Great White Games
Encyclopedia
Pinnacle Entertainment Group is a publisher of role-playing game
s and wargames
that is owned and operated by Shane Lacy Hensley
and was founded in 1994. Some time before 2003, the company was renamed Great White Games and in 2005 returned to the original name. In 1996 the company published what would be their flagship title for several years Deadlands
, a role-playing game
set in an alternate-history U.S. of the 1870s. Deadlands features magic and horror amidst the tropes of the Old West. Later that year they would also publish Brave New World
, a dystopian superhero role-playing game that used a simplified version of the Deadlands rules.
A second major line was introduced in 2001 called Weird Wars and features horror elements combined with a historical war setting. The first entrant in the Weird Wars line is Weird War II: Blood on the Rhine and uses the d20 System
under the Open Gaming License
from Wizards of the Coast
. A second entry, Tour of Darkness, set during the Vietnam War, was released in 2004 using the Savage Worlds system.
In 2003, as Great White Games, they produced Savage Worlds
, a game designed to be both a role-playing game and a miniatures game. A highly streamlined, generic system
, it is designed to provide game play in any genre. Subsequent releases for Savage Worlds are self-contained campaigns designed to minimize the preparation time of the GM and maximize the time spent running the game with players. Savage Worlds carries the tag line "Fast! Furious! Fun!" to emphasize the streamlining and quick play inherent in the system.
In late 2005, Shane Hensley announced that Great White Games would return to using the Pinnacle Entertainment Group moniker as its brand name for subsequent releases.
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
s and wargames
Wargaming
A wargame is a strategy game that deals with military operations of various types, real or fictional. Wargaming is the hobby dedicated to the play of such games, which can also be called conflict simulations, or consims for short. When used professionally to study warfare, it is generally known as...
that is owned and operated by Shane Lacy Hensley
Shane Lacy Hensley
Shane Lacy Hensley is an author, game designer, and CEO of Pinnacle Entertainment Group and is currently a resident of Gilbert, Arizona.-Career:...
and was founded in 1994. Some time before 2003, the company was renamed Great White Games and in 2005 returned to the original name. In 1996 the company published what would be their flagship title for several years Deadlands
Deadlands
Deadlands is a genre-mixing alternate history roleplaying game which combines the Western and horror genres, with some Steampunk elements. It was written by Shane Lacy Hensley and published by Pinnacle Entertainment Group....
, a role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
set in an alternate-history U.S. of the 1870s. Deadlands features magic and horror amidst the tropes of the Old West. Later that year they would also publish Brave New World
Brave New World (role playing game)
Brave New World is a role-playing game originally released by Pinnacle Entertainment Group in 1999. The game was later sold to Alderac Entertainment Group in 2000. The game is an alternate history superhero game set in a fascist United States of America living in a perpetual state of martial law...
, a dystopian superhero role-playing game that used a simplified version of the Deadlands rules.
A second major line was introduced in 2001 called Weird Wars and features horror elements combined with a historical war setting. The first entrant in the Weird Wars line is Weird War II: Blood on the Rhine and uses the d20 System
D20 System
The d20 System is a role-playing game system published in 2000 by Wizards of the Coast originally developed for the third edition of Dungeons & Dragons...
under the Open Gaming License
Open Gaming License
The Open Game License may be used by game developers to grant permission to modify, copy, and redistribute some of the content designed for their games, notably game mechanics.-Language of the licence:The OGL describes two forms of content:...
from Wizards of the Coast
Wizards of the Coast
Wizards of the Coast is an American publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes, and formerly an operator of retail stores for games...
. A second entry, Tour of Darkness, set during the Vietnam War, was released in 2004 using the Savage Worlds system.
In 2003, as Great White Games, they produced Savage Worlds
Savage Worlds
Savage Worlds is an award-winning, universal generic, role-playing game and miniatures wargame, written by Shane Lacy Hensley, and published by Great White Games doing business as Pinnacle Entertainment Group...
, a game designed to be both a role-playing game and a miniatures game. A highly streamlined, generic system
Generic role-playing game system
A generic role-playing game system or universal role-playing game system is a role-playing game system designed to be independent of setting and genre...
, it is designed to provide game play in any genre. Subsequent releases for Savage Worlds are self-contained campaigns designed to minimize the preparation time of the GM and maximize the time spent running the game with players. Savage Worlds carries the tag line "Fast! Furious! Fun!" to emphasize the streamlining and quick play inherent in the system.
In late 2005, Shane Hensley announced that Great White Games would return to using the Pinnacle Entertainment Group moniker as its brand name for subsequent releases.