As we prepare for the 2nd annual Bamfies, it's time to think about who will be in the Reader's Choice Poll.
Any Superhero themed RPG release from the last twelve months is eligible. Please reply below with any nominations you can think of.
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Prizes Have Been Sent Out
Thanks to everyone who took part. The prize giveaway is now over and the winners have been notified.
See you next year!
See you next year!
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Winners are Announced and Prize Giveaway
Gamers Choice Award: GCore Prime
Gamers Choice Award Runner-up: Mutants and Masterminds 3rd Edition
Best Presentation: Atomic Robo RPG
Notes from Tommy Brownell: I preordered this because I was on a bit of a Fate kick, and now I've been working my way through all of the Atomic Robo trades. Completely self-contained, with tweaks that allow you to jump right into ACTION SCIENCE, Atomic Robo uses the comic itself to explain the mechanics, making it one of the best written and presented Fate books I have ever read.
Best Presentation Runner-Up: Emerald City Player's Handbook
Best Genre Emulation - Iron Age: Cold Steel Wardens
Notes from Dan Davenport: It's a rules-medium game that successfully
emulates Iron Age supers without relying on heavy-handed emulation
mechanics
Best Genre Emulation - Pulp Supers: Atomic Robo
Notes from Cam Banks: Atomic Robo is, right out of the gate, clearly aware of and fully embraces its source. It makes excellent use of the art from the comics, tweaks the Fate Core rules to provide a solid action-centered baseline for rules, and devotes considerable mechanical and background space in the book to things that matter to pulp action heres: inventions, doing crazy stunts, being part of a worldwide organization of science heroes, and including weird agents and villains who defy standard categorization. It's a remarkably effective licensed RPG and stands alone as a pulp supers game in its own right.
Best Genre Emulation - Street Level Supers: Venture City Stories
Notes from Cam Banks: I think Venture City makes excellent use of Fate to give a sort of urban depth to what's usually a generic kind of RPG genre. It doesn't try to be every comic book. It comes with enough meat to spin bigger stories out of it but it's a self-contained adventure product. So in that respect I think it succeeds highly because it knows what it wants to do as a product.
Best New Edition: ICONS Assembled Edition
Notes from Tommy Brownell:ICONS was more popular than it was intended to be, due in part to the astounding support of third party licensees, and because it scratched an accessible, rules light itch that many people had. Now under the direct hand of designer Steve Kenson, ICONS Assembled Edition is a "1.5" version, folding in the best tweaks and rules additions in its short life-span while maintaining 99% compatibility with previous releases. While it never really "went away", it's back with a sleeker, shinier exterior and a finer tuned engine under the hood setting itself up as the alternative for supers fans not thrilled with the rules heavier games.
Notes from Christopher Helton: I think that right now my favorite new super RPG would be the Icons: Assembled Edition from Steve Kenson and Green Ronin Publishing. This new edition really filled in some of the gaps in the previous edition, making it a much more complete gaming experience. Rules light, but still robust, Icons does super-hero gaming well.
Best New Edition Award Runner-up: Savage Worlds Super Powers Companion 2nd Edition
Notes from Tommy Brownell: Actually the third time the Savage Worlds supers rules have been released (first in Necessary Evil, then in the original Super Powers Companion), the 2nd Edition of the Super Powers Companion not only helped usher in the new "graphic novel sized" Savage Worlds books, but it addressed a lot of complaints with the Super Powers rules, adding in significantly more flexibility than was present before, and "locking in" a hero's power level at character creation, while still allowing them to become more skilled and experienced. A much needed step to bring the fun, but flawed, Savage Worlds Supers rules in line with a truly robust Savage Worlds supers experience. (Requires the Savage Worlds core rules to play).
Best Supplement Award: Awesome Powers series for BASH Ultimate Edition
Notes from Tommy Brownell: BASH was already a great choice for those who wanted the customization and flexibility of a Champions or Mutants & Masterminds with fewer rules...but now it is in the process of mutating further, thanks to the Awesome Powers series, a group of books focusing on various powers suites and how to utilize them in BASH. With five volumes available and eighteen volumes planned, it serves as much as a guide on how to reimpliment many of the existing powers as it does a shopping list for new abilities. The only downside is that it feels a little, well, incomplete until it's completed.
Special "Tragically Gone Too Soon" Award: Marvel Heroic Roleplaying
The Podcast
Please check out the BAMF podcast - which sponsors the Bamfsies. We regularly talk about comics and superhero gaming with some of the best and brightest in this niche of the hobby. You can check out our latest podcast (in which we also talk about the 2014 Bamfsies winners) here
THE GIVEAWAY
AND - In addition - as a way to celebrate all the great supers games in the BAMFSIES, we're going to be giving a bunch away to you.
Gamers Choice Award Runner-up: Mutants and Masterminds 3rd Edition
Best Presentation: Atomic Robo RPG
Notes from Tommy Brownell: I preordered this because I was on a bit of a Fate kick, and now I've been working my way through all of the Atomic Robo trades. Completely self-contained, with tweaks that allow you to jump right into ACTION SCIENCE, Atomic Robo uses the comic itself to explain the mechanics, making it one of the best written and presented Fate books I have ever read.
Best Presentation Runner-Up: Emerald City Player's Handbook
Best Genre Emulation - Iron Age: Cold Steel Wardens
Notes from Dan Davenport: It's a rules-medium game that successfully
emulates Iron Age supers without relying on heavy-handed emulation
mechanics
Best Genre Emulation - Pulp Supers: Atomic Robo
Notes from Cam Banks: Atomic Robo is, right out of the gate, clearly aware of and fully embraces its source. It makes excellent use of the art from the comics, tweaks the Fate Core rules to provide a solid action-centered baseline for rules, and devotes considerable mechanical and background space in the book to things that matter to pulp action heres: inventions, doing crazy stunts, being part of a worldwide organization of science heroes, and including weird agents and villains who defy standard categorization. It's a remarkably effective licensed RPG and stands alone as a pulp supers game in its own right.
Best Genre Emulation - Street Level Supers: Venture City Stories
Notes from Cam Banks: I think Venture City makes excellent use of Fate to give a sort of urban depth to what's usually a generic kind of RPG genre. It doesn't try to be every comic book. It comes with enough meat to spin bigger stories out of it but it's a self-contained adventure product. So in that respect I think it succeeds highly because it knows what it wants to do as a product.
Best New Edition: ICONS Assembled Edition
Notes from Tommy Brownell:ICONS was more popular than it was intended to be, due in part to the astounding support of third party licensees, and because it scratched an accessible, rules light itch that many people had. Now under the direct hand of designer Steve Kenson, ICONS Assembled Edition is a "1.5" version, folding in the best tweaks and rules additions in its short life-span while maintaining 99% compatibility with previous releases. While it never really "went away", it's back with a sleeker, shinier exterior and a finer tuned engine under the hood setting itself up as the alternative for supers fans not thrilled with the rules heavier games.
Notes from Christopher Helton: I think that right now my favorite new super RPG would be the Icons: Assembled Edition from Steve Kenson and Green Ronin Publishing. This new edition really filled in some of the gaps in the previous edition, making it a much more complete gaming experience. Rules light, but still robust, Icons does super-hero gaming well.
Best New Edition Award Runner-up: Savage Worlds Super Powers Companion 2nd Edition
Notes from Tommy Brownell: Actually the third time the Savage Worlds supers rules have been released (first in Necessary Evil, then in the original Super Powers Companion), the 2nd Edition of the Super Powers Companion not only helped usher in the new "graphic novel sized" Savage Worlds books, but it addressed a lot of complaints with the Super Powers rules, adding in significantly more flexibility than was present before, and "locking in" a hero's power level at character creation, while still allowing them to become more skilled and experienced. A much needed step to bring the fun, but flawed, Savage Worlds Supers rules in line with a truly robust Savage Worlds supers experience. (Requires the Savage Worlds core rules to play).
Best Supplement Award: Awesome Powers series for BASH Ultimate Edition
Notes from Tommy Brownell: BASH was already a great choice for those who wanted the customization and flexibility of a Champions or Mutants & Masterminds with fewer rules...but now it is in the process of mutating further, thanks to the Awesome Powers series, a group of books focusing on various powers suites and how to utilize them in BASH. With five volumes available and eighteen volumes planned, it serves as much as a guide on how to reimpliment many of the existing powers as it does a shopping list for new abilities. The only downside is that it feels a little, well, incomplete until it's completed.
Special "Tragically Gone Too Soon" Award: Marvel Heroic Roleplaying
The Podcast
Please check out the BAMF podcast - which sponsors the Bamfsies. We regularly talk about comics and superhero gaming with some of the best and brightest in this niche of the hobby. You can check out our latest podcast (in which we also talk about the 2014 Bamfsies winners) here
THE GIVEAWAY
AND - In addition - as a way to celebrate all the great supers games in the BAMFSIES, we're going to be giving a bunch away to you.
(hat tip to Tommy Brownell. I’m shamelessly copying his method of running a giveaway)
Between now and February 15, 2015 if you email me at bamfsies(at)gmail(dot)com with the subject line of "Bamfsies prizes" with your preference of prize, in order, of the product you would like to win, you’ll be entered into the drawing.
On Feb 16, I will randomly draw the winners. Each person selected will win their first available choice (so if you are the third winner, and your first choice was also taken by the first winner, then you get your second choice, and so on), until prizes have been selected! Also: One entry per person.
And now for the prizes:
- Four (4) PDF Copies of GCore Prime
- One (1) PDF Copy of Cold Steel Wardens
- Four (4) PDF Copies of GCore Prime
- One (1) PDF Copy of Cold Steel Wardens
- One (1) PDF Copy of Savage Worlds Superpowers Companion 2nd Edition
- One (1) PDF Copy of Emerald City
- One (1) PDF Copy of Mutants and Masterminds 3rd Edition Heroes Handbook
- One (1) PDF Copy of Atomic Robo RPG
- One (1) PDF Copy of Venture City Stories