Speaking about Sci-fi and gaming, does anyone here remember Steve Jacksons "StarFleet battles"? This was an awesome game sustem very rich in game play. It was played with counters sometimes die cast
starship models and or a mix of both. Sorry Console fans, it was a paper type game. Lots of dice rolling.

Jim

Posted by Jim Shannon on Thursday October 19, 2006 at 2:17 AM at 2:17 AM

"does anyone here remember Steve Jacksons "StarFleet battles"?"

Why yes, yes I do remember SFB. I remember buying it in the early 80's when it came in a plastic bag and had the small rulebook, large folded up map, and the cardboard pieces. I guess the only thing that's changed over the years is the size of the rule books. I haven't played in ages. And I think it was/is released by Task Force Games and/or Amarillo Design Bureau. I'm not steeped in the history of the game's production, so don't sue me. ;)

As for the whole console vs. PC debate, that's for Gaming Signal. And there are some cool SF related (well, Star Trek anyway) games coming out for the 360, PSP and PC very soon. I'll be playing on both types until my PC can no longer hack it.

Then I'll have to decide whether to upgrade, or spend more time reading SF. Or watching it. Hmm.

Posted by jp on Thursday October 19, 2006 at 10:23 AM at 10:23 AM

"Star Fleet Battles" listing at Boardgamegeek.com

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/1589

And the latest, somewhat simplified incarnation, "Federation Commander":

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/19854

tbor

Posted by tbor on Friday October 20, 2006 at 7:24 PM at 7:24 PM

Heh. The only connection between Steve Jackson and SFB is that the guy behind SFB is also named Steve!

I actually dug out my SFB stuff thanks to the showing of the "new" Star Trek ("Balance of Terror", natch). I then dug around the internet and found the Federation Commander game and bought the basic set (wince...a basic set runs $50.00 these days!). Looks most excellent, the components are top-notch and the game looks like it puts the fun back into a system that sure was bloating up with the rules.

Posted by Fred Kiesche on Saturday October 21, 2006 at 2:56 AM at 2:56 AM

Darn you Fred, you made me go look at FC. Just look at this sweet pic:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/image/137880

Crap, now another game to put on my list.

Posted by jp on Saturday October 21, 2006 at 10:50 AM at 10:50 AM

It's a nice shot, but you could have pretty much have done the same thing with earlier editions of SFB. Take a look at Star-Ranger.com for additional pictures of the game components (the miniatures are additional drains on the wallet!), plus lots of other nifty stuff such as SW/ST crossover games, etc.

Posted by Fred Kiesche on Saturday October 21, 2006 at 8:14 PM at 8:14 PM