The Inside Scoop on Gaming

We've only got a couple of months until the end of the world. At least, that's what some people are predicting. Your computer will stop working, power plants will stop generating electricity, water treatment plants will stop, stores will run out of food--even your car's computer-controlled brakes will lock up while you're driving at 60mph! Or maybe not. In the case of the brakes, almost certainly not.

I could be wrong, of course, but if I am you're all welcome to come find me on my heavily-defended compound and say you told me so.

As milennial fears increase, we've seen more and more games dealing with the end of the world. Post-apocalyptic RPGs have been around a long time. My first was Gamma World, but I've owned nearly all of them. Once the world doesn't end, I think post-apocalyptic games will fade a bit in popularity, but for now, it's the hot thing. Everyone wants to destroy the world. Now Steve Jackson Games gets in just under the milennial wire with GURPS Y2K.

This book isn't just about the Y2K Bug. It's about disasters in general, and survival in the post-apocalyptic world. Up until the last two chapters, this is a mostly realistic look at why society might break down and what happens after.

The meat of the book starts off with a discussion of what the Y2K Bug is, as well as other technological terrors like antibiotic-resistant bacteria, pollution, and overpopulation in Chapter 1. Chapter 2, entitled "Murphy's Law" is a look at the real problems: industrial strength stupidity and the fact that no matter how stupid people act, our computers are even dumber. Perhaps inexplicably, there's also suggestions for running a natural disaster scenario here, with a list of disaster movie cliches and how they'd work in a game. In the third chapter, possible conspiracies behind the Y2K Bug are explored. Pretty much every group from A (the aliens) to Z (the Gnomes of Zurich) gets its turn.

Chapter 4 is a look at how a global computer crash could affect the world. It's mostly worst-case scenarios, but it's not a pretty picture. Chapters 5 through 7 should be required reading for anyone thinking of running a post-apocalyptic game in any system. They deal with, in order, survivalism and survivors, gangs, and societies built on the ashes of the old world. Before reading chapter six, I'd never even considered the possibility of a minivan gang of ill-prepared suburbanites raiding and looting. Chapter eight is a discussion of more technological terrors, including chemicals, EMPs, and genetic engineering.

Chapter nine is a sort-of setting, bringing Y2K to the IST setting of GURPS Supers. I was skeptical of this chapter, but I ended up liking it a lot. How does the Justice Squad deal with a computer glitch being reported irresponsibly by sensationalistic news media and resulting in a complete breakdown of law and order? There's no supervillain! Gamemasters of Aberrant will find a lot of good ideas in here for what could happen during the Aberrant War (which also features a computer crash of spectacular proportions). The tenth chapter is a look at a supernatural apocalypse, drawing heavily on the Book of Revelations.

GURPS Y2K is a superior book, filled with useful information. Were I planning to hole up in a bunker with guns and food for New Year's Eve, this would be one of the books I'd use to prepare. There's even a bibliography listing other books a survivalist might want. It's not without its flaws, though.

The book has nine authors, each writing a chapter or two. The book's chapters seem sometimes to be divided strictly along authorial lines rather than subject matter. Chapter 1 covers not only the Y2K Bug but also overpopulation, pollution, biological weapons, food additives, and bug-caused nuclear war. Chapter 8 has a few other items in a similar theme. Chapter 2 deals with the kinds of errors that humans and computers can make and why, and also disaster movie cliches. Real-world milennial cults are discussed in Chapter 1, but an adventure seed based around a fictional survivalist cult appears in the chapter on gangs.

While this method of organization makes a nifty game possible, Who Wrote This? (a game which I absolutely stink at, having correctly guessed the author of only one chapter correctly), it means the book is less useful to me than if all of the information on a single topic or with a single theme were condensed into one chapter, regardless of authorship.

The only other flaw in the book is that it's clear that parts of the book were written months before it was released. Events slated for August or September of 1999 are referred to as being in the future.

Summing up, this is a good book. For people with an interest in apocalyptic RPGs or who just want to give their characters a problem they can't defeat with a kick in the shins, it's a great book.

Style: 3 (Average)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)

GURPS Y2K
Author: John M. Ford, Kenneth Hite, Steve Jackson, Jeff Koke, Phil Masters, David Pulver, Sean Punch, Robert Schroek Category: game Company/Publisher: Steve Jackson Games Line: GURPS Cost: $19.95 US Page count: 128 ISBN: 1-55634-406-6 Capsule Review by Kevin Mowery on 11/11/99. Genre tags: Science_fiction Modern_day Conspiracy Post-apocalypse	We've only got a couple of months until the end of the world. At least, that's what some people are predicting. Your computer will stop working, power plants will stop generating electricity, water treatment plants will stop, stores will run out of food--even your car's computer-controlled brakes will lock up while you're driving at 60mph! Or maybe not. In the case of the brakes, almost certainly not. I could be wrong, of course, but if I am you're all welcome to come find me on my heavily-defended compound and say you told me so. As milennial fears increase, we've seen more and more games dealing with the end of the world. Post-apocalyptic RPGs have been around a long time. My first was Gamma World, but I've owned nearly all of them. Once the world doesn't end, I think post-apocalyptic games will fade a bit in popularity, but for now, it's the hot thing. Everyone wants to destroy the world. Now Steve Jackson Games gets in just under the milennial wire with GURPS Y2K. This book isn't just about the Y2K Bug. It's about disasters in general, and survival in the post-apocalyptic world. Up until the last two chapters, this is a mostly realistic look at why society might break down and what happens after. The meat of the book starts off with a discussion of what the Y2K Bug is, as well as other technological terrors like antibiotic-resistant bacteria, pollution, and overpopulation in Chapter 1. Chapter 2, entitled "Murphy's Law" is a look at the real problems: industrial strength stupidity and the fact that no matter how stupid people act, our computers are even dumber. Perhaps inexplicably, there's also suggestions for running a natural disaster scenario here, with a list of disaster movie cliches and how they'd work in a game. In the third chapter, possible conspiracies behind the Y2K Bug are explored. Pretty much every group from A (the aliens) to Z (the Gnomes of Zurich) gets its turn. Chapter 4 is a look at how a global computer crash could affect the world. It's mostly worst-case scenarios, but it's not a pretty picture. Chapters 5 through 7 should be required reading for anyone thinking of running a post-apocalyptic game in any system. They deal with, in order, survivalism and survivors, gangs, and societies built on the ashes of the old world. Before reading chapter six, I'd never even considered the possibility of a minivan gang of ill-prepared suburbanites raiding and looting. Chapter eight is a discussion of more technological terrors, including chemicals, EMPs, and genetic engineering. Chapter nine is a sort-of setting, bringing Y2K to the IST setting of GURPS Supers. I was skeptical of this chapter, but I ended up liking it a lot. How does the Justice Squad deal with a computer glitch being reported irresponsibly by sensationalistic news media and resulting in a complete breakdown of law and order? There's no supervillain! Gamemasters of Aberrant will find a lot of good ideas in here for what could happen during the Aberrant War (which also features a computer crash of spectacular proportions). The tenth chapter is a look at a supernatural apocalypse, drawing heavily on the Book of Revelations. GURPS Y2K is a superior book, filled with useful information. Were I planning to hole up in a bunker with guns and food for New Year's Eve, this would be one of the books I'd use to prepare. There's even a bibliography listing other books a survivalist might want. It's not without its flaws, though. The book has nine authors, each writing a chapter or two. The book's chapters seem sometimes to be divided strictly along authorial lines rather than subject matter. Chapter 1 covers not only the Y2K Bug but also overpopulation, pollution, biological weapons, food additives, and bug-caused nuclear war. Chapter 8 has a few other items in a similar theme. Chapter 2 deals with the kinds of errors that humans and computers can make and why, and also disaster movie cliches. Real-world milennial cults are discussed in Chapter 1, but an adventure seed based around a fictional survivalist cult appears in the chapter on gangs. While this method of organization makes a nifty game possible, Who Wrote This? (a game which I absolutely stink at, having correctly guessed the author of only one chapter correctly), it means the book is less useful to me than if all of the information on a single topic or with a single theme were condensed into one chapter, regardless of authorship. The only other flaw in the book is that it's clear that parts of the book were written months before it was released. Events slated for August or September of 1999 are referred to as being in the future. Summing up, this is a good book. For people with an interest in apocalyptic RPGs or who just want to give their characters a problem they can't defeat with a kick in the shins, it's a great book. Style: 3 (Average) Substance: 4 (Meaty)