I’m pretty sure the first time I encountered GURPS was in a Wargames West catalog in the early 90s (probably 91-92). If I recall correctly the thing that stood out to me was the description that went something to the effect of “GURPS. No it’s not a rude sound, it’s the Generic Universal RolePlaying System. . .”
Aw man, Wargames West was the only real source I had for acquiring games when I was a kid. The main reason I worked in the summers was to feed my addiction and they were the supplier.
I loved the original boxed set and early sourcebooks. They kept it all relatively simple and clean. Then the new editions added further levels of complexity. I still prefer it for multi-genre gaming, through BRP works very nicely as well.
I remember, back when Steve Jackson and his people were playtesting and reality-testing the rules (they talked about rolling around in, I think, Steve's backyard to reality-check rolling around in combat, for example), that they were calling it the "Great Unnamed Role Playing System" with every intention to replace that placeholder name on publication. Then they did this ad campaign, and I laughed.
Well, they did kind of replace it: "Great Unnamed" became "Generic Universal," which is actually pretty good under the constraint of "a word beginning with G followed by a word beginning with U." I guess they got really attached to the acronym. It could be worse. When I was in college, I knew a group of gamers who had developed their own (fairly impressive) FRPG called the Great Adventure Game; they invariably referred to it as GAG.
One noticeable thing about the ad is how very "Steve Jackson Games"-ish it is. The font, layout, and art placement are all distinctive and consistent throughout and across their games of this period. Even if you saw this ad from across the room, you would immediately know this was a SJG ad.
I'm not familiar with many GURPS products, but there is one I got mileage from in recent years -- Aztecs: Sacrifice and Glory in a Lost Civilization (1993). Great product.
Also, let's just be happy that they never did publish a "GURPS Oriental", instead properly splitting the subject up. So far, into GURPS Japan (by Lee Gold, who also gave us Land of the Rising Sun for Chivalry & Sorcery), GURPS China, and most recenly GURPS Sriwijaya. To a certain extent, we can probably count GURPS Arabian Nights and maybe even GURPS Russia and GURPS Egypt too, which is part of the reason nobody likes to use "oriental" anymore.
Excellent!
ReplyDeleteWhich one is Steve?
ReplyDeleteI’m pretty sure the first time I encountered GURPS was in a Wargames West catalog in the early 90s (probably 91-92). If I recall correctly the thing that stood out to me was the description that went something to the effect of “GURPS. No it’s not a rude sound, it’s the Generic Universal RolePlaying System. . .”
ReplyDeleteAw man, Wargames West was the only real source I had for acquiring games when I was a kid. The main reason I worked in the summers was to feed my addiction and they were the supplier.
DeleteTo this day, I still associate GURPS with heartburn. Entirely because of the title and not the rules, I promise.
ReplyDeleteI mean the ad isn't wrong. GURPS is an odd, but memorable name.
ReplyDeleteI loved the original boxed set and early sourcebooks. They kept it all relatively simple and clean. Then the new editions added further levels of complexity. I still prefer it for multi-genre gaming, through BRP works very nicely as well.
ReplyDeleteYes.
ReplyDeleteBut we don't much mind.
I remember, back when Steve Jackson and his people were playtesting and reality-testing the rules (they talked about rolling around in, I think, Steve's backyard to reality-check rolling around in combat, for example), that they were calling it the "Great Unnamed Role Playing System" with every intention to replace that placeholder name on publication. Then they did this ad campaign, and I laughed.
ReplyDeleteWell, they did kind of replace it: "Great Unnamed" became "Generic Universal," which is actually pretty good under the constraint of "a word beginning with G followed by a word beginning with U." I guess they got really attached to the acronym. It could be worse. When I was in college, I knew a group of gamers who had developed their own (fairly impressive) FRPG called the Great Adventure Game; they invariably referred to it as GAG.
DeleteOne noticeable thing about the ad is how very "Steve Jackson Games"-ish it is. The font, layout, and art placement are all distinctive and consistent throughout and across their games of this period. Even if you saw this ad from across the room, you would immediately know this was a SJG ad.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely. I have a weird nostalgia for the old SJG fonts and minimalist layout.
DeleteI'm not familiar with many GURPS products, but there is one I got mileage from in recent years -- Aztecs: Sacrifice and Glory in a Lost Civilization (1993). Great product.
ReplyDeleteAlso, let's just be happy that they never did publish a "GURPS Oriental", instead properly splitting the subject up. So far, into GURPS Japan (by Lee Gold, who also gave us Land of the Rising Sun for Chivalry & Sorcery), GURPS China, and most recenly GURPS Sriwijaya. To a certain extent, we can probably count GURPS Arabian Nights and maybe even GURPS Russia and GURPS Egypt too, which is part of the reason nobody likes to use "oriental" anymore.
ReplyDelete