Moved review of 2nd ed. to Reception with the other reviews
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The actual societies which would be encountered in a game depends on the play style; some societies are more suited for more light-hearted games (Zap-style, or the lighter end of Classic), whereas others represent a more serious threat to Alpha Complex and are therefore more suitable for Straight or the more dark sort of Classic games. | |
The actual societies which would be encountered in a game depends on the play style; some societies are more suited for more light-hearted games (Zap-style, or the lighter end of Classic), whereas others represent a more serious threat to Alpha Complex and are therefore more suitable for Straight or the more dark sort of Classic games. |
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==Publication history== |
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==History== | |
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Five editions have been published. Three of these were published by West End Games - the 1st, 2nd, and "Fifth" Editions - whereas the later two editions (''Paranoia XP'' and the 25th Anniversary editions) were published by Mongoose Publishing. In addition to these five published editions, it is known that West End Games were working on a "Third Edition" - to replace the poorly received Fifth Edition - in the late 1990s, but their financial issues would prevent this edition from being published, except for being included in one tournament adventure. | |
Five editions have been published. Three of these were published by West End Games - the 1st, 2nd, and "Fifth" Editions - whereas the later two editions (''Paranoia XP'' and the 25th Anniversary editions) were published by Mongoose Publishing. In addition to these five published editions, it is known that West End Games were working on a "Third Edition" - to replace the poorly received Fifth Edition - in the late 1990s, but their financial issues would prevent this edition from being published, except for being included in one tournament adventure. |
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| [[Image:Paranoia2nd.jpg|150px|right|Cover of 2nd edition]] | | [[Image:Paranoia2nd.jpg|150px|right|Cover of 2nd edition]] |
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'''2nd edition''' ({{ISBN|978-0-87431-018-4}}) - written by [[Greg Costikyan]], Dan Gelber, [[Eric Goldberg (game designer)|Eric Goldberg]], [[Ken Rolston]], and Paul Murphy - published in 1987 by West End Games. This edition can be seen as a response to the natural development of the line towards a rules-light, fast and entertaining play style. Here, the humorous possibilities of life in a paranoid dystopia are emphasised, and the rules are simplified considerably from the first edition. | |
'''2nd edition''' ({{ISBN|978-0-87431-018-4}}) - written by [[Greg Costikyan]], Dan Gelber, [[Eric Goldberg (game designer)|Eric Goldberg]], [[Ken Rolston]], and Paul Murphy - published in 1987 by West End Games. This edition can be seen as a response to the natural development of the line towards a rules-light, fast and entertaining play style. Here, the humorous possibilities of life in a paranoid dystopia are emphasised, and the rules are simplified considerably from the first edition. |
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| − | [[Dragon (magazine)|''Dragon'']] magazine issue #132 gave the initial 2nd edition release a glowing review while discussing some of the perceived shortcomings of the first edition: | |
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{{quote|1=[The first edition of ''Paranoia''] promised hilarious fun and a combat system that didn’t get bogged down in tedious mechanics. It soon found a following among gamers looking for something different in their role-playing adventures. Still, a close inspection of the combat system revealed that it was slow moving and cumbersome. The mechanics were hard to grasp in places, making it difficult to get into the freewheeling fun. | |
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Now, all that’s changed. The ''PARANOIA'' game has been treated to a revamp, and this time the rules are slick. All that tricky stuff which made the combat system such a pain to run has been shelved off into optional rules. If you want the extra complications, you’re welcome to them, or you can do what most people did anyway and simply ignore them. | |
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{{cite journal | |
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| last = Bambra | |
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| first = Jim | |
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| date = April 1988 | |
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| title = Role Playing Reviews: Playing it for Laughs | |
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| journal = Dragon Magazine | |
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| volume = XII | |
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| issue = 132 | |
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| pages = 8–9 | |
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| publisher = TSR, Inc. | |
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| location = Lake Geneva WI | |
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| issn = 0279-6848 | |
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}} | |
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}} | |
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The review does offer one common reservation about the game: "It doesn't lend itself easily to long-term campaign play. This game is best treated as a succession of short adventure sessions in which players get to enjoy themselves doing all those despicable things that would spoil a more 'serious’ game." However the conclusion of the review stated that "As a tongue-in-cheek science-fiction game, this one is hard to beat." | |
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====Metaplot and the Second Edition==== | |
====Metaplot and the Second Edition==== |
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==Reception== | |
==Reception== |
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The staff of Space Gamer reviewed ''Paranoia'' in ''[[Space Gamer]]'' No. 72.name="SG">{{cite journal|author=The staff of Space Gamer |date=Jan–Feb 1985 |title=Featured Review: Paranoia|journal=[[Space Gamer]]|publisher=[[Steve Jackson Games]]|issue=72|pages=12-13}} They commented that "if you're likely to take it personally when your best friend's character plugs ''your'' character from behind, ''stay away from this game''. But if you like high-tension suspense along with a slightly bent sense of humor, ''Paranoia'' is a unique and highly desirable experience." | + |
In the Jan-Feb 1985 edition of ''[[Space Gamer]]'' (Issue No. 72), the editorial staff were enthusiastic about the game, commenting, "If you're likely to take it personally when your best friend's character plugs ''your'' character from behind, ''stay away from this game''. But if you like high-tension suspense along with a slightly bent sense of humor, ''Paranoia'' is a unique and highly desirable experience.">{{cite journal|author=The staff of Space Gamer |date=Jan–Feb 1985 |title=Featured Review: Paranoia|journal=[[Space Gamer]]|publisher=[[Steve Jackson Games]]|issue=72|pages=12-13}}</ref> |
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In the April 1988 edition of [[Dragon (magazine)|''Dragon'']] (Issue 132), Jim Bambra though that the second edition had marked improvements compared to the first edition: "The first edition of ''Paranoia''] promised hilarious fun and a combat system that didn’t get bogged down in tedious mechanics. It soon found a following among gamers looking for something different in their role-playing adventures. Still, a close inspection of the combat system revealed that it was slow moving and cumbersome. The mechanics were hard to grasp in places, making it difficult to get into the freewheeling fun. Now, all that’s changed. The ''Paranoia'' game has been treated to a revamp, and this time the rules are slick. All that tricky stuff which made the combat system such a pain to run has been shelved off into optional rules. If you want the extra complications, you’re welcome to them, or you can do what most people did anyway and simply ignore them." Bambra did express reservations about the suitability of the game for an on-going campaign, saying, "It doesn't lend itself easily to long-term campaign play. This game is best treated as a succession of short adventure sessions in which players get to enjoy themselves doing all those despicable things that would spoil a more 'serious’ game." However Bambra concluded with a recommendation, saying, "As a tongue-in-cheek science-fiction game, this one is hard to beat."{{cite journal | last = Bambra | first = Jim | authorlink = Jim Bambra | date = April 1988 | title = Role Playing Reviews: Playing it for Laughs | journal = Dragon Magazine | volume = XII | issue = 132 | pages = 8–9 | publisher = TSR, Inc. | location = Lake Geneva WI | issn = 0279-6848}} |
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In a 1996 reader poll conducted by ''Arcane'' magazine to determine the 50 most popular roleplaying games of all time, ''Paranoia'' was ranked 7th.. Editor Paul Pettengale commented: "For players of games where character development and campaign continuity are a priority, ''Paranoia'' is an absolute no-no. If a character (of which there are six versions - each person in Alpha Complex has six clones) lives through an entire scenario then they're doing well. Hell, they're doing better than well, they're probably Jesus Christ reborn (er, no offence intended, all ye Christian types). Suffice to say that ''Paranoia'' is, and always will be, a complete laugh - it should be played for nothing more than fun".{{cite journal|last= Pettengale|first=Paul|date= Christmas 1996 |title=Arcane Presents the Top 50 Roleplaying Games 1996|journal=Arcane|publisher=[[Future plc|Future Publishing]]|issue=14|pages=25-35}} |
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''Paranoia'' was chose for inclusion in the 2007 book ''Hobby Games: The 100 Best''. [[Steve Jackson (US game designer)|Steve Jackson]] described the game as "the first sophisticated parody of the basic tropes of roleplaying. Paranoia didn't offer dungeons full of monsters with sillier names than those in ''D&D''. It introduced something scarier... the futuristic tunnels of Alpha Complex, in which all the monsters were human and nobody ever got out. ''Paranoia'' held all of roleplaying, as it was then practiced, to a dark and twisted mirror. Then it [[pieing|threw cream pies]]."{{Cite book | contribution=Paranoia | title=Hobby Games: The 100 Best | last=Jackson | first=Steve | authorlink=Steve Jackson (US game designer) | editor-last=Lowder | editor-first=James | editor-link=James Lowder | publisher=[[Green Ronin Publishing]] | year=2007 | pages=231–235 | isbn=978-1-932442-96-0}} |
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''Paranoia'' was ranked 7th in the 1996 reader poll of ''Arcane'' magazine to determine the 50 most popular roleplaying games of all time. The UK magazine's editor Paul Pettengale commented: "For players of games where character development and campaign continuity are a priority, ''Paranoia'' is an absolute no-no. If a character (of which there are six versions - each person in Alpha Complex has six clones) lives through an entire scenario then they're doing well. Hell, they're doing better than well, they're probably Jesus Christ reborn (er, no offence intended, all ye Christian types). Suffice to say that ''Paranoia'' is, and always will be, a complete laugh - it should be played for nothing more than fun".{{cite journal|last= Pettengale|first=Paul|date= Christmas 1996 |title=Arcane Presents the Top 50 Roleplaying Games 1996|journal=Arcane|publisher=[[Future plc|Future Publishing]]|issue=14|pages=25-35}} | |
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==Awards== |
| ⚫ | [[Steve Jackson (US game designer)|Steve Jackson]] described ''Paranoia'' as "the first sophisticated parody of the basic tropes of roleplaying. Paranoia didn't offer dungeons full of monsters with sillier names than those in ''D&D''. It introduced something scarier... the futuristic tunnels of Alpha Complex, in which all the monsters were human and nobody ever got out. ''Paranoia'' held all of roleplaying, as it was then practiced, to a dark and twisted mirror. Then it [[pieing|threw cream pies]]."{{Cite book | contribution=Paranoia | title=Hobby Games: The 100 Best | last=Jackson | first=Steve | authorlink=Steve Jackson (US game designer) | editor-last=Lowder | editor-first=James | editor-link=James Lowder | publisher=[[Green Ronin Publishing]] | year=2007 | pages=231–235 | isbn=978-1-932442-96-0}} | |
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* ''Paranoia'' won the [[Origins Award]] for Best Roleplaying Rules of 1984.{{Cite web|url=http://www.originsgamefair.com/awards/1988|title=1988 list of winners|publisher= Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design|accessdate=2011-11-06|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080307115145/http://www.originsgamefair.com/awards/1984|archivedate=2008-03-07}} |
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* The game was inducted into the Origins Awards Hall of Fame in 2007.{{Cite web|url=http://www.originsgamefair.com/awards/2007|title=2007 list of winners|publisher= Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design|accessdate=2011-11-06|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090604114001/http://www.originsgamefair.com/aagad/awards/archive/2007|archivedate=2009-06-04}} |
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==Reviews== | |
==Reviews== |
