Recently, I started watching Gundam, like the original series, and that brought be a feeling of desire to try Mekton Zeta, and that quickly lead me back to this game, Teenagers From Outerspace. So, I went looking for community. And of course I'm a member of the R. Talsorian Games Discord, but do you know what I didn't find there? THIS GAME! Now, there are several possible reasons for this. I mean, this is probably one of Mr. Mike Pondsmith's first role playing creations, however, I believe this was actually a second, only because Mike refers to Mekton in this book (page 48), and this game was an attempt to branch out to capture more Market Share. And while this is a hilarious and interesting read, it's probably not Mike's best work. After all, R. Talsorian is known for the Cyberpunk and Witcher game series.
Anyway, I started re-reading through this book, and I had genuinely forgotten how much of a blast this game is to read! It's literally chaos in black and white print. It's fun, it's speedy, and probably most MAGA could even read it. This is one of the few TTRPG books that I've read cover to cover, in like, a week. The rules are stupidly simple, and the game can be run either as a One Shot, or be used for a longer, more in-depth campaign.
And where this game shines, is definitely comedy. Mike truly leans into humor. The Referee (Game Master) should use humor as a sharpened weapon. There SHOULD be fits of uncontrollable giggles at the table. The most unhinged and bizarre shit imaginable should be free flowing here!
Characters are easy to define too-- because there's not a ton of options to choose from. You're quite literally a teenager... in high school... maybe, and most everybody has had that sort of experience, right? (And if not, there's a plethora of 80s movies that showcase student life during the age of High School. Or you could just default to just about ANY anime. You'll probably find something on μTorrent in under five minutes, however, downloading it could be dicey...)
Anyway, I've rambled on enough for tonight. Don't mind me while I go get lost in Nostalgia all over again. Actually, that sounds like an interesting campaign name, doesn't it? Especially for us old farts, like ME!
Anyway, I started re-reading through this book, and I had genuinely forgotten how much of a blast this game is to read! It's literally chaos in black and white print. It's fun, it's speedy, and probably most MAGA could even read it. This is one of the few TTRPG books that I've read cover to cover, in like, a week. The rules are stupidly simple, and the game can be run either as a One Shot, or be used for a longer, more in-depth campaign.
And where this game shines, is definitely comedy. Mike truly leans into humor. The Referee (Game Master) should use humor as a sharpened weapon. There SHOULD be fits of uncontrollable giggles at the table. The most unhinged and bizarre shit imaginable should be free flowing here!
Characters are easy to define too-- because there's not a ton of options to choose from. You're quite literally a teenager... in high school... maybe, and most everybody has had that sort of experience, right? (And if not, there's a plethora of 80s movies that showcase student life during the age of High School. Or you could just default to just about ANY anime. You'll probably find something on μTorrent in under five minutes, however, downloading it could be dicey...)
Anyway, I've rambled on enough for tonight. Don't mind me while I go get lost in Nostalgia all over again. Actually, that sounds like an interesting campaign name, doesn't it? Especially for us old farts, like ME!
