"Good ol' Magic Realm"
Last played Magic Realm
about 5 years ago or so but since setting up is a bit of a commitment
(particularly after not playing for a while) it hasn't been on the table since.
The selection of chits I use for MR is a little
odd. I really don't like punching out components and cards for games and when
my copy arrived in decent shape, I was a
little disappointed that all the cards and more than half of the counters were
unpunched.
So, I made print and play
versions of all the components in my copy that hadn't been punched. That said,
the redesigned counters are probably a little better functionally because
they're labeled and have the Fame and Notoriety scores printed on them.
As long as I've been looking
at fantasy gaming things Magic Realm has been there. I can remember seeing ads
for it in magazines or maybe comics, somewhere. But I never saw it in a store.
Not once. Well maybe once, but then it was only once. And I believe I also
asked someone about it long ago, someone more worldly and knowledgeable about
such things, and was told that it was really complicated and not at all like
D&D or AD&D. At that point, I guess, I sort of wrote it off, but years
later I ran across people talking about it online and instantly recalled how
curious I'd been about this game a million years ago - who can forget the cover
once you've seen it. Shortly thereafter I bought myself copy.
I've only ever played Magic Realm solitaire. The game is a
bit much for the casual gamer, so roping people into a game and then them not
hating you for it afterwards...
One of the issues with MR is that while it's really
not that complex, it's very difficult to explain some of the mechanisms. Always
an issue with your more sophisticated games and things to be sure, but
something about some of these mechanisms makes them difficult to describe.
Combat, for example. It’s
this odd rock-paper-scissors system combined with resource management. Combat also
has these discrete mass and speed factors that stack and affect outcomes and...see? Hard to explain.
It is a unique game. It has
presence. It creates a definite mood that's integrated into the whole. It has
depth. And I can tell that while it's soloable, that's not what it's meant for.
It's meant for campaigns with friends and frenemies. I am certain that's where
it shines brightest.
For the most part, I play
2nd edition, but I look at both 1st and 3rd edition rules sometimes as I play
just because I like to.
And that's the important
thing. Whatever else one can say about Magic Realm, the most outstanding thing
to me, the most important, is that it amuses me. I'm entertained when I'm
playing with it. It's fun to play with. A great toy. That's all one can really
ask of this sort of thing, isn’t it?
