Pyramid Review
On Location: The Feng Shui GM Screen
Published by Atlas Games
Written by Jeff Tidball
Illustrated by Didier Florentz (cover), Brendon Fraim and Brian Fraim
$17.95
Atlas Games is very up front about what sort of product On Location actually is: a piece of cardboard and a sheet of paper. Which is what you would expect for a Feng Shui release, as the game itself is invariably forthright in an all-guns-blazing, all-fists-flying kind of a way. Upon closer inspection the piece of cardboard turns out to be the GM's screen of the title and the sheet of paper a booklet of locations all ready and described for the GM to use as the need arises. What is surprising about On Location is how long it has taken for Feng Shui to get its own referee screen, given the number of supplements available for the game . . . but this is less surprising when you consider the somewhat unusual publishing history of Feng Shui.
The screen itself consists of four panels with a Didier Florentz illustration on the front. This depicts a mid-fight scene between various heroes and the bad guy abominations. It is a little static and shows only the combatants engaging in sorcery and gunplay; showing a little fisticuffs would also seem appropriate. The reverse of the screen includes just about every table a GM might want. These are laid out against a light gray pattern and are easy to read. The tables cover doing stuff; lifting and throwing; knowledge and contacts checks; difficulty listings for all sorts of . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: September 20, 2002
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