Palladium Books
Encyclopedia
Palladium Books is a publisher of role-playing game
s (RPGs) perhaps best known for its popular, expansive Rifts
series (1990–present). Palladium was founded April 1981 in Detroit, Michigan
by current president and lead game designer Kevin Siembieda
, and is presently based in Westland, Michigan
. The company enjoys the support of a small but dedicated fanbase who praise its various game series for their innovative settings
and ease of adaptability to various personal preferences, play styles, and power levels.
in 1981, followed by the first-editions of The Palladium Role-Playing Game
in 1983 and Heroes Unlimited
in 1984. Other popular titles include adaptations of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
(1985) and Robotech
(1986). Palladium was also one of the major distributors of Robotech merchandise for several years. Between the late 1990s and early 2000s, all of Palladium's licenses lapsed and were not pursued for renewal. In September 2007, Palladium finalized negotiations with Harmony Gold
to produce an RPG based on Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles
.
Palladium claims that it was the first publisher in the RPG industry to adopt the practice of perfect binding its books, a move that has since been emulated by many other companies. Palladium also releases most of its titles in paperback, whereas other major RPG publishers mostly publish hardback editions. This format choice has allowed Palladium to provide full sourcebooks at a lower cost than many other game lines.
Although Palladium did not establish the use of universal game mechanics, it was one of the first companies to successfully create role-playing games in multiple genres; for this reason, its house system may be described as "Megaversal
" – "not universal, but more than just one world."
to third-party developers. In October 2000, Rifts was licensed to the now defunct Precedence Entertainment
for a collectible card game
. In May 2004, Rifts was licensed to create the Rifts: Promise of Power
video game for the failed Nokia
N-Gage
gaming platform. Only one book has ever been published by another company under license from Palladium: Rifts: Manhunter from Myrmidon Press, released December 1994 (Palladium cancelled the license in May 1996).
In May 2003, Palladium announced that Jerry Bruckheimer Films
and Walt Disney Pictures
had optioned
the rights to make a film based on the Rifts RPG series. At the time, Bruckheimer was said to be developing the movie in conjunction with screenwriter David Franzoni
. However, as of August 2011, there is no information regarding the project available on IMDB. An April 19, 2006 press release asserted that "until Jerry Bruckheimer has a script he loves, the movie can’t get the green light." In the April 14, 2011 weekly update, Siembieda said that the film option would be renewed for a ninth year.
), and also strongly discourages converting the intellectual property of others into their system; while they cannot prevent it, doing so is not allowed in venues owned by Palladium Books. Palladium also routinely threatens legal action against fans who distribute conversions in other venues by issuance of cease and desist
orders. When asked why Palladium was so much stricter in regard to conversions than other game companies, Siembieda stated that the policy had been adopted due to advice from Palladium's lawyers, to shield Palladium from liability for conversions of other parties' intellectual property.
An April 26, 2006 article in the Kingsport Times-News
revealed that Steve Sheiring, Palladium's former sales manager, had been sentenced in a plea bargain
to a misdemeanor
conviction
, one year of probation
, and ordered to pay $47,080 in restitution to Palladium Books in connection with these thefts. It also provided more information about the thefts, which took place from 2002 to 2004 and were only discovered when Palladium took inventory.
Responding to the controversy engendered by such a low settlement amount in relation to the large loss figure claimed in his earlier press release, Kevin Siembieda posted an open letter to the Palladium forum explaining the matter. Siembieda stated that he had not wanted to make public Sheiring's identity out of the fear that overzealous fans might get into trouble by committing acts of reprisal. He explained that the heaviest punishment Sheiring had been likely to receive even without the plea bargain was probation. Siembieda had a choice between getting any amount of settlement money at all to pay critical bills, or spending more time and money to attempt to get his "pound of flesh" from a man who was reportedly broke anyway. Given the urgency of Palladium's situation, Siembieda did not feel he had any real choice but to take what little he could get.
During the week of May 7, 2007, Palladium announced that revenue from increased sales of books, admissions to its first annual Open House, and purchases of the special art print had covered most of the short-term damages it had incurred. This period of financial instability became referred to by Siembieda as the "Crisis of Treachery" in keeping with his stance that the root cause of the difficulties was the embezzlement perpetrated by Sheiring.
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
s (RPGs) perhaps best known for its popular, expansive Rifts
Rifts (role-playing game)
Rifts is a multi-genre role-playing game created by Kevin Siembieda in 1990 and published continuously by Palladium Books since then. Rifts takes place in a post-apocalyptic future, deriving elements from cyberpunk, science fiction, fantasy, horror, western, mythology and many other genres.Rifts...
series (1990–present). Palladium was founded April 1981 in Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
by current president and lead game designer Kevin Siembieda
Kevin Siembieda
Kevin Siembieda is an American artist, writer, designer, and publisher of role-playing games, and the co-founder and president of Palladium Books....
, and is presently based in Westland, Michigan
Westland, Michigan
Westland is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located about west of downtown Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 84,094.-Politics:...
. The company enjoys the support of a small but dedicated fanbase who praise its various game series for their innovative settings
Campaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
and ease of adaptability to various personal preferences, play styles, and power levels.
Background
The first game released by Palladium Books was The Mechanoid InvasionThe Mechanoid Invasion
The Mechanoid Invasion was the first role-playing game from Palladium Books, conceived and written by Kevin Siembieda, with contributions from Erick Wujcik....
in 1981, followed by the first-editions of The Palladium Role-Playing Game
Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game
The Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game is a game produced by Palladium Books. It is set in a unique world, called the Palladium World , with the primary setting being some 10,000 years after a great war between the elves and their dwarven allies...
in 1983 and Heroes Unlimited
Heroes Unlimited
Heroes Unlimited is a superhero role-playing game written by Kevin Siembieda and first published by Palladium Books in 1984. The game is based upon the Palladium Books Megaversal system and is compatible with any other game on the Palladium system, including Aliens Unlimited and Villains...
in 1984. Other popular titles include adaptations of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are a fictional team of four teenage anthropomorphic turtles, who were trained by their anthropomorphic rat sensei in the art of ninjutsu and named after four Renaissance artists...
(1985) and Robotech
Robotech
Robotech is an 85-episode science fiction anime adaptation produced by Harmony Gold USA in association with Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. and first released in the United States in 1985...
(1986). Palladium was also one of the major distributors of Robotech merchandise for several years. Between the late 1990s and early 2000s, all of Palladium's licenses lapsed and were not pursued for renewal. In September 2007, Palladium finalized negotiations with Harmony Gold
Harmony Gold
Harmony Gold may refer to:* Harmony Gold , a South African gold mining company* Harmony Gold USA, an American television producer and distributor...
to produce an RPG based on Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles
Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles
Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles is the 2006 animated sequel to the 1985 Robotech television series. It was released on DVD on February 6, 2007.- Plot :...
.
Palladium claims that it was the first publisher in the RPG industry to adopt the practice of perfect binding its books, a move that has since been emulated by many other companies. Palladium also releases most of its titles in paperback, whereas other major RPG publishers mostly publish hardback editions. This format choice has allowed Palladium to provide full sourcebooks at a lower cost than many other game lines.
Although Palladium did not establish the use of universal game mechanics, it was one of the first companies to successfully create role-playing games in multiple genres; for this reason, its house system may be described as "Megaversal
Megaversal system
The Megaversal system, sometimes known as the Palladium system, is a set of mechanics specifically employed in most role-playing games published by Palladium Books, the exception is Recon. It uses dice for roll-under percentile skill checks, roll-high combat checks and saving throws, and...
" – "not universal, but more than just one world."
Licensing
Palladium Books has licensed several of their intellectual propertiesIntellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
to third-party developers. In October 2000, Rifts was licensed to the now defunct Precedence Entertainment
Precedence Entertainment
Precedence Entertainment was a publisher of collectible card games and role-playing games. Games produced include the Tomb Raider collectible card game which was nominated for an Origins Award in 1999,,...
for a collectible card game
Collectible card game
thumb|Players and their decksA collectible card game , also called a trading card game or customizable card game, is a game played using specially designed sets of playing cards...
. In May 2004, Rifts was licensed to create the Rifts: Promise of Power
Rifts: Promise of Power
Rifts: Promise of Power is a video game licensed for the Rifts role-playing game from Palladium Books, released on September 10, 2005 for the Nokia N-Gage. It is currently the first and only adaptation of the Rifts RPG series to an electronic media format...
video game for the failed Nokia
Nokia
Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...
N-Gage
N-Gage
The N-Gage is a mobile telephone and handheld game system by Nokia, based on the Nokia Series 60 platform, released in October 2003. It began sales on October 7, 2003. The N-Gage QD replaced the original N-Gage in 2004....
gaming platform. Only one book has ever been published by another company under license from Palladium: Rifts: Manhunter from Myrmidon Press, released December 1994 (Palladium cancelled the license in May 1996).
In May 2003, Palladium announced that Jerry Bruckheimer Films
Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...
and Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...
had optioned
Option (films)
In the film industry, an option is a contractual agreement between a potential film producer, such as a movie studio, a production company or an individual, and a writer or third party who holds ownership of a screenplay...
the rights to make a film based on the Rifts RPG series. At the time, Bruckheimer was said to be developing the movie in conjunction with screenwriter David Franzoni
David Franzoni
David Harold Franzoni is an American screenwriter. His best known screenplays include King Arthur, Gladiator, Amistad, and Jumpin' Jack Flash....
. However, as of August 2011, there is no information regarding the project available on IMDB. An April 19, 2006 press release asserted that "until Jerry Bruckheimer has a script he loves, the movie can’t get the green light." In the April 14, 2011 weekly update, Siembieda said that the film option would be renewed for a ninth year.
Conversions
Palladium is aggressive in preventing wide distribution of fan-made conversions of their games to other systems (such as the D20 SystemD20 System
The d20 System is a role-playing game system published in 2000 by Wizards of the Coast originally developed for the third edition of Dungeons & Dragons...
), and also strongly discourages converting the intellectual property of others into their system; while they cannot prevent it, doing so is not allowed in venues owned by Palladium Books. Palladium also routinely threatens legal action against fans who distribute conversions in other venues by issuance of cease and desist
Cease and desist
A cease and desist is an order or request to halt an activity and not to take it up again later or else face legal action. The recipient of the cease-and-desist may be an individual or an organization....
orders. When asked why Palladium was so much stricter in regard to conversions than other game companies, Siembieda stated that the policy had been adopted due to advice from Palladium's lawyers, to shield Palladium from liability for conversions of other parties' intellectual property.
"Crisis of Treachery" and financial troubles
On April 19, 2006, Kevin Siembieda issued a statement that revealed Palladium Books' critical financial difficulties due to alleged embezzlement and theft resulting in losses from $850,000 to $1.3 million, coupled with a series of delays in negotiating license deals for their properties in other media (the Nokia N-Gage game, the Jerry Bruckheimer movie, a MMOG license, and other potential deals). They raised money to continue operations by selling a signed and numbered – but not, strictly speaking, "limited edition" – art print by Kevin Siembieda, as well as by urging fans to buy directly from their online store if their financial situations would allow for it.An April 26, 2006 article in the Kingsport Times-News
Kingsport Times-News
The Kingsport Times-News is one of two daily newspapers based in Kingsport, Tennessee, covering general news, and is one of Northeast Tennessee's major newspapers. It has an average daily circulation of 44,096....
revealed that Steve Sheiring, Palladium's former sales manager, had been sentenced in a plea bargain
Plea bargain
A plea bargain is an agreement in a criminal case whereby the prosecutor offers the defendant the opportunity to plead guilty, usually to a lesser charge or to the original criminal charge with a recommendation of a lighter than the maximum sentence.A plea bargain allows criminal defendants to...
to a misdemeanor
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor is a "lesser" criminal act in many common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished much less severely than felonies, but theoretically more so than administrative infractions and regulatory offences...
conviction
Conviction
In law, a conviction is the verdict that results when a court of law finds a defendant guilty of a crime.The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal . In Scotland and in the Netherlands, there can also be a verdict of "not proven", which counts as an acquittal...
, one year of probation
Probation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
, and ordered to pay $47,080 in restitution to Palladium Books in connection with these thefts. It also provided more information about the thefts, which took place from 2002 to 2004 and were only discovered when Palladium took inventory.
Responding to the controversy engendered by such a low settlement amount in relation to the large loss figure claimed in his earlier press release, Kevin Siembieda posted an open letter to the Palladium forum explaining the matter. Siembieda stated that he had not wanted to make public Sheiring's identity out of the fear that overzealous fans might get into trouble by committing acts of reprisal. He explained that the heaviest punishment Sheiring had been likely to receive even without the plea bargain was probation. Siembieda had a choice between getting any amount of settlement money at all to pay critical bills, or spending more time and money to attempt to get his "pound of flesh" from a man who was reportedly broke anyway. Given the urgency of Palladium's situation, Siembieda did not feel he had any real choice but to take what little he could get.
During the week of May 7, 2007, Palladium announced that revenue from increased sales of books, admissions to its first annual Open House, and purchases of the special art print had covered most of the short-term damages it had incurred. This period of financial instability became referred to by Siembieda as the "Crisis of Treachery" in keeping with his stance that the root cause of the difficulties was the embezzlement perpetrated by Sheiring.
Criticisms
Palladium is entirely controlled and owned by Kevin Siembieda. Some writers who have been published by Palladium have stated that Siembieda's method of management was too centralized and not adapted to the size the company had reached (no delegation of responsibilities, lack of open dialogue with employees, bad interpersonal relationships), which they cited as a reason they were no longer working for the company. One of the writers later apologized for the manner in which he made his statements, but did not quite retract his claims.Game lines
- After the Bomb, a post-apocalyptic RPG that began as an alternative campaign settingCampaign settingA campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness, but soon developed into its own series. In it, mutant animals struggle for survival, often against human supremacist nations. - Beyond the SupernaturalBeyond the SupernaturalBeyond the Supernatural is a horror role-playing game published by Palladium Books. It has seen two editions released, both of which have introduced innovations on Palladium's standard mechanics...
, a modern horror RPG along the lines of Call of CthulhuCall of Cthulhu (role-playing game)Call of Cthulhu is a horror fiction role-playing game based on H. P. Lovecraft's story of the same name and the associated Cthulhu Mythos.The game, often abbreviated as CoC, is published by Chaosium.-Setting:...
. An incomplete second edition core rulebook was released in January 2005, with more information about the world, which is assumed to be similar to the real world, but with supernatural happenings which no one notices. Promised sourcebooks dealing with magic and monsters have failed to appear and seem unlikely to do so. - Rifts Chaos EarthChaos EarthChaos Earth is a post-apocalyptic role-playing game from Palladium Books. It is a spinoff and prequel to their popular game Rifts, which uses a similar form of Palladium's Megaversal system....
, a prequel to Rifts, set immediately after a war that triggers a magical apocalypse, opening dimensional gates that unleash monsters upon a technologically advanced future Earth. - Dead ReignDead ReignDead Reign is a zombie apocalypse role-playing game published by Palladium Books. Originally created as an alternate setting for Beyond the Supernatural, it was put on track to be turned into a stand-alone title after first appearing in Palladium Books' Rifter series...
, a post-apocalyptic RPG where mankind is waging war on a zombieZombieZombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
menace. - Heroes UnlimitedHeroes UnlimitedHeroes Unlimited is a superhero role-playing game written by Kevin Siembieda and first published by Palladium Books in 1984. The game is based upon the Palladium Books Megaversal system and is compatible with any other game on the Palladium system, including Aliens Unlimited and Villains...
, a superheroSuperheroA superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
RPG. - Macross II, based on the animeAnimeis the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
of the same nameThe Super Dimension Fortress Macross II: Lovers, Again, also known as The Super Dimension Fortress Macross II: Lovers, Again or Super Dimensional Fortress Macross II, is the first animated sequel to The Super Dimension Fortress Macross to feature a new cast of characters...
. The license has lapsed and was not renewed. - The Mechanoid InvasionThe Mechanoid InvasionThe Mechanoid Invasion was the first role-playing game from Palladium Books, conceived and written by Kevin Siembieda, with contributions from Erick Wujcik....
, a science fiction RPG set during the battle between human colonists and the Mechanoids, a race of psionicPsionics (role-playing games)Psionics, in role-playing games, is a broad category of fantastic abilities originating from the mind, similar to the paranormal psionic abilities that some people claim in reality.- Common features :...
, cyberneticCyberneticsCybernetics is the interdisciplinary study of the structure of regulatory systems. Cybernetics is closely related to information theory, control theory and systems theory, at least in its first-order form...
beings who wish to exterminate humanoid life. - NightbaneNightbaneNightbane is a dark fantasy role-playing game and setting created by C. J. Carella and published in 1995 by Palladium Books. The game uses Palladium's Megaversal system, which is also used by the multi-genre game Rifts and the horror game Beyond the Supernatural, among other games.Originally...
(formerly called Nightspawn), is a horror RPG set in the year 2004 (a near-future setting when the game was released). It differs from Beyond the Supernatural in that the supernatural elements are not as hidden and more open. The series is placed after "Dark Day", an event where the earth was plunged into an unnatural, starless night for 24 hours, and supernatural entities infiltrated or subverted various governments and organizations across the globe. - Ninjas & SuperspiesNinjas and SuperspiesNinjas & Superspies is a role-playing game written by Erick Wujcik and published in 1988 by Palladium Books. The game is designed around espionage and martial arts action in the modern world, similar to movies such as the James Bond series or Chinese martial arts films...
is based on both martial-arts and espionage movies with some science fiction elements mixed in. - Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing GamePalladium Fantasy Role-Playing GameThe Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game is a game produced by Palladium Books. It is set in a unique world, called the Palladium World , with the primary setting being some 10,000 years after a great war between the elves and their dwarven allies...
is a fantasy RPG set in a unique world, which was the home of Kevin Siembieda's fantasy games. - Revised RECONRecon (role-playing game)Recon is a role-playing game wherein players assume the role of U.S. military characters during the Vietnam War.- Original Recon :...
, originally a Vietnam WarVietnam WarThe Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
-based RPG, it was later updated for modern-era combat involving mercenaries in fictional hotspots mirroring such places as Africa and South America. - RiftsRifts (role-playing game)Rifts is a multi-genre role-playing game created by Kevin Siembieda in 1990 and published continuously by Palladium Books since then. Rifts takes place in a post-apocalyptic future, deriving elements from cyberpunk, science fiction, fantasy, horror, western, mythology and many other genres.Rifts...
is set primarily on Earth, four hundred years after a war-triggered magical apocalypse, opening dimensional gateways and heralding the return of magic, Atlantis, and numerous invasions by alien forces. Rifts is Palladium's flagship line. - RobotechRobotech (role-playing game)The Robotech Role-Playing Game, based on the Robotech and Robotech II: The Sentinels series, was originally published by Palladium Books from 1986 to 1998...
, based on the anime series of the same nameRobotechRobotech is an 85-episode science fiction anime adaptation produced by Harmony Gold USA in association with Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. and first released in the United States in 1985...
. The original Robotech license lapsed in 2001 and was not renewed; however, an August 26, 2006 post on the company forums declared Palladium's intent to reacquire the license due to the new sequel, Robotech: The Shadow ChroniclesRobotech: The Shadow ChroniclesRobotech: The Shadow Chronicles is the 2006 animated sequel to the 1985 Robotech television series. It was released on DVD on February 6, 2007.- Plot :...
. As of February 19, 2007, Siembieda stated that contract talks were still in progress between Palladium and Harmony GoldHarmony GoldHarmony Gold may refer to:* Harmony Gold , a South African gold mining company* Harmony Gold USA, an American television producer and distributor...
, with a new RPG based on The Shadow Chronicles projected for release in early 2007. However, contract negotiations lasted longer than anticipated, and it was not until September 6, 2007 before Palladium was able to announce the deal had been finalized. The Shadow Chronicles role-playing game was published in a "mangaMangaManga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
-sized" form factor, rather than the standard 8-1/2 by 11-inch size of all its prior publications, a move that engendered some controversy among Palladium fans, prompting the announcement of a full-sized "deluxe" edition of the sourcebook. - SplicersSplicersSplicers is a role-playing game using the Palladium Books Megaversal gaming system. The game is set in the midst of a war between humans and a world-wide computer intelligence alternately referred to as the N.E.X.U.S. or the Machine...
is a post-apocalyptic RPG where humans have turned to organic technology to fight a robotic threat. - Systems FailureSystems FailureSystems Failure is a role-playing game written by Bill Coffin and published by Palladium Books in 1999.The fictional premise for the game is that during the "millennium bug" scare, actual "bugs" appeared...
is a post-apocalyptic game in which the Y2K bugYear 2000 problemThe Year 2000 problem was a problem for both digital and non-digital documentation and data storage situations which resulted from the practice of abbreviating a four-digit year to two digits.In computer programs, the practice of representing the year with two...
heralded the collapse of the power and telecommunications grids with the arrival of extra dimensional energy "bugs". - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other StrangenessTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other StrangenessTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness is a role-playing game based on the comic book created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. The core rulebook was first published by Palladium Books in September 1985 – a couple years before the Turtles franchise achieved mass popularity – and featured...
was based on the original comic books. However, due to waning sales (blamed on the questionable quality of the original television cartoon's later seasons), the license was not renewed when it expired in 2000. Many concepts established in TMNT continue in both Heroes UnlimitedHeroes UnlimitedHeroes Unlimited is a superhero role-playing game written by Kevin Siembieda and first published by Palladium Books in 1984. The game is based upon the Palladium Books Megaversal system and is compatible with any other game on the Palladium system, including Aliens Unlimited and Villains...
and After the Bomb. - Valley of the PharaohsValley of the PharaohsThe Valley of the Pharaohs is a role-playing game written by Matthew Balent and published by Palladium Books in 1983....
is an historical RPG set in Ancient EgyptAncient EgyptAncient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
.
External links
- Palladium Books Online
- RPGnet game index publisher information – List of series and titles with summaries, reviews, and user comments.
- Kevin Siembieda... J'ACCUSE! – Documentation and criticism of the release schedule at Palladium Books.