Snow may look pretty. But try standing in it for 10 hours

As we explained recently, in the run up to Christmas, we approached over 50 shopping centres, the length and breadth of the country, trying to get a stand to hawk our wares from. We were refused from every single one.

Even our local patch, Lion Yard, told us all hell would break loose if the public got the briefest glimpse of War on Terror. They doggedly stuck by this story, despite the fact that we were very successful there this time last year. In the words of the mighty Jarvis Cocker ....

Anyway, what else could we do but hit the markets. Unfortunately, we found out that it's not only the commercial mainstream that have it in for us - the weather decided to pitch in with a few obstacles too.

To all those people, it looked like we were just selling snow. So, on the coldest weekend of the coldest December in the UK since records began 100 years ago, we decided it would be a good idea to stand still, outside, for 10 hours.

Not only was it the coldest weekend, it also transpired to be the worst Christmas weekend in retail terms in living memory. Everyone either (wisely) stayed indoors or was out making snowmen. We think about 5 people walked past our stall at Camden on Saturday. To all those 5 people, it looked like we were just selling snow. 3 were interested. One bought.

Note how the mood changes: Rob displays the classic "market traders' wink" (above) while hope still remained. 1 hour later and things have taken a sharp downward turn. (below)

Still, two good things came of it. We got major kudos from the regulars for actually sticking the day out. Plus we managed to single-handedly start an EPIC snowball battle that spanned either side of Camden lock. It started off with throwing isolated snowballs at strangers 50 yards away and taunting them with the megaphone and escalated into a good, 80-strong battle that ranged up and down the canal for several hours.

Spare a thought for the next market trader you see. They have to put up with a lot of crap.

Merry whatsits to everyone. Bring on 2011!

Posted by TerrorBull Games on 23 December 2010 - 0 comments

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A Game for Greenpeace: Deepsea Desperation

Usually when the phone rings down here in the bunker, we are fearful and suspicious. Our reaction to a ringing phone is not unlike that of a monkey being confronted by a remote-controlled car strapped with fireworks. Luckily, however, when the phone rang about 3 months ago, we gathered ourselves enough to answer it. Good job too, because on the other end was the marketing manager of Greenpeace International.

Greenpeace, it turns out, could be classed as "fans" of our games. War on Terror is apparently a hit in the office and we stayed on their radar, earning invisible brownie points with our foray into print-and-play games: Operation BP: Bullshit Plug not surprisingly caught their eye and then Mosqopoly finally did the trick and they called.

We had an interesting chat about games and activism and it seemed like Greenpeace were very interested in using a printable board game as campaign material. At this point, we were just happy and amazed that an organisation like Greenpeace were even aware of us, let alone actively investigating such a progressive idea.

You can imagine, then, how ecstatic we are that the idea actually came to fruition and today they released Deepsea Desperation, a print-and-play game about deepwater drilling. Not only that, but they said very kind things about us and called us "professional satirists". Made our week!

Here's our own game page with the necessary files and instructions. Please give it a go - and if you like it, feel free to tell Greenpeace how awesome they are for going out on a limb and trying something new.

We are very proud of this, our first commission. Not only is it a pleasure to produce a game for Greenpeace, but wouldn't it be amazing if similar organisations, NGOs and charities picked up on the power of games to communicate a message?

Posted by TerrorBull Games on 15 December 2010 - 5 comments

Comments so far:

1. Awesome stuff!chris from auckland - 19 December 2010
2. This is your best topic yet!Shirley - 2 March 2011
3. Amazing post, truly!Shirley - 2 March 2011
4. Shirley sounds like a robot without a purposeanonymous - 15 April 2011
5. Love the War Criminal Captcha, by the way. Fucking brilliant!anonymous - 15 April 2011

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It's here! War on Terror Edition 2

Like its real life counterpart, the War on Terror never dies. It persists, doggedly, and will probably still be going strong twenty years from now. What better way to commemorate its never-ending nature than by releasing a new, updated edition?

Some of you may recall we started talking about this "new edition" back in 2008. Unfortunately, also like the real-life War on Terror, our version was beset by numerous intelligence flaws. We had no idea it would take us this long - and then just when we reached the last hurdle, it got further delayed by customs x-raying our container (we're guessing they assumed "War on Terror" was some elabroate double bluff on behalf of the terrorsits). And then snow closed the ports for a week. Still, the important thing is, it's here. Here:

Edition 2: The Tour

Enough waffle! Let's take a look around this bad boy (don't forget to check the gallery too for a more detailed look at the components).

Just take a look at the mountain of crap pile of goodies that comes in the box!

A closer look at the front of the box.

And the back (we're going to be thorough here).

A look at the new cards in edition 2. You'll notice that "God's On My Side" is a card that exists in both the Empire and Terrorist decks.

The new money, starring our Amnesty auction winners!

The "Abu Ghraib guy" points out that War on Terror is now officially for 3 players minimum. 2 player War on Terror doesn't utilise back stabbing and paranoia to the hilt, 3 players makes sure of that joy.

Edition 1 on the left; edition 2 on the right. Past and future, side-by-side. Cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon ...

And there you have it. The most obvious thing is that Edition 2 is more compact. We shrunk the volume (by roughly a third) and also removed some surplus plastics to reduce weight, waste and bulk. Retailers have been cursing our oversized box for four years and no one with a sore back has enjoyed carrying the 2.2kg monster home.

There's a new (and spectacular) possible ending to the game, which is the result of using the new "God's On My Side" together with "Nuclear Weapons". There's tonnes of new artwork on the box and board and throughout the game. The box alone contains twice as many illustrations as Edition 1 - and you thought that was crowded! The board also contains a new sea route and some redrawn boundaries.

New elements incldue: ten brand new cards, some of which are duplicated in both decks; "Indigenous Terrorists", where terrorist units are now associated with some oil counters and cannot be removed or moved from the board; "Holy Nuclear Armageddon" - a new (and spectacular) possible ending to the game which is the result of using the new "God's On My Side" together with "Nuclear Weapons". This can lead to a volley of Nukes being launched by all players and is most likely a violent and sudden end to the game.

In terms of rule changes, we went for "tweaking" rather than "rewriting". In short, it's now quicker and more "solid". Games have a more definite and consistent arc to them: peace and prosperity -> first fights -> all-out warfare -> destruction and chaos -> poverty and misery.

Serious gamers have always complained about the game's chaos and it was honestly hard to resist these cries to stablise the game. The vast majority of people who are fans of the game however love the chaos and fun that embody the game. In the end, we opted for a middle ground where some rules have been optimised to improve the speed of the rounds and to reward longer-term strategies. Specifically the rules about turning terrorist, funding terrorism and a terrorist win have been tuned to avoid a too-sudden terrorist win. Now the terrorist player can "steal" oil revenue, they have more strategic choices to make and the terrorist role is more interesting and rewarding. Ultimately, though, we held off completely rewiring the game - nor do we feel there's any need for it.

We're down to the last few hundred Edition 1 games in our warehouse here in the UK (they're completely sold out in the USA) - minus a few for the TerrorBull museum, of course. Bear in mind that this is the version in the Bodleian Library, the Imperial War Museum, the Berlin Academy of Arts, on the IT Crowd and in that infamous police photo. History! We have a feeling that this remaining stock won't last too long now it has become a finite commodity, fixed at 25,000 copies, forever. For those of a collectivist or completionist bent (and let's face it, if you're a board gamer, you are almost definitely both by default) get yours while you still can.

Posted by TerrorBull Games on 13 December 2010 - 21 comments

Comments so far:

1. I want it! Time to wrap my first edition copy in bubblewrap and store it away safely :)Dale from London - 13 December 2010
2. Geez, and I just bought v1.0 a little more than week ago and haven't even played it yet :( Are you going to publish the RoE and Card Appendix again as you did before, and/or do the updated rules as posted on the rules-page apply? Or did you make any more changes? And could you do like a print-out page for the new cards to help us upgrade? Or you could offer upgrade packages, with only the new cards and all that, that would be awesome. This way we wouldn't even have to glue stuff on our cards :)Bertolt from Bavaria - 14 December 2010
3. Mr Brecht! You honour us with your presence ... I'm really sorry about the timing of War on Terror. Yes, we are going to publish the full v2 rules and cards. We don't currently have plans for an upgrade pack but we are working on an expansion that's good for both versions of the game (and would also double-up as an upgrade from v1 to v2). Hope that gives you some consolation!TerrorBull Games - 14 December 2010
4. Yep, that's good enough, I'd say. ;) In any case I can just upgrade with post-its for now, so no problem in waiting for the expansion pack. And I mean, the cool thing is trying around with new rules and cards anyways. Already have a few ideas including the Crotch and Shoe Bombers, and "Sectarian Violence". ;) Btw, Brownie Points for recognizing the namesake my parents chose for me :PBertolt from Bavaria - 14 December 2010
5. cool! how can I buy edition two, or do we have to keep buying edition one until they are gone?justin from australia - 14 December 2010
6. Justin - unfortunately, since you're in Australia, you have to wait until New Internationalist place their next order with us before edition 2 reaches the nether-regions of the planet. That shouldn't be too long though. Sorry! Bertolt - I like the idea of Croth and Shoe bomber cards. And you have cool parents. My favourite Brecht quote is "Hope is just a lack of information". I always remember that when I need cheering up.TerrorBull Games - 15 December 2010
7. LOVE IT - WELL DONE GUYSMaria from round the bend - 15 December 2010
8. cheers but also @#@*it anyway I wanted to by one to send to my brother in Boston for christmas is that going to take just as long or is The US more supply-able?justin from australia - 15 December 2010
9. Justin - that's no problem, we have stock in the States ready to go. Check the message at the top of the shop page for last order dates in N.AmericaTerrorBull Games - 16 December 2010
10. I was one of the first to order WOT1, and Crunch, and have my certificates for both of them! But I don't really want to throw my WOT on the trashpile and replace it completely. So if some sort of 'upgrade' comes out, which is common with board games I'll grab that.Tony from London - 16 December 2010
11. That kid on the 100M note looks like he probably grew up into a handsome and well-adjusted adult ;)Nathan-Madonna from Oxford - 16 December 2010
12. Tony - you've already shown your support above and beyond the call of duty. I'm sorry there's not an upgrade kit to speak of. It could be that we underestimated demand and maybe one will be produced in the future, but more likely is an expansion pack that will serve as an upgrade and be useful to both WoT1 and WoT2 owners. TerrorBull Games - 16 December 2010
13. Nathan - that's funny, he can't be too adjusted if he's the kind of person who forks out good money to get his face on some play banknotes.TerrorBull Games - 16 December 2010
14. WoT1 was wonderful, as have been the printable games. At the risk of turning into a groupie, the website is refeshingly fun to visit too. I like to wander around it looking for tongues-in-cheeks - they're all over the place! Well done for keeping WoT in the news, and up-to-date, and for keeping yourselves out of the grasp of the state police. Oh, and a special well done for keeping Courier current! Keep up the great work. IanIan from Bath, UK - 16 December 2010
15. Another vote for an upgrade pack for v1 of the game! (If it's not worthwhile for you to produce one, I'd settle for a print-your-own upgrade...)Steven Johnson from Oakland CA - 16 December 2010
16. Hey Ian, we are thrilled to have our first official groupie. Welcome! As well as combing the site for witty little comments we put in to keep ourselves amused, your next job will be to check the source code religiously and to sycophantically "lol" at everything we ever post. You start immediately. TerrorBull Games - 16 December 2010
17. And another vote for printable expansion pack, upgrade, whatever there is. Am an English teacher in banks and big businesses in Luxemburg, can't wait to use Crunch in class. Teach them Anglo-Saxon sarcasm!Ant from Luxemburg - 20 December 2010
18. Hello Gents, Been playing V1 today with my power hungry nephew and conniving wife - we brought it for him last year and it is a keen fav after feasting... I'll be investing in V2 very soon - the expansion pack sounds like a great idea.. he'll be well jelous of me having all these global Jihad's on my hands :)Joel from Cambridge/London - 25 December 2010
19. My favourite Brecht quote is "Hope is just a lack of information". Are you sure this really is a Brecht quote? Should I be hoping that you do an upgrade pack in the near future? (oh and I like the war criminal captcha too!)Dubious from UK - 29 December 2010
20. $%@&! Australian Santa delivered me a copy of v1 last week. I'd really appreciate a downloadable print-your-own upgrade pack.simon from new zealand - 2 January 2011
21. Hi Dubious - maybe you're right. I just googled "Hoffnung ist nur ein Mangel an Information" and it came back with Heiner Mueller. But the line appears in one of Brecht's plays too. I now have to work out which one ...TerrorBull Games - 5 January 2011

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Stoodent Solidarity, Market Trading and Seasonal Mayhem

There's an energetic and urgent movement in the UK at the moment, made up mainly of young people (many, too young to vote, even) who are literally fighting for their future. They want an education, without a mortgage-sized debt at the end, and who can blame them?

While free education may not be a universal human right, it is a benchmark of a progressive society and a right enjoyed by those very people who have just betrayed the students by passing the latest law, increasing higher education fees to a £9,000 a year cap.

The students have responded excellently, with a sustained campaign of action, demonstrations and other forms of protest. The local-to-us Cambridge University Occupation was one of the most publicised and we felt a small gesture of solidarity would go a long way, so last Sunday, we dropped by with some War on Terrors and a big bag of balaclavas. There were happy faces, excited cries and we got our heartwarming "santa moment" (unfortunately at the expense of someone from UCL who was trying to give a talk. Sorry, UCL-man. We didn't mean to cause such a disruption).

The students we talked to were clued up, well organised and focussed on a much broader picture than just the current occupation. They talked of the sense of solidarity and support - how an atmosphere of peaceful comradeship had so easily taken hold in the occupied cafeteria and - in contrast to the 'real world' - how trusting and open people had become with their possessions, time and work. Indeed, laptops, gadgets, bags and food were dotted around the room, unattended and perfectly safe. It was nothing short of inspiring.

The Cambridge occupation has now come to an end, but hopefully everyone will continue to fight the sell-off of education; the increasing desire to commercialise every aspect of life. Education should be about more than just learning how to capitalise upon specialist knowledge. Please support them.

Speaking of commercialisation ... IT'S CHRISTMAS! ...

If we can't beat Take That, what (self) worth do we have? For most people who observe it, Christmas is a rather tacky-but-nonetheless-welcome holiday that occupies one's thoughts maybe from around the week prior to a couple of days after. However, an depressing interesting thing occurs when you're connected to retail in any shape or form and that is Christmas begins around April and only increases in intensity as the year progresses. October feels like Christmas Eve.

Somehow, despite the entire retail establishment prerparing themselves for 9 months of the year for this orgy of spending in December, everything still manages to happen last minute. It's in this maelstrom of activity that we now find ourselves ...

After last year's shopping centre shenanigans we decided to book more dates this year. We contacted over 50 shopping centres. Every single one turned us away - yes, including Lion Yard in Cambridge where we'd run a popular and successful stand just 12 months previous.

Mostly we were refused a licence because War on Terror still manages to make people lose all capability of reason. One centre, however, was honest enough to tell us that they didn't want any of their shoppers being reminded of the financial crisis and so actually objected to Crunch more than WoT.

There is plenty of evidence sadly that we are still living in a Bush-created Dark Age of ignorance and fear. One large centre in Surrey probably thought they were being everso vigilant and PC by turning us down lest we offend the heavily Muslim constituancy. In their justification, however, they revealed that their caution was just another form of biggotry: "I'm not saying they're all terrorists", they helpfully explained "but when we collected for Help for Heroes the Muslims got very upset and claimed we were raising money to attack their homeland ..."

We responded that "the Muslims"' position wasn't entirely illogical and that, if anything, they would be very fond of our game, which draws attention to the brutal absurdities of this particular war. We got no response.

So with the "high st" route once again closed to us, we're left with hitting up the markets. So far we've spent a cold and lonely day sandwiched between a TK Maxx and a disused Ice Rink in Hemel Hemsted, we've rocked the Mill Rd Winter Fair for the 3rd year running. We've also taken a trip to Camden Market (see gallery) for the first time and Brick Lane today. Back to London next weekend ... it's not a glamorous life being a market trader and bloody knackering. But we are thoroughly enjoying running into people from all walks of life who turn out to be ardent fans of War on Terror.

On top of all of this, War on Terror - Edition 2 - is imminent; we're designing a print-and-play game for Greenpeace; "the new game" continues to occupy our time and is getting more relevant by the day and Andy S also managed to balls up his PC trying to fix a virus ... but more on all of that in following blogs (apart from the virus; that's about the beginning and end of that story).

One last thing - a great, little independent chain of music, film & book stores in Bristol, Rise, are stocking War on Terror. They reported last week that WoT was second only to Take That in sales. Please, we beg you, if you're in and around the Bristol area and you're even remotely considering purchasing War on Terror this Yuletide season, please please please get it from Rise so that we can fulfil our childhood dream of having a Christmas number one. Come on, if we can't beat Take That, what (self) worth do we have?

It's become traditional in this blog to follow any "one last thing" with another "one last thing" and we'd hate to break that tradition now. So please, also check out this rather pertinent and splendid online Kettling game by Stephen Lavelle aka Increpare. Thanks.

Posted by TerrorBull Games on 11 December 2010 - 0 comments

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Terrorbull Games Just Got A Bit More Sexy

This past weekend, we were overheating our loins at Erotica UK. In case you're wondering, we were exhibiting, not exhibitionists. And it was a nice feeling not to be the freaky odd-ones-out for once. That honour was firmly awarded to the man-babies from Nursery Thymes who spent the entire show in nappies.

Of course, we were asked by a lot of people why we were selling board games at an erotica convention. Few people accepted the idea that there might be a fetish based around playing traditional table-top games (why is that harder to believe than there being a perversion related to dressing up as a dog and being kept in a padded cage?). The reality however is that we were welcomed with open arms at Erotica, which is more than can be said for a good many other conventions.

We had a feeling that the fun and open-minded atmosphere that we had heard was a big part of the convention would be a perfect complement to our games. And while it's fair to say most people hadn't anticipating walking away with a board game (and they didn't), the reaction was overwhelmingly positive and encouraging. So thanks, everyone, who made us feel welcome.

Few people accepted the idea that there might be a fetish based around playing traditional table-top gamesIs this a new direction for TerrorBull Games? Well, there's no reason why games can't be erotic - in fact, we were approached by a wonderful dominatrix (Mistress Absolute) who happily informed us that she played War on Terror with her slaves and wired them up to electricity so she could administer electric shocks as punishment. Stunned as we were by this new application for our games, nothing could really have prepared us for the pictures she later sent through ...

Despite all the fun and shenanigans, the event had an odd, clinical air - verging on a the asexual. This could be down to people like us diluting the eroticism (we all know that, if anything, we increased it) but I think not. It just wasn't the general celebration of sexuality that we were lead to believe. It could be down to the slightly corporate air, the lack of much participation on behalf of the visitors or the grotesque and massively bloated figures suspended from the ceiling that hung over the event like a morbid advert for some arthritic treatment.

We actually got a mention in The Register, whose analysis of the event was pretty spot-on. I felt rather guilty after reading it though, realising we were part of the rot.

Still, we can now proudly add "S&M dungeon" to the absurd (and ever-growing) list of places where War on Terror is enjoyed. Will this sexy madness ever end?

Posted by Andy S on 22 November 2010 - 1 comment

Comments so far:

1. Show us the photos then!AID from Essex - 29 November 2010

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