Cartoon Action Hour

[Jason L Blair]

Man... I gotta buy this game.

[WildElf]

Man... I gotta buy this game.

Same here.  Well, once it goes to a printed release anyway; I don't like buying PDF's.

Any plans for a print run?

[Lance D. Allen]

What's wrong with buying .pdfs? Is the the fact that you have to print it all out? Or is it a matter of needing to pay by credit card or mailing in cash?

As has been pointed out in other threads and other folders, the same amount of work goes into most .pdfs as goes into a printed out copy, and it's the results of the work you're paying for, either way, isn't it? Admittedly, a nicely printed book looks nicer, but when it comes to a good game, why should we care about how it looks, so long as it plays well?

[J B Bell]

I gotta say, I spent money on InSpectres, and I'm quite happy with it.  I printed it out on my crappy laser-printer (one quibble:  page numbers should be on the right for odd pages, left for even; or just put 'em in the middle), three-hole punched it, and gave it a little 1/2" binder to live in.  It looks just fine, and hey, it lays flat!  This should work for any PDF, and you can print extras of reference pages for your players.

--JB

[Ron Edwards]

Umm, guys? This new forum is for Cynthia and happy discussions of Cartoon Action Hour.

There's an extensive set of threads in the Publishing forum about PDF's and their relative merits as commercial objects. I strongly suggest taking this discussion there, if it's general.

Of course, if the PDF discussion relates specifically to Cartoon Action Hour - in terms of its qualities as a game, or in terms of Cynthia's plans for its ongoing development - then we're all good. However, the discussion seems quite general at the moment.

Best,
Ron

[Cynthia Celeste Miller]

Man... I gotta buy this game.

Same here.  Well, once it goes to a printed release anyway; I don't like buying PDF's.

Any plans for a print run?

There are indeed plans for a print run.  We've not settled on a specific release date on the harcopy version yet, but we're really, really hoping for August or September.

If you're curious about our upcoming products, here's a large chunk from a fairly recent press release;


Darkness Unleashed (August 2002 in PDF format)
In the militant setting of Dark Brigade, the heroic special forces soldiers, lead by General Anthony Cannon, struggle to defend humanity from the vile forces of the dreaded vampire, Lord Syn!  The Dark Brigade mixes macabre settings and monsters with paramilitary units brandishing lasers and quick wits.  In the end, evil must be defeated and the day saved or all is lost!

This setting book elaborates on the Dark Brigade series from the CAH rulebook.  

* Extensive information on the background of the setting!
* Guidelines for creating Dark Brigade characters!
* Information on the various races of monsters that make up the Brotherhood of Death and the Order of Charr!
* Ready-to-go stats and descriptions for the weapons, gear and vehicles used in the Dark Legion's fight against Lord Syn!
* Lots of advice for running DL games!
* Full stats and bios for all the major players in the global conflict between good and evil!
* And more!!

Iconia (August 2002 in PDF format)
Welcome to Iconia, a once peaceful world that is now locked in a constant struggle of good versus evil.  The cruel and powerful fiend known only as Nekrottus has established the Blackskull Empire and seeks to take over the rest of the world. He has succeeded, except for one kingdom - Haven.  Ruled by the benevolent King Rastor, Haven has always been the largest, fairest kingdom in the land.  Their brave warriors have vowed to stop Nekrottus's forces at all cost and restore the world to its former state.

This setting book elaborates on the Warriors of the Cosmos series from the CAH rulebook.  

* Extensive information on the background of the setting!
* Guidelines for creating the heroes of Haven and the villains of the Blackskull Empire!
* Information on the various kingdoms and other interesting locales found on Iconia.  
* Ready-to-go stats and descriptions for the weapons, gear and vehicles common in the setting!
* Lots of advice for running games set on Iconia!
* Full stats and bios for all the major players in the conflict between good and evil!
* And more!!

The Special Ability Handbook (early Fall 2002 in PDF format)
The Special Ability creation system is one of CAH's most prolific features.  Virtually anything could be created with those rules.  This book takes the versatility up a few notches by presenting even more options than before!

You'll get ...

* Dozens of new Bonuses and Restrictions!
* More details on all the existing Bonuses, Restrictions and Components from the main rulebook!
* A massive collection of sample Special Abilities!
* Expanded rules for creating and handling multi-form robots!
* Detailed guidelines for creating new Modifiers!
* The Special Ability info in the CAH rulebook will be found here (but with more details) so you don't have to flip from one book to the other when designing a Special Ability. Everything for SA creation will be right here in this book!
* And more!!

After These Messages ... issue #1 (Fall 2002 in PDF format)
The official CAH magazine!  This will be published on a quarterly basis and will be an invaluable source of material for players and GMs alike.  

A few of the features presented in our first issue (titles subject to change) ...

* "Storyboarding" -- creative options for controlling the flow of the story.
* "Of Armor and Shield" -- optional rules for handling armor and shields in the game.
* "From Screen to Tabletop" -- advice for adapting your favorite cartoons.
* Plus, columns, fan mail and regular features galore!!

NOTE:  More articles will be added to the list.

Cartoon Action Hour: the book (No Definite Release Date)
This brings all the CAH excitement from PDF to hardcopy!

[Mark Bruno]

Of course, if the PDF discussion relates specifically to Cartoon Action Hour - in terms of its qualities as a game, or in terms of Cynthia's plans for its ongoing development - then we're all good.

I'll tell ya, I think CAH's design is wonderfully executed. The slanted column format is a very nice touch, as well as the watermarked star in the background. All of that combined really makes for a great reading experience.

Kudos to Matt Snyder!

Regards,

Mark Bruno
Deep7
XPG Line Producer

[Cynthia Celeste Miller]

Thankee, Mark.  I couldn't agree with you more about Matt's eye for design.  He works hard and always comes up with some cool surprises.  Plus, he's just a darn cool guy.

[mahoux]

man, I can't wait for my URL to come in the email.  I'll just keep running out to the Inbox looking for it.  I may tackle the SMTP postman if it doesn't come soon.

Seriously, with all the talking up of CAH, I just put in my Paypal order and must begin reading it as soon as it arrives.

I already have an idea - Kung Fu monkeys... kicking prehensile tail.

-Aaron

[Matt Snyder]

I'll tell ya, I think CAH's design is wonderfully executed. The slanted column format is a very nice touch, as well as the watermarked star in the background. All of that combined really makes for a great reading experience.

Kudos to Matt Snyder!

Hey, who am I to criticize the public! ;)

Seriously, thanks very much Mark. I had a lot of fun designing this game. I got to relive my youth (I mean, how cool is a game with art that mimics Ookla the Mok, fer crissakes?!? And Sch-- Schnarf!!) But I also had quite a challenge in taking a fairly lengthy work and making it a workable, palatable PDF download, all while still making it something sweet to look at.

I've said it before here on the Forge that presentation is everything (and hardcoremoose just said the same recently of InSpectres). I hope CAH lives up to that goal!

And now, back to your regularly scheduled programming ...

[Jason Sartin]

But I also had quite a challenge in taking a fairly lengthy work and making it a workable, palatable PDF download, all while still making it something sweet to look at.

I think you succeeded.  (Yeah, let me chime in with a "me, too" post.)  The layout in Cartoon Action Hour looks thousands of times less boring than many other pdf-format games I've seen.  

It's a shame I'm not making a RPG now, because I'd definitely consider throwing more work your way.

;)

[Adam]

I'll tell ya, I think CAH's design is wonderfully executed. The slanted column format is a very nice touch, as well as the watermarked star in the background. All of that combined really makes for a great reading experience.

I agree; it's going to make After These Messages a tough thing to follow it up with, especially if Iconia and Darkness Unleashed are near as good as the main book, and I have no reason to believe they won't be.