Sparked by a geek-off in one of the many Introductions threads, I was wondering if anyone else had fond reminiscences of RPG fanzines from the 1980s. A couple of years ago I did an essay on RPG zines for an alternative media course and was surprised to find that the tutor, who had a ridiculously comprehensive collection of all sorts of small-press stuff, had never heard of the genre.
Just recently I came across James Wallis (Sound& Fury, Instant Karma) on Flickr, walking from Winchester to Canterbury for charity and it made me wonder what all the other zine editors were doing and, indeed, if any of them washed up here. Aslan's Andrew Rilstone, for example, is still chuntering on, often entertainingly, about this and that.
For all the work we put into these things (yes, I did, and it was a bit rubbish), did anyone ever try out the systems and rules and scenarios in them? I remember having fun once with a truly dreadful Young Ones D&D scenario from Balrog Banter.
I understand that putting your hand up and naming any zines you edited would be an instant identifier, so which did you read? Like everyone else, I subbed to Telegraph Road and Utter Drivel and would try just about any others I could find. Which were your favourites? This may just be shameless nostalgia but I find it interesting that this was such a big part of so many people's lives which was just brushed under the carpet with the advent of the internet.
Anyway, am I alone in my love of badly printed, folded and stapled A4? |
