Great White Games/Pinnacle Entertainment Group

[Enpeze]

Well, after Battlefield aquired a Morrigan Game (Terran Trade Authority) and gives it a Savage port, maybe the same can be made with Talislanta? (which was also Morrigan Press some time ago)

Talislanta is a wonderful, phantastic and IMO very pulpy setting. The world description is athmospheric and bolstered up with many books. But it always lacked good adventures IMO. Now its rather dead, with only a few fans remaining. Morrigan Press started a 5th edition of this game several years ago and then everything went down.

Later this year there will be a coloured artbook from Talislanta and some free downloads from talislanta.com. What do you think. Wouldnt it be wonderful to savage Talislanta to inject new life into the franchise and open it up for a larger audience?

[skylion]

I dunno, so much talk about acquiring this that or the other license. I think Pinnacle should concentrate on their original settings. While it is true we will be seeing the SW port of Space: 1889, it is a limited license, and a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Pinnacle and their partners are making some great original fantasy games, and also give very good support. I am concerned with one more possible diluting that.

Don't get me wrong, Talislanta was a fine product, and a wonderfully produced set of books. And, for myself, I would love to see a SW version of some of my own favorite or pet settings, Feng Shui for one.
_________________

[Sean Patrick Fannon]

As a small primer on how the business works `round here...

(Note - I am in no way speaking for Shane or Pinnacle; this is the observation of a so-called pundit with a few years experience and a long-standing friendship with the company.)

Pinnacle is an established creator of settings, at the higher end of the scale in terms of "Who's Who" in the game publishing pantheon. As such, it is far more likely that other companies are inclined to approach Shane about licensing his properties.

Granted, Pinnacle does explore the occasional license opportunity, but it almost always steps outside of the RPG realm to do so. "Pirates of the Spanish Main," for example, tapped into the tabletop collectible strategy game manufactured by WizKids.

Another key example is Solomon Kane.

If there is to be any licensing of existing RPG settings to do SW versions of, it will likely be done by existing SW licensees.

However...

Licensing is a tricky business in almost every case. It's rarely worth the effort of all the paperwork and specific contractual arrangements. As well, if the owner of the intellectual property wants too much compensation, it can be a financial nightmare for the licensee.

Having said that, there are those who have the rights to certain settings out there who are probably more than happy to see their creations get another go around the park, so to speak. It may be as simple as "Hey, I'd like to publish a Savage version of this setting, if you're interested." For a simple percentage of the take, they may well say "Sure!"
_________________
Sean Patrick Fannon
Evil Beagle Games
The FREE Shaintar Player's Guide

Bad Dog. Good Games.

[Enpeze]

[Count Zero]

[Clint]

[Enpeze]

[serene_muse]

I'd rather a group of dedicated fans adapt Talislanta for Savage Worlds and if y'like, do adventures, PPC, one sheets, whatever. While a commercial release'd be great, even just a working conversion freebie would be nice. And no I'm not up to this, learning Savage Worlds at the mo and thinking of grokking Talislanta with the freebie pdfs.

And Peginc's got a backlog of sorts. I'd prefer they release what they can instead of taking on too much.

[BluSponge]

I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't be interested in a Savage Talislanta book, but I think it would be very tricky to do. Ideally (for me anyway), it would be a one off book like Red Sands. Talislanta has so much history behind it, I don't think the fan base would be excited about bouncing from the Tal system, to d20 (5th ed), to SW. Plus the property is so big (see 4th ed), would old fans be happy with where you made compromises for coverage? Plus, right now, all the Tal info is being released for free online, and SMS is looking at opportunities to take the property elsewhere. I should also point out that for all its history, Tal is a pretty niche product.

So if Shane and SMS got together and cooked something up, I expect it would be fantastic. But there is so much else going on out there, I don't think it's something worth moving heaven and earth for.

Tom
_________________
Lewisville Public Library Roleplaying
You control the character. You make the story. You are the legend.
The only limit is your imagination.

[Ron Blessing]

I love just about everything Pinnacle does, but their best work is their own stuff. Deadlands, Rippers, 50 Fathoms, Necessary Evil, Evernight, Weird Wars: these are their best works. While I'd certainly add Solomon Kane to the mix, it's an exception because Howard's influence on Shane made its way into Savage Worlds to begin with. And I'm sure Space 1889 will be similarly brilliant, but I say leave non-Pinnacle settings to fan work and licensees going forward.

Let's have:
Hell on Earth: Reloaded
Lost Colony: Reloaded
Rippers Explorer's
50 Fathoms Explorer's
Evernight Explorer's
Evernight II
Perhaps an open setting for Necessary Evil, taking place after the end of the PPC
More Companions to help fans set about the work of playing those other settings in Savage Worlds

This is my long-winded way of saying, "No, Pinnacle should not acquire the Talislanta license."
_________________
Ron Blessing
Check out:
Gamer: The Blogging
The Game's the Thing

[skylion]

And moving with the spirit of the Blessing. Can we have a Evernight prequel?
_________________

[BluSponge]