Harry Enfield has done some interesting stereotypes in his comedy sketches in the past (though not without controversy), including Jurgen, the profusely and masochistically apologetic German, and the Dutch policemen, who are attentative gay lovers and have more than a passing interest in pot smoking. Well, I spotted this PARANOIA… Continue reading I Feel I Must Apologize…

I attended Dragonmeet in London at the weekend. I had intended on meeting up with Graham Bottley of Arion Games – as I recently published ‘The Sward and The Stone‘ for the Maelstrom system, and hoped to promote it with him. However, Graham couldn’t make it in the end –… Continue reading Metamorphosis Alpha Complex

I’m going to be hanging around The Armitage Centre in Fallowfield for most of tomorrow, at Game 2008. I’ll be the one wearing the ‘Fueled by PARANOIA’ t-shirt with Omega Complex advertised on the back (which you won’t see if I’m wearing a coat… but, that depends on the heating… Continue reading Game 2008 – Manchester

Glancing through a copy of ‘The Guardian’, I’ve had since October 9th (I rarely read newspapers the day I buy them… I prefer to relax and absorb the content when it’s convenient to me), I opened the centre spread to find the stunning interior of Torrevaldaliga Nord, a coal-powered energy… Continue reading Torrevaldaliga Nord

…because physical components of the machines expand and contract in response to temperature changes, the amount of time a machine has been running, or even the time of day, might affect calibration—which could explain why the problem didn’t show up in later attempts to reproduce the error. After the last… Continue reading We Are Touchy, Aren’t We?

Like having about a dozen CCTV cameras per head of population wasn’t bad enough (yeah, OK, so I’m exaggerating a bit), the UK Government seems dead set on knowing what email we read, web sites we view, and mobile phone calls we make. The basis for this intrusion? That the… Continue reading Spammers Buffet, anyone?

Not PARANOIA… but, I surely get the opportunity to trumpet my own writing whenever I get something published, right? In 1446, Wales perched on the precipice, faced with the prospect of a new rebellion by restless natives. Complacent English nobles, entrusted with expansive domains, stretch themselves all too thin, leaving… Continue reading The Sward and the Stone

In the continuing tale of a would-be game writer, I find myself wanting to write a mission, but lacking the energy to get it done in anything less than a geological era. I keep setting time aside to get going, but fail to make the most of what I have… Continue reading No One Expects…

Last Sunday, I spent a fair portion of the day playing games. Situated in the upstairs rooms of the Doffcocker Inn in Bolton, we played from noon until early evening with a group of gamers called the GNOMEs. We started with Ca$h and Gun$, a Reservoir Dogs-style stand-off over the… Continue reading Treacle-flavored Cold Fun

In a move as bemusing as Prince changing his name to squiggle, Amazon.com currently lists the PARANOIA core book as ‘Pa RPG‘ and just about every other book in the range has something rum or slightly amiss in the listing. Pa RPG, however, tells you nothing and doesn’t make much… Continue reading What’s Up, Pa?