My Thoughts on the Next Big Thing
The next writing project I am working on is called "Racing Spies." I originally intended it to be something of a supplement/brand new thing dealing with '60s spies for QAGS, much along the lines of "Sex, Lies and Ultraspies." Since that initial conception, however, some things have changed.
First, a big chunk of "Sex, Lies and Ultraspies" got cut. Specifically, it was the vehicle and chase rules. Conveniently enough, that is exactly the same grounds I planned on covering for "Racing Spies," just more geared towards racing and spies of course.
Second, Hex Games released a product called "Cops and Robbers," which also covered vehicle and chase rules. I based my own vehicle and chase rules on a previous Hex Games product called "Rocket Jocks." Unfortunately, the rules in "Cops and Robbers" differed fairly significantly from these, and I feel I should adapt what I have done to better match "Cops and Robbers."
Third, and finally, I've taken a good hard look at the racing spy genre itself, mostly at its general popularity. My "Racing Spies" convention events are generally the most poorly attended ones that I run. The Wachowski brothers made a reasonably decent film about Speed Racer and it bombed. The undeniable truth of the matter is no matter how infatuated I am with Speed Racer and Racer X in particular, it has a fairly limited audience appeal (and it didn't even cost me $120 million dollars to figure that out like the Wachowskis).
I really want my follow up to "Sex, Lies and Ultraspies" to be successful. So, I have decided to focus "Racing Spies" less on the the racing spy stuff and treat it much more as a Vehicle and Chase supplement for "Sex, Lies and Ultraspies." Keeping this in mind, I'm going to simplify and align the vehicle design rules more in accordance with "Cops and Robbers". I'm going to simplify the chase rules to some extent (while still keeping all those nifty chase tables). I'm going to present organizations and an adventure that the Ultraspies from "Sex, Lies and Ultraspies" will be more than comfortable participating in.
I've really been debating how to get myself fired up to get back to writing "Racing Spies," and I think I'm starting to figure it out.
First, a big chunk of "Sex, Lies and Ultraspies" got cut. Specifically, it was the vehicle and chase rules. Conveniently enough, that is exactly the same grounds I planned on covering for "Racing Spies," just more geared towards racing and spies of course.
Second, Hex Games released a product called "Cops and Robbers," which also covered vehicle and chase rules. I based my own vehicle and chase rules on a previous Hex Games product called "Rocket Jocks." Unfortunately, the rules in "Cops and Robbers" differed fairly significantly from these, and I feel I should adapt what I have done to better match "Cops and Robbers."
Third, and finally, I've taken a good hard look at the racing spy genre itself, mostly at its general popularity. My "Racing Spies" convention events are generally the most poorly attended ones that I run. The Wachowski brothers made a reasonably decent film about Speed Racer and it bombed. The undeniable truth of the matter is no matter how infatuated I am with Speed Racer and Racer X in particular, it has a fairly limited audience appeal (and it didn't even cost me $120 million dollars to figure that out like the Wachowskis).
I really want my follow up to "Sex, Lies and Ultraspies" to be successful. So, I have decided to focus "Racing Spies" less on the the racing spy stuff and treat it much more as a Vehicle and Chase supplement for "Sex, Lies and Ultraspies." Keeping this in mind, I'm going to simplify and align the vehicle design rules more in accordance with "Cops and Robbers". I'm going to simplify the chase rules to some extent (while still keeping all those nifty chase tables). I'm going to present organizations and an adventure that the Ultraspies from "Sex, Lies and Ultraspies" will be more than comfortable participating in.
I've really been debating how to get myself fired up to get back to writing "Racing Spies," and I think I'm starting to figure it out.