{"id":26448,"date":"2022-02-10T07:00:41","date_gmt":"2022-02-10T13:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.d20radio.com\/main\/?p=26448"},"modified":"2022-02-03T08:10:47","modified_gmt":"2022-02-03T14:10:47","slug":"rpg-adaptations-kolchak-the-night-stalker-50th-anniversary-part-three","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.d20radio.com\/main\/rpg-adaptations-kolchak-the-night-stalker-50th-anniversary-part-three\/","title":{"rendered":"RPG Adaptations: KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER \u2013 50th Anniversary PART THREE"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the first two<\/a> parts<\/a> of this three-part series, I\u2019ve written about the history of Kolchak: The Night Stalker<\/i>, what gave the character its cult status as well as Moonstone Book\u2019s anniversary graphic novel anthology<\/a>, and how the setting might be adapted into a hypothetical Kolchak: The RPG,<\/i> including how it would work as a GUMSHOE RPG<\/i>. In the final part, I write about the timing of creating a Kolchak RPG, the economic viability of the project for both an RPG publisher to pursue the license and a freelancer to pursue this project, before drawing a conclusion about what I hope for the future of Carl Kolchak.<\/p>\n

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Why Now? <\/b><\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/a>I asked KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER 50TH ANNIVERSARY Graphic Novel<\/i><\/a> editor, James Aquilone, if Moonstone’s Kolchak license included an option for any sort of Kolchak tabletop roleplaying game?<\/p>\n

\u201cI don’t believe so but a Kolchak game would be very cool. When I was researching Kolchak for my Kickstarter campaign<\/a> I stumbled upon this RPG character profile<\/a> for the DC Heroes Role-Playing Game<\/i>, so I know people have been interested in using Kolchak in a game. With the success of the Kolchak 50 Kickstarter<\/a>, maybe we will see an RPG. It certainly would be a fun game.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

While I\u2019ve discussed what I want to see in a tabletop Kolchak: The RPG<\/i>, let me praise Moonstone for keeping Carl Kolchak alive and celebrating his <\/a>50<\/a>th<\/sup><\/a> anniversary<\/a>. It seems unlikely that we\u2019d celebrate a half century of Kolchak without the efforts of Moonstone. Their production of new comics and novels for nearly two decades kept this forgotten property from falling completely out of the public consciousness as anything more than an inspirational footnote for The X-Files<\/i>. Without their efforts, I would not have written this series.<\/p>\n

The 50 year anniversary is one of the reasons to pursue this project. Kolchak has withstood the test of time and would be able to support a game. But, beyond the date, there are several great reasons to tackle this project.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Based on Moonstone\u2019s library, the licensor has approved a number of wild stories and crossovers. Getting agreement to include a public domain character like Frankenstein\u2019s monster is one thing, but getting The Green Hornet, Dark Shadows’<\/i> Barnabas Collins, or Kevin J Anderson\u2019s Dan Shamble into a Kolchak story normally requires sign off from the licensor. I\u2019m assuming that is the case here. Moonstone has published book upon book of these type of crossovers, which may point to the ease of doing business with the license holder.<\/p>\n

From a production perspective, this project would be easier to pull together than some. There exists a staggering body of photos, illustrations, and paintings from the 50 years of movies, TV, novels, and comics, more than enough to provide the artwork any RPG needs to thrive. Assuming the license included those images, your book comes with a wealth of beautiful artwork and photographs to select from. As a publisher, it reduces the budget and stress involved in creating a new book.<\/p>\n

Another reason this is a good engine for a hypothetical Kolchak: The RPG<\/i>, GUMSHOE has a System Reference Document<\/a> (SRD) is available under the Creative Commons 3.0 Attribution Unported License. This gives designers the tools they\u2019ll need to use this system in conjunction with Kolchak\u2019s investigations. Not to say you couldn\u2019t use another system, but there\u2019s an ease in producing a game when you have a framework to build from.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Deep Speculation: How Much Revenue Might The Project Generate?<\/b><\/h2>\n

In financial terms, what might the combination of Kolchak and GUMSHOE<\/i> look like for a publisher? Obviously, predicting the future is impossible, so take these thoughts with a grain of salt.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>This project involves a great unknown: Will Kolchak fans be interested in a Kolchak RPG after 50 years of stories but no games. Does GUMSHOE<\/i> have a big enough audience to tempt a publisher? Does Kolchak have enough name recognition to justify obtaining the license to make this game happen?<\/p>\n

To speculate at an answer that question, let\u2019s look at four Kickstarters to provide a baseline on the number of fans and dollar amounts this project might expect.<\/p>\n