Robot Viking

Every ten years or so, a game comes along that changes everything. Magic essentially created the collectible gaming industry, while Mage Knight made miniature gaming accessible to the tabletop masses. Now, I’m trying to avoid hyperbole here, so I won’t say that Arcane Legions is that kind of a game. But it might be.

Things have been looking grim for HeroClix fans after the deal between Topps and Catalyst games fell through last month, leaving the former Wizkids property languishing. Now, rumors are swirling that the completed-then-shelved Hammer of Thor expansion will be released this summer, and you might be surprised who’ll be putting it out.

Being a Jedi Master seems like a pretty thankless job. For one thing, the retirement benefits suck (“So, when I die, I just get to keep doing this same job forever, except Hayden Christensen might randomly show up?”). Plus, it’s basically inevitable that at some point one of your students is going to turn evil [...]

Jedi have control over powerful semi-mystical forces, giving them the ability to perform feats so astounding they seem like magic. Telekinesis, choke-holds, mind-fogging, wamprat targeting – all of these are within a Jedi’s grasp. But what if you don’t have a kindly old hermit/former Jedi Knight around to teach you how to fight with the [...]

File this one under: “OMG that’s so freaking awesome!” Collectible miniatures game Monsterpocalypse just announced their first licensed expansion, and it’s Voltron. Giant lion robots battling evil robeasts in a rich tactical game of city-destroying action? Hell yeah.

Anyone who has ever entered a tournament or otherwise played a game with strangers has at least one story to tell about a weird, belligerent or utterly bizarre opponent. But have you ever played against a deity?

The latest collectible miniatures news is that a sale of certain former Wizkids’ properties by Topps is imminent. That there will be new HeroClix sets is fairly certain, but perhaps we will see the return of Mage Knight in 2009 as well.

A commenter over at HCRealms mentions something worth repeating: if you need something from the Wizkids website, best get it now, while you still can. While a lot of the rulebooks and terrain templates will probably show up on fansites, you can save yourself the effort of tracking them down later by archiving them now. [...]

Oh, Leia, even under all those layers and Boushh’s old mask, and even though you spoke perfect Ubese, we all knew it was you sneaking in to Jabba’s palace to rescue Han. Fearless and inventive indeed.

Another day, another shuttered game company – or, in this case, gaming magazine. Scrye Magazine’s final issue will be #131, the April 2009 edition, ending a 15 year run.

What does it take to create a monster? Or destroy a city? Erik Yaple knows, and he was kind enough to share the diabolical answers with Robot Viking. No, he isn’t a mad scientist or a super-villain. He’s one of the designers of Monsterpocalypse. Actually, that doesn’t necessarily mean he isn’t also a mad scientist/super-villain. [...]

The editors at Robot Viking are hard at work on the first original Robot Viking game, a tactical game of automotive combat using Matchbox/Hot Wheels scale cars. Project: Death Race is intended to be a fast-paced, exciting game that allows players to perform the types of insane stunts usually reserved for Hollywood car chases. Robot [...]

The Monsterpocalypse rampages on when Privateer Press releases the first expansion set, I Chomp NY, in late March. Here’s an in-depth first look at Tharsis-5, a bizarre new Martian menace monster who appears fully prepared to trod upon Times Square. We’ve got full stats for Tharsis and his ultra form.

It’s not exactly breaking news that Wizkids has been dissolved by Topps and is no longer selling or supporting their many games, but what will it mean for gamers? The one-time king of the collectible miniatures hill has been wiped right off the map, and there might not be anyone in a position to fill [...]