Just a quick blurb to shakedown our remote recording set up, and to keep your iTunes subscriptions current. We got a little bit of gaming in last month, despite the busy buildup to my move. Cam has several cool games on the fire at the moment too. Also, I will be at GenCon SoCal from the 17th to the 19th. I'm on the podcasting panel with Paul Tevis and Chris Hanrahan at 2pm on Saturday, and I'd love to meet any GGP listeners that will be at the con! Hope to see you there! We'd like to ask you guys what you think of the show, so if you can spare a moment, please give us your responses to the following: 1. Show length - I keep thinking it's too long. Is it? 2. Content - What are your thoughts on: a. What We're Playing - I've been trying to keep this short but it tends to get away from us sometimes. Do you really care what we're playing? Should we expand it more or cut it more? b. Gaming in J-Land - Cool? Lame? c. Features - Cam and I like to discuss things in depth. What do you think of the topics we've covered so far? What would you like to hear us discuss? I'm up for anything but personally, I'd like to leave the basic, general stuff to other 'casts that do that sort of thing better. Advanced topics and new ways of considering things (both old and new) are what Cam and I like to go for. d. Reviews - So far, Cam and I have tried to cover both "old" and "new" games. About the only caveat we have is, we only review games we've actually played. Our reviews are 20 - 30 minutes; too long? Any feedback is very much appreciated! See you next month!

I gotta admit, it’s a strange feeling to be leaving Japan after so long. I am really going to miss all the great gamers I have had the priviledge to share my table with. But I’ll be looking to get my game on soon after I get back. Rock on up to FindPlay and drop me a line if you’re in the neighborhood.

Congrats to David Erickson on his winning logo! And domo arigato gozaimashita to everyone who participated!

Anyway, GGP will continue and now that Cam and I have our fallout shelter on Monster Island properly stocked with weird Japanese snacks, we’re looking forward to bringing you more shows in the future!

As Sean pointed out, superhero RPGs are perfect for one-on-one games. This comment also made us realize we like a lot more superhero characters than we thought. Wild Talents is the game I looking to play to get my superhero groove on with.

The Shab al-Hiri Roach will crawl up your nose and live inside your head!

Our 2300AD was “explosive!� (thanks Cam!) It rocked ten different ways on ten kinds of toast! Check out the "story hour" write up of Legio Patria Nostra! Better bring your helmet and body armor!

Dogs in the Vinyard is every bit as good as you have heard. If you haven’t tried it yet, what are you waiting for?

The JIGG Magic: the Gathering night at Shakey’s Pizza in Takadanobaba is one of those things that I just love about JIGG – local gamers getting together to play games. If you’re here in the Big Pachinko or coming here, and you like M:tG, you owe it to yourself to contact JIGG and get in the game!

We only scratched the surface on the subject of “Gaming J-land.� One of the best gaing resources for doing the kind of thing Cam and I were discussing – playing Japanese characters – is Chaosium’s Secrets of Japan. It’s for Call of Cthulhu of course but the advice it gives on playing Japanese characters is very good and very accessible, and it’s the only collection of such advice written specifically for gaming that I can think of.

I feel a little guilty about slagging off Legend of the Five Rings; I did run a campaign with it for a year after all, and stuck with it despite my dissatisfaction - samurai are nothing if not loyal….  But I have to be honest about how I felt about it. You fans out there should understand that this is just my opinion (and aren’t I being Japanese about this?) but I hope you can understand where I’m coming from. But if you want to see what kind of awesomeness we did get out of our L5R campaign, The Hour of the Boar, do check out the actual play thread on RPGnet!

Do let us know what your experience with Japanese themed games has been like, whether it’s samurai stuff, modern, anime, or whatever. We’d love to hear from you!

We’ll be taking a bit of break while I move, but never fear, the Godzilla Gaming Podcast will rise from the depths again very soon!

Email:  godzilla.gaming@gmail.com

Once again I apologize for the delay of Show 9. I was sick last week and coming off the finale of our 2300AD game last Sunday, I was a mess on Monday, our usual recording day.

But fear not, Cam and I are recording Show 9 next Monday (10/2), which will have a definite Japan theme to it. Stay tuned!

Okay, here are the submissions for our logo contest. The first one on the top left is from David Erickson - "Rising D20" (these are all my own nicknames for the logos). The next one on the right is from Troy Holaday - "Munching". Bottom row left is from Stan! - "Fire Belch", and bottom row right is from Robert Mills - "Rubber Suit."

I think all of them look utterly awesome! And no matter which one gets chosen, I have to say I like them all!

So, please send your votes to godzilla.gaming@gmail.com or leave a message right here on the blog!

First, I’ve just started mixing the show with Garage Band, so I apologize for any sound weirdness or volume spikes in advance – I’m still learning how to use it.

Wow! Lots going on last month!

Hopefully the blog here will display the logo submissions we got (I’ll put them in a separate post). I’m sorry I don’t have forums or polls or anything set up (I would if I knew how to do it) so this is the cheap and dirty method. Choose the one you like best and send us an email or leave a message here on the blog. I’ve given each one a nickname – Rising Sun D20, Munching, Fire Belch, and Rubber Suit – I hope you can see which pics they refer to. Looking forward to seeing which one comes out on top!

KevCon was awesome! I played Space Hulk, Arkham Horror, and as I mentioned in the show, Fury of Dracula. Check it out if you haven’t seen it yet!

And what’s up with this Panty Explosion game? All I can say is the thought of a bunch of sweaty 30-something male gamers pretending to be Japanese high-school girls kinda sends shivers down my spine. Still the game looks pretty interesting (if a bit pervy)…

Want to publish your own game? Think you have what it takes? Have a look at 1KM1KT and try the Game Chef contest sometime. And you can download lots of cool little RPGs (that may someday become big ones?)

Homo Sausage, as my lovely wife informs me, is not actually made of pork or beef remains, but is actually processed fish (the link is to the Japanese manufacturer's website). I couldn’t figure out the etymological source for the name, but again, Emi enlightened me – “Homo� comes from “Homogenized.� I shoulda known. Want some?

The “double helix� Vampire/Hunter campaign actual play thread for the game we discussed in the show is here. I really think it was one of the best roleplaying campaigns I've ever been in. It’s very long, and if anyone manages to read through the whole thing, we’d love to hear your thoughts on it.

The Shab al-Hiri Roach rocks on toast, and is the brainchild of Jason Morningstar, who is also a member of The Durham Three Podcast, which is an excellent show, and they say more about gaming in 15 minutes than most gamers do all day. Definitely check them out! You can also download the beta version of the 'Roach here.

Until next month, good gaming!

Unfortunately, due to something I have to do at work Monday (the 28th), Show #8 will be delayed until the following week. Expect to see it the week of September 4th. Sorry!

Lights! Camera! Action! Approaches to action scenes in RPGs are our focus this month, with some news about KevCon and some other stuff. And, we beg for art!

News, Feedback, and What We’re Playing

Do check out the interview with Stan! After three tries getting it right, it warms my heart to see every new download!

Head on over to EN World page for the ENnie Awards and vote for Yog Sothoth.com, nominated for Best Fansite.

If you are so motivated, we’d be happy to consider any and all submissions for the official Godzilla Gaming Podcast logo. Send whatever you got to godzilla.gaming@gmail.com and we’ll have a look. If we like it and use it, you get…our undying thanks! ☺

Keep sticking pins on the Frappr Map. Still no South Americans…

I’ve been playing Godlike and Arc Dream has been having a sale – get Will to Power and the Talent Operations Manual, plus the adventure Donar’s Hammer, all for $30 plus $5 shipping anywhere in the world! A great deal!

Call of Cthulhu fans who haven’t yet seen the Worlds of Cthulhu magazine/book (“mook� here in Japan…yeah, yeah, I know) would do well to check out this successor to the defunct Unspeakable Oath. It’s got some great stuff in it, and is usually chock full of adventures and campaign ideas, plus other useful articles.

I like miniatures a lot and I have been painting quite a bit this month, particularly some figures from a UK company called Pig Iron. Another manufacturer called Urban Mammoth also has some very interesting minis lines. Do have a look if you’re so inclined.

Gaming in J-Land

KevCon is a JIGG event that goes back about 14 years now. Hosted by the unstoppable Kevin Burns at his imported Canadian house in rustic Odawara (I’m embellishing, yeah). It’s part of our tradition of “house cons� where we all (well, those JIGG members who have the time and inclination) get together at someone’s house for a weekend and just game, game, game!

KevCon this year will be held from August 11th to the 13th. There is no fee, and anyone interested in going should contact Kevin Burns at greatpowers@yahoo.com

Feature: Action in RPGs

It’s no secret that Cam and I are fans of high-octane action scenes in our games. Our feature this month looks a bit more closely at what makes action scenes tick, and our approach to running them.

The cinematic tone that we like we find to be best facilitated by rules-light games, so we’re curious as to how those of you who like crunchier games handle action. Can you move them along quickly, or is this not a priority for you? Inquiring minds want to know?

Review: Castles & Crusades

Castles & Crusades by Troll Lord Games is a way for people who don’t want to play D&D 3.5 to play D&D a lot like the way you remember it from the Old Days (if you can still remember that far back…)

Send your feedback on the show to godzilla.gaming@gmail.com, or just post up here!

Finally, I've got the interview with Stan! (aka Steve Brown) up! This interview would have been up much sooner but I was having problems with Skype Recorder.

Anyway, Stan! is a very welcome guest on the GGP and it was great to have him on! The interview covers his career in the gaming industry, his experience as a freelancer and what it's like for someone trying to make a living in that market today, as well as a discussion about licensed roleplaying games, and some general industry discussion!

I'll post an illustration from the comic collection Stan! is working on as soon as I get it from him.

But you don't have to wait! You can see some of his cartoons and learn more about Stan! and what he's up to on his website, the Stannex!

Also, be sure to check out The Game Mechanics, and see what the experts behind D20 Modern have been up to!

A little self indulgence

This month, Cam and I try to do a little self-analysis and figure out what makes our games tick. We’re talking about things like themes, techniques, and trying to get a handle on how we do what we do at the game table.

News, Feedback, and What We’re Playing

The response to Andy K’s interview last month was fantastic and it was really great to get him on the show. Our next guest is Stan! Stan! (yes, with an exclamation point) has been working in the gaming business since 1994 for such companies as West End Games, TSR, WotC, and now Upper Deck Entertainment. He’s also a partner in The Game Mechanics. He may not be a big “name� but he’s certainly Been There and Done That – artist, designer, editor, manager, all kinds of stuff. He’s also been a good friend of mine for nearly 15 years, so I’m honored to have him on the show! If you have any questions you’d like to ask Stan! send them to me before July 5th!

We got some great feedback on our show about roleplaying in military settings. It’s great to be able to apply the stuff we talked about in our 2300AD game. I also just ran Godlike last Wednesday and had a good time with that.

I raved about Burning Empires in the show and it’s jumped to the top of my list of games I want to play right now! I ordered the specially illustrated hardcover – yeah, not cheap, but this one is definitely going to make an impact!

Warhammer rocks! Get your crew together and go kick some Chaos ass!

Cam is going to do some Nobilis and I’m looking forward to that. Reading the rules makes my head hurt but Cam assures me it’s all good once you get into it!

And yeah, while Cam is off in Kagoshima for a week and a half I’ve given him the mandate to finish up his Unknown Armies write-up. We’ll see if he delivers…

Pin yourself up on the Frappr Map. Come on South America!

Gaming in J-Land

This is a new segment in response to listener feedback. Hopefully you’ll find it amusing. We won’t always be talking about snacks, and hopefully we an cover other aspects of the gaming experience here in J-land. In September, if we can swing it, we’ll be playing The Mountain Witch in a teahouse inside a Japanese garden, so we’ll talk about that. If you have any other ideas for something we can cover here, please let us know!

Until then, enjoy your Collon!

Feature: Getting Our Gaming Mojo On

I suppose us talking about what it’s like to be in our games is a bit self-indulgent, but being able to hold a mirror up to yourself and see what you’re doing can certainly be helpful. Even more helpful is having someone else tell you what their impression of your games is like. Anyway, we think we got some good discussion out of this.

We enjoy hearing about how other people run their games and would sure be interested in what you do with yours. Everyone has a different style and approach, so let us hear your thoughts on our discussion, and your own approach to running games.

Review: Ghostbusters

Ghostbusters is a great game and deserves all of the praise it gets. It’s definitely a good game to introduce your non-gaming friends to roleplaying with, and just plain fun! Unfortunately it’s not easy to find these days, even on eBay, but here’s a link to the Ghostbusters site I mentioned in the show.

Send your feedback on the show to godzilla.gaming@gmail.com, or just post up here!

In the first of our special interviews, our guest is Andy Kitkowski. I don't know any non-Japanese gamers who know more about, or have more experience with, Japanese RPGs than Andy.

Andy is also big in the indie games scene, having started up the Indie RPG Awards a couple of years ago, and he pretty much turned me and Cam on to games like The Mountain Witch and Sorcerer.

He's also just a really cool guy and whenever he's in Tokyo, it's always nice to get together and have a few beers.

Here are some links to websites and games mentioned in the show. Most of them are in Japanese, so unless you have a Japanese capable browser, I'm afraird all you're going to be able to do is look at the pictures. Of course, if you can't read Japanese it really doesn't matter does it?

F.E.A.R. (Far East Amusement Research) is one of Japan's premier RPG design studios. On this site you can find links to the popular Al-Shard and legendary Tokyo Nova games mentioned in the podcast.

To follow the development of Tenra Bansho Zero, you need only bookmark Andy's Tenra Bansho Zero website. And here's a link to the official Japanese TBZ page as well.

The Japanese TRPG Research Center, Andy's page dedicated to Japanese RPGs hasn't been updated for a while but contains some pretty good info. Actually, now that people will probably be looking at it, I think he'll probably start updating it again. ;-)

Yellow Submarine is Japan's largest chain of specialty hobby stores, with 38 branches nationwide. I can remember when they only had one shop in Shinjuku and didn't want to import more Magic: the Gathering cards because they didn't think they would sell...now they have branches all over Japan (financed by CCG sales of course).

Something I found out recently about Yellow Submarine is that the branch stores are franchises, which explains the uneveness in stock and sometimes pricing.

Despite the proliferation of Yellow Submarine stores, these days I find the best selection of games is to be had at Shosen Bookmart in Ochanomizu. Prices are similar to Yellow Sub but they have a lot more variety in their RPG stock, including even indie games like Burning Wheel and Sorcerer. I don't know who does their buying but whoever it is is pretty clued in.

Japanese gamers are interested in playing games in English. Here's a FAQ about Japanese RPGs, in English, created by a Japanese fan. The parent site, RPG Portal from Japan also has a pile of links to Japanese RPG sites. This site is pretty informative and gives a good rundown of the RPG scene here in J-Land.

And of course, if you are coming to Japan, you will suffer in gaming hell alone if you do not contact JIGG, the Japan International Gamers Guild!

Oh, you want to buy some Japanese RPGs? Well, you can try Amazon.co.jp, which does have some English menus. Hobby Games Boardwalk also sells J-games overseas (and has English menus). And if you want to go domestic Sasuga Japanese Bookstore in Boston can hook you up.

Hope you enjoyed the interview!

On your face and give me fifty you maggots!!!

...err, sorry. Just my old memories of basic training bubbling up to the surface. This month Cam and I talk about military roleplaying games and how to put the focus on the characters and less on the wargame aspects that often come up (for obvious reasons). We also have a review of the Angel Roleplaying Game from Eden Studios. Listener feedback and What We've Been Playing round out a very full show. Hope you enjoy it!

News, Feedback, and What We've Been Playing

Pin yourself up on our Frappr Map!

Call Recorder for Skype rocks! All my fellow gaming podcasters, trash the virtual spaghetti you've been using to do your interviews and download this  now!

Catch up on the Legend of the Five Rings campaign we've just finished here. Then check out the Nikko Toshogu Shrine that helped inspire me for the game!

Cam is cooking up more Unknown Armies madness! Lost plays of Shakespeare anyone?

Life sucks? Join the French Foreign Legion!

Burning Empires baby!

The Shab Al-Hiri Roach wants you! I know the title is WTFBBQ, but seriously, check it out, you won't regret it (unless you eat the roach...).

Feature: Military Roleplaying Games

Lawrence Schick's Heroic Worlds is an invaluable gaming resource, even if it only covers games up to 1990.

I have no fear when it comes to running military RPGs, so yeah, I've played 'em all, starting way back in the '80's with games like Behind Enemy Lines and Merc. Twilight 2000 was my old warhorse.

Weird War Two for Savage Worlds is my latest project. It is based on the D20 version of the game, also released by the Pinnacle Entertainment Group, for which I wrote the Pacific Theater supplement, Land of the Rising Dead. When Savage Worlds: Weird War Two comes out, I hope it will be a playable and accessible military roleplaying game.

Books like The Thin Red Line have a big influence on my military RPG campaigns. You can see it in play in the Actual Play threads of the playtests we did for Weird War Two last year on the PEG forums.

I am very interested in military RPGs with a character focus and not a hardware/wargame focus. One I've found is Unsung. Haven't had a chance to play it yet but it's exploring the path I'm interested in.

Review: Angel Roleplaying Game

Yah, I like chopping up undead bloodsucking freaks. What can I say?

Send your feedback to godzilla.gaming@gmail.com, or just post up here!

See you next month!

I think I finally have Skype tamed, and not by wrangling it together with Audacity; I've pretty much given up that route. A new piece of software I found called Skype Recorder is specifically made to record Skype calls and convert them to MP3 format. Yay!

Anyway, I'll be talking to Andy next week, and I should have the interview posted up about a week after Show #5, which Cam and I are going to record on Monday.

If you have any questions you'd like to ask Andy regarding J-RPGs, post 'em up here right quick (before 5/30).

This month we read some listener email (thanks guys!) and we talk about the games we're playing right now. In our feature segment we get into setting up and running epic scale roleplaying campaigns. Finally, our review this month looks back to 1986* and GDW's hard sci-fi roleplaying game of humanity's battle for the stars -  2300 AD.

The Mountain Witch actual play thread.

The most epic Legend of the Five Rings: Hour of the Boar actual play thread.

Feel free to comment on either thread in the RPG Net threads or here on the blog.

Pentapod's World - A superlative website with heaps of stuff for 2300 AD, and dozens of links to other 2300 AD related websites. I got this one bookmarked!

Far Future Enterpises is the current publisher of all of the old GDW Traveller, 2300 AD and Twilight 2000 RPG titles. The 2300 AD CD-ROM is an amazing collection and a real bargain for what you get!

Also I forgot to mention it in the intro, but I have set up a Frappr Map (like every other podcast out there) so go pin yourself up on it - I'm sure we can span the globe with Godzilla Gamers!

And if you know how to get Audacity to work with Skype on Mac OS 10.4.6 shoot me an email at godzilla.gaming@gmail.com

Finally, let us know about your experiences with bringing new players into RPGs. How have you gone about it? How did it go?

Looking forward to your feedback!

*Where were you in 1986? I was in my second year of uni...

Well, we've got Show #3 up. I'm getting a little bit more adept and splicing things together, though I have to say I find Audacity to be a big pain in the a$$. I've got to get some better recording and mixing software for the Mac.

Anyway, this time around we discuss horror gaming, and specifically, how to creep players out by using their imaginations against them, building up tension, and other techniques.

Our review this month is of EOS Press' awesome Weapons of the Gods! Man do I love this game! Some of it ties my head in knots like a Chinese puzzle, but the more I get into it, the more I like it!

I've got a question for you (actually a couple of questions). What horror RPGs have you run or played? What was the creepiest scene you have experienced, and how did you (or the GM) pull it off?

The Descent

Cam's awesome Unknown Armies campaign. It'll make your head explode! Well, not really...

Eos Press

My write up of the Weapons of the Gods introductory adventure Auspicious Beginnings

I've figured out how to reduce the file size to a much more download friendly 15MB or so. I've deleted the older file from libsyn, and this new one is no different from the previous file, except that it's smaller and there is a slight drop in sound quality. Anyway, I think everyone will appreciate a leaner file in their iPods (or whatever).

This is our first podcast, so if it's a little rough, please excuse us! In this episode, we introduce ourselves, talk a bit about what it's like to game in Japan and how our schedules affect our gaming. We also have a review of "The Mountain Witch"

You may notice there's about 8 seconds of silence at the beginning of the podcast. This was part of the intro but it's okay, the podcast starts about 9 seconds in. I'll get the technical stuff figured out as we go along, so please bear with me.

In the future, Cam and I plan to do maybe 2 segments about various gaming topics per show, and one review. As for those, we'll be looking at some of the indie games that are out there, as well as some older games from the past that are worth hauling off the shelf and having a go at once again. We might also sneak in a few reviews of some of the newer mainstream stuff as well! ;-)

One segment I'm hoping to do in the near future is something about Japanese RPGs and the Japanese gaming scene. This may take a bit of work but I am thinking about it.

Cam and I have been gaming for decades and we have all kinds of stuff to talk about. If you have any suggestions for show topics, please let us know! Leave comments here or email us at godzilla.gaming@gmail.com

It's great to finally get this podcast up, and to join the gaming podcast community!