The Spirit of the Century Brand

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Mar 012012
 

Okay, folks. Video up top. Logo designed by Daniel Solis. Mad animation skillz by Jeremy Keller.


(Link)

So, that’s awesome. But why have we done it? Why have we created a “A Spirit of the Century™ Feature” for a role-playing game that’s six years old?

In a way, the answer’s simple: That’s not what we’ve done.

Here’s what I’m getting at: while Spirit of the Century, the roleplaying game, is six years old (or thereabouts), we’re taking the world of that RPG and turning it into a brand — a proper one, that we’re extending into other areas.

In the coming months you’ll see us ask, via kickstarter, for your help in launching a fiction line under the Evil Hat banner — the first novel, Dinocalypse Now, will be set in the Spirit of the Century universe. Soon after, we’ll be pushing into the strange and wonderful land of board and card games, with Race to Adventure! and Zeppelin Armada. And, yeah, we’ve got a RPG project or two in mind in that mix, too.

So ultimately, while the RPG and its title is six years old, the real establishment of the Spirit of the Century™ brand, trademark symbol included, begins today.

We hope you’ll join us as we take to the skies!

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  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Louis-Porter-Jr/577405838 Louis Porter Jr

    OK I REALLY like that!

  • John Powell

    Shouldn’t that be a gorilla wearing a jetpack? ;P

    • fredhicks

      Well, a) Jet Black is not a gorilla, and b) we saved the jetpack wearing gorilla for the board game. :)

  • Bill Templeton

    Fred, I think I speak for a lot of people when I say that Spirit of the Century — even if it’s six years old — is much beloved, and still much played. I would happily plunk down the cash for a Spirit of the Century deluxe edition with art deco style like the above logo. (hint, hint)

    • fredhicks

      Ha! Taken under advisement. :)

  • Sandra Snan

    SotC is great, but so much of the setting is lifted straight out of Warren Ellis. Even the name…

    • fredhicks

      Beyond the fact that RPGs often lift stuff straight out of other sources — magic in D&D has long been a straight-up Jack Vance ripoff — I’d suggest that our setting hares off in some strongly different directions from the, yes, initial inspiration Rob took from Planetary.

    • Sandra Snan

      Thanks for the clarification, Fred.
      When I first read SotC in the fall of 2008 I hadn’t read Authority or Planetary but the “Century Club” and “Centurion” idea kinda stood out as the one element I liked the least. When I later read Ellis I figured “Oh, so that’s where the Spirit of the Century came from and why those elements didn’t really fit with the rest.”
      I agree with you that SotC now is very diffferent from Planetary.