In early 1990, SJG was developing a game called GURPS Cyberpunk. On March 1 of that year, the company was raided by the United States Secret Service as part of a nationwide investigation of data piracy.[1] The agents took computers, printers, hard drives, at least one pocket calculator, over 300 floppy disks, and an entire BBS server.[1] In the court case that followed, the Secret Services justified their actions by calling GURPS Cyberpunk "a handbook for computer crime".[1]
In 1992, SJG made a card game called Hacker based on the Secret Service's beliefs.
In 1993, SJG released the supplement Hacker II: The Dark Side, which added new rules and new cards to the gameplay.
Gameplay
The original game has 110 cards, 172 die-cut cardboard counters, 53 thin cardstock counters, two network ID cards, and a plastic ziplock bag.
The players use cards to construct a computer network, and then roll dice to try and infiltrate the system. Successful entry gains access to new systems, or the ability to crash the system or upgrade the player's equipment. If too many hackers try to infiltrate the same system, it initiates a system housecleaning. A player can also be raided by the FBI or Secret Service.
The first player to gain access to 12 systems wins the game.
In the September 1992 edition (Issue 185), Varney found the game didn't have enough player interaction. Varney also didn't like the length of the game, which he felt went on too long because "When a Hacker game player pulls ahead of the pack and becomes 'Net Ninja', the others can bring down the Ninja easily, leading to a draggy war of attrition." Varney concluded, "[Steve] Jackson has made a fair hack at the subject... but he should have debugged a few more times before running it."[2]
A year later, in the December 1993 edition Varney gave a retrospective thumbs down to the game because of the lack of differentiation between players' roles. "Though individual roles aren’t vital, it helps when a social game gives each player a unique identity — a particular game position, a special power, or just a name. Hacker misses a bet on this count."[3]
Awards
Hacker won the 1992 Origins Award for Best Modern-Day Boardgame.[4]
Hacker II won the 1993 Origins Award for Best Modern-Day Boardgame.[5]
^ abc"SJ Games vs. the Secret Service". Steve Jackson Games. Retrieved 2019-07-26. On the morning of March 1, without warning, a force of armed Secret Service agents – accompanied by Austin police and at least one civilian "expert" from the phone company – occupied the offices of Steve Jackson Games and began to search for computer equipment.
hacker, card, game, hacker, card, game, trading, card, game, players, published, steve, jackson, games, 1992, contents, history, gameplay, reception, awards, reviews, references, external, linkshistory, editmain, article, steve, jackson, games, united, states,. Hacker is a card game not a trading card game for 3 6 players published by Steve Jackson Games SJG in 1992 Contents 1 History 2 Gameplay 3 Reception 4 Awards 5 Reviews 6 References 7 External linksHistory EditMain article Steve Jackson Games Inc v United States Secret Service In early 1990 SJG was developing a game called GURPS Cyberpunk On March 1 of that year the company was raided by the United States Secret Service as part of a nationwide investigation of data piracy 1 The agents took computers printers hard drives at least one pocket calculator over 300 floppy disks and an entire BBS server 1 In the court case that followed the Secret Services justified their actions by calling GURPS Cyberpunk a handbook for computer crime 1 In 1992 SJG made a card game called Hacker based on the Secret Service s beliefs In 1993 SJG released the supplement Hacker II The Dark Side which added new rules and new cards to the gameplay Gameplay EditThe original game has 110 cards 172 die cut cardboard counters 53 thin cardstock counters two network ID cards and a plastic ziplock bag The players use cards to construct a computer network and then roll dice to try and infiltrate the system Successful entry gains access to new systems or the ability to crash the system or upgrade the player s equipment If too many hackers try to infiltrate the same system it initiates a system housecleaning A player can also be raided by the FBI or Secret Service The first player to gain access to 12 systems wins the game Reception EditAllen Varney reviewed the game twice for Dragon In the September 1992 edition Issue 185 Varney found the game didn t have enough player interaction Varney also didn t like the length of the game which he felt went on too long because When a Hacker game player pulls ahead of the pack and becomes Net Ninja the others can bring down the Ninja easily leading to a draggy war of attrition Varney concluded Steve Jackson has made a fair hack at the subject but he should have debugged a few more times before running it 2 A year later in the December 1993 edition Varney gave a retrospective thumbs down to the game because of the lack of differentiation between players roles Though individual roles aren t vital it helps when a social game gives each player a unique identity a particular game position a special power or just a name Hacker misses a bet on this count 3 Awards EditHacker won the 1992 Origins Award for Best Modern Day Boardgame 4 Hacker II won the 1993 Origins Award for Best Modern Day Boardgame 5 Reviews EditChallenge 67 December 1992 Casus Belli 71 Sep 1992 6 References Edit a b c SJ Games vs the Secret Service Steve Jackson Games Retrieved 2019 07 26 On the morning of March 1 without warning a force of armed Secret Service agents accompanied by Austin police and at least one civilian expert from the phone company occupied the offices of Steve Jackson Games and began to search for computer equipment Varney Allen September 1992 Role playing Reviews II Dragon TSR Inc 185 84 88 Varney Allen December 1993 Social Board Games Dragon TSR Inc 200 120 Origins Award Winners 1992 Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts amp Design Archived from the original on 2008 04 15 Retrieved 2008 03 24 Origins Award Winners 1993 Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts amp Design Archived from the original on 2008 03 07 Retrieved 2008 03 24 Tetes d Affiches Article RPGGeek External links EditThe official Hacker home page The official Hacker rules Hacker Hacker II The Dark Side and Hacker Deluxe Edition at BoardGameGeek This card game related article is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Hacker card game amp oldid 1057432630, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
