We did an interview with the folks at bluealien.org during GenCon, and they've just posted the first part (transcribed) online.
John Snead Bio
Eclipse Phase Contributor Bio
Real Name: John Snead
Firewall Codename: Heron61
Eclipse Phase Background Equivalency: Autonomist/Voluntary Mercurial
Previous Experience: I've been writing RPGs professionally for more than a decade and have worked on almost a dozen SF RPGs, including Traveller, Star Trek, Star Wars, GURPS Transhuman Space, and Trinity
About Me: I'm a freelance RPG author living in the lovely city of Portland Oregon. I'm a generalist, with degrees in everything from history to mathematics as well as an avid SF fan and a gourmet cook. Socially and politically, I'm a fairly extreme liberal (at least by US standards). My favorite authors are Alastair Reynolds and P.C. Hodgell.
Transhumanist Interests: I'm an avid transhumanist for both personal and sociopolitical reasons. In addition to being personally eager to make use of the upcoming advances in longevity and intelligence enhancement, I also see the various transhuman technologies as our best way to reduce poverty and increase both human potential and overall freedom while also managing this planet so that it remains a good home for all of its lifeforms.
Eclipse Phase Contributions: I wrote half of the gear chapter as well as the detailed setting section.
Favorite Thing About Eclipse Phase: I read a great deal of modern SF by authors like Alastair Reynolds, Linda Nagata, and Ken MacLeod, and I'm very pleased to see a SF RPG that is based on modern SF and that involves both transhumanism and interstellar travel.
Five for the Future
- Smart plankton
- 15 applications for nanotech
- Edible optics
- Dark energy for FTL
- 6 pills that will change your life
Five for the Future
- Blocking things out in augmented reality
- Invisibility cloak gets closer
- Space exploration through 2040
- Fingerprint test knows if you\'ve been naughty
- Future wars fought with minds
Gencon Wrapup
Thanks to everyone who stopped by the booth or sat down for a demo this past weekend. We all had a blast getting to meet you and talk about the game to new and interested people.
The response to the game was awesome, it seemed like nearly everyone we talked to about it was excited to have a chance to play it and impressed with what we had on display.
In case you missed it the big news was the announcement that the game itself will be out early 2009 and that the partial reason for the delay is that we're been given the go-ahead to do the core book in full color. Yes that means you'll have to wait a bit long, but it also means you'll get to see more of the EP universe in vibrant colors.
So again thanks to everyone who came out, played a game, got a t-shirt or a poster, or who just asked questions. We hope to see more of you in the future!