White Wolf, Inc.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"White Wolf" redirects here. For other uses, see White Wolf (disambiguation).
White Wolf, Inc.
Type Role-playing game publisher
Founded 1991
Headquarters
Industry Role-playing games
Website http://www.white-wolf.com/

White Wolf, Inc. is an American gaming company, most famous for the Vampire: The Masquerade roleplaying game. The company began in 1991 as a merger between Lion Rampant[1] and White Wolf Magazine, and was led by Mark Rein·Hagen of Lion Rampant and Steve and Stewart Wieck from the magazine. Taking their name from the fiction of Michael Moorcock, they have become one of the world's most successful role-playing game companies.

White Wolf publishes a line of several different but overlapping games set in the "World of Darkness", which generally resembles our world with added supernatural elements, and whose tone is generally described as "modern gothic." In the World of Darkness, vampires, werewolves, mummies, mages, changelings, wraiths, and other creatures of the night exist and fight with and alongside each other while remaining hidden from normal humans. The company also publishes the high fantasy Exalted RPG, and d20 system material under their Sword & Sorcery imprint, including such titles as the Dungeons & Dragons gothic horror campaign setting Ravenloft, and Monte Cook's Arcana Unearthed series.

To complement the World of Darkness game lines, there is a LARP system dubbed Mind's Eye Theatre. Many grassroots gaming groups have sprung up to play games based on this system.

White Wolf has also released several series of novels based on the Old World of Darkness. All game books and novels set in the Old World of Darkness are currently and indefinitely out of print.

White Wolf has a mixed record in the collectible card game market with Arcadia, Rage, and Vampire: The Eternal Struggle (formerly 'Jyhad'). V:TES, perhaps the most successful of the bunch, was originally published by Wizards of the Coast in 1994 but was abandoned just two years later after a revamped base set and name change (V:TES) and three expansions. White Wolf acquired the rights to the game in 2000, despite no new material having been produced for the game in over 4 years. Since then, VTES has released several expansions, and is the only official source for material for the Old World of Darkness.

Video games such as Vampire: The Masquerade - Redemption, and Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines, are based on White Wolf's role-playing property, Vampire: The Masquerade. There are also several Hunter: The Reckoning video games.

Contents

[edit] Merger

On Saturday, 11 November 2006, White Wolf and CCP Games, the Icelandic MMO development company responsible for EVE Online jointly announced a merger between the two companies during the keynote address at the EVE Online Fanfest 2006. [2]It was also revealed that a World of Darkness MMORPG was already in the planning stages.[3]

[edit] The "Old" World of Darkness game lines

The games of this series use White Wolf's Storyteller System for game mechanics.

In 2003, the company announced the "Time of Judgment", which brought an end to their current series of World of Darkness game lines. This move concerned many fans who had become used to the existing setting.

A revamped series of World of Darkness games were launched August 21, 2004, beginning with The World of Darkness (a set of core rules, akin to the D&D Player's Handbook) and Vampire: The Requiem. Later, White Wolf also released "Werewolf: The Forsaken" and "Mage: The Awakening".

[edit] Historical variants

[edit] Mind's Eye Theatre (LARP)

  • Laws of the Night (Vampire)
  • Laws of the Wild (Werewolf)
  • Oblivion (Wraith)
  • Laws of the Hunt (Mortals)
  • The Shining Host (Changeling)
  • Laws of Ascension (Mage)
  • Laws of the Reckoning (Hunter)
  • Laws of Resurrection (Mummy)
  • Laws of the East (Kindred of the East)
  • The Long Night (Dark Ages: Vampire)
  • Laws of the Wyld West (Werewolf: The Wild West)

[edit] The "New" World of Darkness game lines

The games of this series use White Wolf's new Storytelling System for game mechanics.

[edit] Upcoming Games

The sixth game in the "New" World of Darkness game line has been revealed to be titled "Hunter:The Vigil". Little else about it is known at this time. It is scheduled for a 2008 release.

[edit] Age of Sorrows

[edit] Trinity Universe

[edit] Other

[edit] Imprints and Labels

White Wolf has different imprints under which various books are published, notably:

  • Arthaus - products for which White Wolf serves as publisher, not developer
  • Black Dog Game Factory - adult themed products (defunct)
  • Sword & Sorcery - products compatible with the d20 system by Wizards of the Coast

Black Dog Game Factory was also a fictional company in White Wolf's "World Of Darkness". This is detailed in the Subsidiaries: A Guide to Pentex game supplement.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ A Brief History of Game #10: Lion Rampant: 1987-1990, RPGnet (Retrieved 14 June 2007)
  2. ^ White Wolf Press Release 11 November 2006, "Gaming Industry Innovators CCP and White Wolf to Merge" (Retrieved 11 November 2006)
  3. ^ CCP Press Release 11 November 2006, "Gaming Industry Innovators CCP and White Wolf to Merge" (Retrieved 12 November 2006)