Pop Culture Catalog: Vidgames by Alexander Augunas is a role playing game supplement published by Everyman Gaming through Rogue Genius Games. This is a supplement for the Starfinder game and, as such, is covered by the Open Gaming License with some parts considered to be Open Game Content as a result.
This is a thirteen page PDF that is available from DriveThruRPG for $3.99 but was purchased at the reduced price of $3.19 during a sale. One page is the front cover, one the front matter and two pages are the Open Game License and ads for other products.
The first page of content has an editorial introducing the range – this is the first – and about half of it is taken up by Fandom Rules. Characters can belong to fandoms of their favourite games (in this instalment; for other things in other supplements). It takes 24 hours, which do not have to be consecutive only in one hour to a maximum of eight hour chunks, to join a fandom. Leaving can be done at any time. There is a limit to the number of fandoms that can be joined based on Charisma modifiers and relevant skills. Each fandom has a unique benefit, but you can only have one such perk active at once; switching requires either a 10 hour rest or spending 2 Resolve Points.
The majority of the supplement is taken up by the actual vidgames. The major companies in the field have descriptions of the company followed by some of their best known games. At this point it becomes pretty quickly obvious that the companies, and games, are based on real world companies and the games they make. The first is DE Games, Inc, whose description, games and logo are quite obviously for EA. But perhaps tweaked enough to avoid lawsuits. Other companies follow in a similar vein. Each vidgame associated with the company is described, followed by that games Fandom Perk. Readers should be able to recognise the games and companies without too much difficulty.
Lastly are the Indy Vidgames; the companies are not described other than briefly, only a major game for which they are known. ‘Indy’ doesn’t mean what you might think it would; the real world companies these are based off can be worth billions of dollars, such as Bethesda and Sega. Certainly not indy as in the ‘small publisher’ sense.
Pop Culture Catalog: Vidgames in Review
The PDF is technically bookmarked, but as the bookmarks only include Fandom Rules, the Vidgaming sidebar and the OGL, these are effectively useless. Navigation is poor. The text maintains a two column full colour layout and no errors were noticed. There are a couple of colour illustrations and the major companies also have logos that are recognisable. Presentation is good.
The various companies are referenced as being part of the Xa-Osoro system, the shared Starfinder universe of Rogue Genius and Everyman, but they should be adaptable, with some tweaking, to other settings.
This is a combination of background fluff and crunch. The fluff is the vidgames and companies, which can add depth to a setting, but there is also the useful fandom perk crunch. It’s very nice fluff too – but it isn’t original. It is existing video gaming companies and games adapted to another setting. It’s adapted very well, and probably took a bit of research, but the companies haven’t been created out of the whole cloth. They’ve been renamed and some elements changed, and the same with the games, but they are recognisable. Perhaps it’s a plus having such instantly recognisable games in a setting, but it isn’t original. Those looking for existing cultural material adapted into another setting will find it here. Those looking for something truly original will not. Pop Culture Catalog: Vidgames is nice, but perhaps not what everyone wants, and it can be found by clicking here.
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