I only had vague memories of this 1990 book, so I contacted SJG to confirm some details of this product and its history.
In response, I received an angry denial of this book's very existence, and a strongly worded cease-and-desist letter from SJG's attorneys.
So this will be my last GURPS post for a while...
#GURPS #LostGURPSBooks
GURPS Modern Dance
This was initially intended as one of the flagship products of GURPS Fourth Edition.
More timid heads prevailed however, and its release was delayed, and made digital-only.
It has a small cult following among students in some noted arts universities.
#GURPS #LostGURPSBooks
GURPS Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever
This 2002 book was both SJGs final attempt at adapting a upcoming film franchise, and their final setting book for GURPS 3rd edition.
Its failure spurred the company to renew efforts to develop the fourth edition of GURPS, which debuted a year later.
#GURPS #LostGURPSBooks
GURPS Pac-Man
A somewhat misguided attempt at 1980s nostalgia.
Still holds the record as the shortest page count of any the printed GURPS books.
#GURPS #LostGURPSBooks
GURPS Cutthroat Island (2/2)
The sad part of this was that most reviewers found the actual content of the book to be excellent, with useful rules for sailing ship combat and swashbuckling action. The advice on running pirate-themed campaigns was top notch.
The extensive bibliography is still used by #TTRPG designers interested in Age of Sail gaming.
GURPS Cutthroat Island (1/2)
Beginning in the mid-90s, SJG pursued a strategy in which they would attempt to license the RPG rights to upcoming hit movies, before they were released, in order to get a discount on licensing costs.
The problem with this strategy was determining what movies would actually turn out to be hits. One of their big failures was licensing the Renny Harlin/Geena Davis disastrous pirate film.
Sadly, the link to the failed movie doomed this book.
#GURPS #LostGURPSBooks
GURPS Hero System (2/2)
It was mechanically quite complex, and the official character sheet extended over 2 US-legal sized sheets.
The 880-page book remains to this day, as the largest physical book SJG has ever published.
The long-anticipated GURPS Champions never got further than the playtesting stage.
Hero Games ultimately decided to work with R. Talsorian Games instead,
#HeroSystem #LostGURPSBooks #GURPS
GURPS Hero System (1/2)
In 1996, when their partnership with ICE ended, Hero Games began to look around for another publication partner for their products. An initial deal was made with SJG.
The initial fruit of this union was GURPS Hero System. After several months of development, a hybrid system was developed that could supposedly run both Hero System and GURPS adventures without conversion.
Critics were unkind, dubbing the system a "mechanical nightmare"
#GURPS #LostGURPSBooks #HeroSystem
GURPS Dungeons & Dragons (the Cartoon)
In the mid-90s, SJG started adapting settings from other game companies, most notably Vampire: the Masquerade and Traveller.
In a particularly bold move, SJG made a deal with TSR to license D&D settings into GURPS books.
They had hoped to adapt some of the flagship settings like Ravenloft or Forgotten Realms, but to start off with TSR only gave them permission to adapt the 1980s animated D&D television series.
#GURPS #LostGURPSBooks #DnD
Norton Glover