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Steve Jackson (British game designer)

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Not to be confused withSteve Jackson (American game designer).

Steve Jackson
Born(1951-05-20)20 May 1951(age 73)
Altrincham,England
EducationKeele University(1968–1972)
Occupation(s)Fantasy author,entrepreneur,game designer,writer,game reviewer
Known for

Steve Jackson(born 20 May 1951) is a Britishgame designer,writer,game reviewerand co-founder of UK game publisherGames Workshop.

History[edit]

Steve Jackson began his career in games in 1974 as a freelance journalist withGames & Puzzlesmagazine.[1]In early 1975, Jackson co-founded the companyGames Workshopwith school friendsJohn PeakeandIan Livingstone.[2][3]: 43 They started publishing with the monthly newsletter,Owl and Weasel,on which Jackson did most of the writing, and they sent copies of the first issue to subscribers of theAlbionfanzine;Brian Blume,co-partner of American publisherTSR,received one of these copies and in return sent back a copy of TSR's new gameDungeons & Dragons.Jackson and Livingstone felt that this game was more imaginative than any other contemporary games being produced in the UK, and so worked out an arrangement with Blume for an exclusive deal to sellD&Din Europe.[3]: 43 In late 1975, Jackson and Livingstone organized their first convention, the initialGames Day.[3]: 43 While selling game products directly from their flat, their landlord evicted them in summer 1976 after people kept going there looking for a physical store.[3]: 43 By 1978 the first Games Workshop store had opened, in London.[4]

At a Games Day convention in 1980 Jackson and Livingstone met Geraldine Cooke, an editor atPenguin Books.They persuaded her to consider publication of a book about the role-playing hobby. This was originally intended to be an introductory guide, but the idea of an interactivegamebookseemed more appealing.[5]After several months Cooke decided that this was viable and commissioned Jackson and Livingstone to develop it.[6]In 1980, Jackson and Livingstone began to develop the concept of theFighting Fantasygamebook series, the first volume of which (The Warlock of Firetop Mountain) was published in 1982 byPuffin Books(a subsidiary imprint of Penguin).[3]: 46 Jackson and Livingstone would go on to individually write many volumes each, with further authors adding even more. Steve Jackson notably wroteSorcery!,a four-part series utilizing the same system asFighting Fantasybut whereFighting Fantasymainly targeted children,Steve Jackson's Sorcery!was marketed to an older audience.[7]Jackson and Livingstone attributed the gamebooks' popularity to their difficulty.[8]

After the success of theFighting Fantasyseries, Jackson designed the first interactive telephone role-playing game,FIST,which was based loosely on the concepts of the gamebooks.[9]Jackson and Livingstone sold their Games Workshop stake in 1991.[3]: 50 In the mid-1990s Jackson spent 2.5 years as a games journalist with theLondon Daily Telegraph.[1]He then set up computer games developerLionhead StudioswithPeter Molyneux.[1]Jackson left Lionhead in 2006 when Microsoft bought the company.[7]He is an honorary professor atBrunel Universityin London, where he teaches the Digital Games Theory and Design MA.[9]

He is often mistaken for theAmerican game designerwith the same name.[10]The American Jackson wrote three books in theFighting Fantasyseries,[11]which adds to the confusion, especially as these books were simply credited to "Steve Jackson" without any acknowledgement that it was a different person.[12]

Works[edit]

Books[edit]

Video games[edit]

Other[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^abcJackson, Steve (2007). "The Warlord".InLowder, James(ed.).Hobby Games: The 100 Best.Green Ronin Publishing.pp. 365–368.ISBN978-1-932442-96-0.
  2. ^Livingstone, Ian(April 1975). "Editorial".Owl and Weasel(3). Games Workshop: 2.
  3. ^abcdefShannon Appelcline (2011).Designers & Dragons.Mongoose Publishing.ISBN978-1-907702-58-7.
  4. ^"The Gaming Dynasty That Began In A West London Flat".Londonist.4 January 2018.Retrieved18 May2020.
  5. ^McFerran, Damien (16 August 2013)."You are the hero: A history of Fighting Fantasy".Eurogamer.Retrieved25 August2014.
  6. ^Davison, Pete (16 August 2013)."You Are The Hero: A History of Fighting Fantasy".USgamer.Retrieved18 January2022.
  7. ^abPlant, Mike (6 June 2013)."Interview: Steve Jackson, role-playing game titan".The Register.Retrieved25 August2014.
  8. ^Capper, Andy."Steve Jackson & Ian Livingstone".Vice.Archived fromthe originalon 26 August 2014.Retrieved25 August2014.
  9. ^abDredge, Stuart (23 January 2014)."Steve Jackson talks F.I.S.T. – the first interactive telephone role playing game".The Guardian.Retrieved25 August2014.
  10. ^"Frequently Asked Questions".Steve Jackson Games.29 March 2007.Retrieved14 September2007.
  11. ^"Steve Jackson – Biography and Public Warning".Steve Jackson Games.14 December 2010.Retrieved6 November2011.
  12. ^other than one subtle difference: a book written by either of the two co-founders is credited as "by Steve Jackson" or "by Ian Livingstone". A book written by any other author is introduced as "Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone presents" with the author's name simply listed in thepreliminaries.

External links[edit]

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