. They were pretty cool games, like Starfire, featuring both a tactical and strategic mode of play. In many ways they had a lot of elements of the Civilisation board game, where you pursued certain technological development trees, then fitted yourself out with specific types of ships that hinged on the type of technology you had developed, not upon achieving broad tech levels. As I said earlier, it was primitive, but very fun.

!i!

arminius · June 21, 2007, 03:26:40 PM

Quote from: SettembriniWTF?
Why didn´t I get the memo?

I ordered it immeadeately, how terribly cool is this shit?!

Zounds, what other gems exist from that era?

Go up the directory structure (by chopping off the end of the URL) and you will find Ares collections. If you'd like to dip in hardcore original Dragonquest, Ares #3 is a gladiatorial arena game using the movement-impulse-based combat system. Plus both the Pandora games, Star Trader, and Delta Vee were all published in Ares.

arminius · June 21, 2007, 03:30:27 PM

I love this comment from BGG about Star Probe:

Quote from: Rich OdenWell, okay, it isn't nearly as good as the sequel, and the sequel is probably too clunky for anybody who wasn't raised on it. But it is a neat bit of nostalgia, and it served quite nicely as a starship combat system for our early D&D campaigns. Just don't ask me why we *needed* a starship combat system for D&D...

Abyssal Maw · June 21, 2007, 03:51:39 PM

Quote from: Elliot WilenGo up the directory structure (by chopping off the end of the URL) and you will find Ares collections. If you'd like to dip in hardcore original Dragonquest, Ares #3 is a gladiatorial arena game using the movement-impulse-based combat system. Plus both the Pandora games, Star Trader, and Delta Vee were all published in Ares.

Ah Dragnquest. I was into that one too. In fact, I have that book right here as well.

I used to love all of that old SPI stuff. The vestige Binders in the new D&D Tome of Magic I consider an homage to the old Dragonquest summoners.

Pierce Inverarity · June 21, 2007, 03:55:32 PM

Quote from: Elliot WilenGo up the directory structure (by chopping off the end of the URL) and you will find Ares collections. If you'd like to dip in hardcore original Dragonquest, Ares #3 is a gladiatorial arena game using the movement-impulse-based combat system. Plus both the Pandora games, Star Trader, and Delta Vee were all published in Ares.

Voyage of the Pandora is my favorite solo game evar.

Second place, btw: Assault on St.Nazaire. Awesome production values (bookcase wargame, gorgeous nighttime map of U-boat silos), but the Germans thrashed my British butt every time.