For one, a lot of companies in gaming seem to be looking towards new means of getting their product out there. From Wizards of the Coast and their push with D&D Insider to White Wolf and their new media directions, where much of their new material will be released online (check out their New Media seminar), it seems online is the new way to go. Programs, PDFs, and other online venues are the way of the future for gaming, and I suspect we'll see a lot more of that.
In an old school area, Green Ronin has partnered up with the video game maker Bioware to create a Dragon Age boxed set, reminiscent of the old boxed sets that TSR used to put out for AD&D. It is supposed to be an introductory set, that covers just the first five levels and uses a new system designed by Green Ronin. I've heard that it isn't all that all-encompassing, covering a bare minimum of things from the video game world, but it should also be the first of several, and the ones yet to come should cover more. Put that together with the idea that Dragon Age the video game is supposed to be part of trilogy, and Dragon Age could turn out to be quite the system.
Speaking of old boxed sets, the next setting that D&D 4th Edition is about to put out is one that fans of AD&D should like: Dark Sun. Dark Sun used to be my favorite setting; it mixed post-apocalyptic madness with fantasy to create a world that was nothing like any world we had seen before. The new setting books are supposed to roll the world back to what it was just after the first edition of Dark Sun, and I find this to be very promising. I loved the old dark Sun, and I look forward happily to a new version.
A book I think will be interesting is a book being put out by White Wolf for their 'new' World of Darkness (not new anymore for the last few years, but it's definitely not the first version). That book is called World of Darkness: Mirrors, and it is supposed to be a book about alternate versions, or alternate realities, in the World of Darkness, and how to use them. I like the WoD, and I like most of the games for it, but I think it will be interesting to see new spins on some of the things that have been given to the fans and readers.
Finally, something that I hope will come out, as it has been delayed for quite a while, is the Dresden Files RPG. I've read all the books, and I think the world described in Jim Butcher's series would make a great setting for a game. It's not as dark as the World of Darkness, and has some interesting characters like Harry Dresden, Michael the knight, and many others. Hell, I wouldn't mind seeing an RPG based on Jim Butcher's Codex Alera, either.
Well, that's it for now. I'll be back with the new year.
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