In Praise of Gamma World
June 10, 2010
While it is only tangentially related to the DMG (re: ‘Converting characters to Gamma World rules), I wanted to note that, despite being a generally rather silly game that went through multiple reboots, rule changes, periods of neglect, etc., I still have a deep well of affection for the game.
As a child of the 70s/80s, I had a fondness for Apocalyptic films and books. Hurray Cold War, no? I’d watch Mad Max (hell I watched Mad Mad Beyond Thunder Dome) and Thundarr the Barbarian or read Damnation Alley and think to myself- the post-war wasteland won’t be too bad; at least I get a cool dune buggy and befriend some mutants! When I started gaming I immediately gravitated to Gamma World’s goofy blend of campy sci-fi, collapsed world beauty, and real sense of wonder. It wasn’t until a couple of years later, reading the rules for the Morrow Project and, in reviewing their list of bomb targets, that I realized I’d be so much lightly toasted ash after the 25 megaton bomb leveled my home town and its inconvenient ball-bearing factory.
So, as part of the horde recently returned to me by my parents are what is left
of my Gamma World collection- 2nd and 3rd edition rules, a couple modules (of which my favorite is still Famine in Far-Go with its ludicrous yet somehow wonderful villainous mutant chickens, the Gallus Gallus 5/13), and the GM screen. Gotta love that Jim Holloway cover art… wonder if any of it is for sale…
Perhaps it is pure nostalgia and I am sure that modern gamer would complain endlessly about game balance, mechanical issues, and the like, but what Gamma World had in spades was a sense of fun. You could do battle with laser-armed mutant rabbits while wearing armor made out of old car parts. You could riddle with sentient robots and try to figure out how to use a toaster. You could ride around on a poinsettia and barter with desert nomads from the Empire of Lazvekuz… you could frankly do all sorts of crazy, half-baked things that were much more fun than they were logical. It was great.
If I had a gaming group I’d be tempted to crack the rule book open and have a bit of fun… but since I don’t, I’m posting this here.
So, to Jim Ward et al, thanks.
