The lance was nothing but Locusts and Riflemen

[bluegargantua]

Hey,

So once upon a time, FASA published a game called Battletech (the big stompy robots game). FASA had an agreement to use robot designs from Japanese cartoon shows (familiar to most of you as mecha from Robotech). Battletech was set in a different universe than Robotech -- they just used the same images and then Battletech built up the game stats from there.

Then FASA lost the license and all those images had to be pulled and over a dozen, iconic, made-the-cover-of-the-box designs basically vanished. Which is too bad because those designs were really cool and it's what I grew up on and such.

[Note: the full story about these designs is a lot more convoluted than I'm letting on here. What's important to know is that FASA was using them and then couldn't and had to scrap tons of stuff in their game-line.]

FASA died.

Catalyst Labs picked up Battletech and have actively gotten it back out into the gaming community again. Their mecha sourcebook uses original, in-house designs, but they do include a section in the back where they publish current stats for all those old mechs. There are no pictures, they can't legally show them, but the stats they can show and people, even 20 years on still love the designs and want to be able to play with them.

Yesterday, they announced that they got the image rights for the designs. It's not clear what the extent of the license is, but they will be publishing a number of books in the near future using the old designs.

Battletech isn't really a game I play, and despite the major revamp, it's not one I'm likely to get back into (*so* much paperwork!), but I am pleased to see the art come back and I know there are people on my friend's list who will also be happy.

later
Tom

Comments

[badseed1980.livejournal.com]

pierceheart talked about this. He reads the books.

[ninjarat.livejournal.com]

One of the rather interesting quirks was the Japanese edition of Battletech. While FASA had image rights in the US, the Japanese publisher did not have them in Japan. It lead to a completely new batch of designs from Studio Nue (which among other things did the Macross design work). Gears Online has scans from the rulebooks.
http://www.gearsonline.net/btech/mechs.php

[woodwardiocom.livejournal.com]

Factoid: The missing designs were by Kunio Okawara, best known for designing many of the Gundam mechs, including the original.

[z-gryphon.livejournal.com]

Not all; quite a few were Shoji Kawamori designs from Super Dimension Fortress Macross.

Regardless, I'm chuffed to bits by this announcement. I don't play Battletech any more, so it's unlikely to affect me directly, but I spent many, many happy hours at the game table in high school, playing in the original 3025 universe, and this makes me feel like an essential part of the world is back where it belongs. :)

[foxtown.livejournal.com]

Yay!

[pfloyd.livejournal.com]

I've played Battletech, both in person and a PBeM game or five. Quite decent and all.

Now, if someone can pick up Centurion...