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  "description": "New releases for Heroscape, Mortal Kombat, Citadels, Robo Rally, and more",
  "path": "/nostalgia-in-the-game-market/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-03-02T06:00:29.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.wericmartin.com",
  "tags": [
    "this one on Wikipedia",
    "Rebellion Unplugged",
    "crowdfunding campaign",
    "debuted",
    "World's Largest RPGs",
    "_Traveller_",
    "_Dungeons & Dragons (5th Edition)_",
    "a second edition",
    "Mongoose Publishing",
    "Renegade Game Studios",
    "four **_G.I. JOE Heroscape_** titles",
    "six new **_Heroscape_** titles",
    "_Robo Rally_",
    "**_Robo Rally Dice_**",
    "Z-Man Games",
    "**_Citadels Duel_**",
    "_Citadels_",
    "Cryptozoic Entertainment",
    "the DC Comics universe",
    "_The Lord of the Rings_",
    "_Street Fighter_",
    "the Cartoon Network",
    "_Naruto Shippuden_",
    "_Rick and Morty_",
    "_Attack on Titan_",
    "a new edition",
    "_Mortal Kombat 1_",
    "Mantic Games",
    "**_Noble Team_**",
    "_Halo: Flashpoint_"
  ],
  "textContent": "Some days I feel like most game news is coming out of a time capsule, with old designs and game systems being revived for today's \"kidult\" market that thrives on nostalgia and is (relatively) flush with money for non-essential goods.\n\nI recognize that \"kidult\" is a term that many find demeaning since the word's definition is not the most flattering, such as this one on Wikipedia: \"A **kidult** is an adult whose interests or media consumption is traditionally seen as more suitable for children.\" Even so, the U.S. and European toy and game industry fully embraces the term as one that describes a vast audience accounting for roughly one-third of all toy sales in a year. Children want to buy lots of playful things, sure, but adults are the ones with the money, so the industry will cater to their interests, often by returning older game designs to market in new, improved versions: \"Want that thing from your past that you pined for but couldn't afford or never found in stores near you? Now's your chance!\"\n\nIn mid-February 2026, for example, UK publisher Rebellion Unplugged announced a March 2026 crowdfunding campaign for a new edition of the **_Tunnels & Trolls_** RPG, which debuted in 1975, making it one of the oldest RPGs in existence.\n\nAnd in November 2025, World's Largest RPGs announced a March 2026 crowdfunding campaign for the **_Traveller 5E_** RPG. This is a new edition of the _Traveller_ RPG that debuted in 1977, with it being compatible with the game system for _Dungeons & Dragons (5th Edition)_. (_Traveller_ is already on the market in a second edition from Mongoose Publishing, with this \"second edition\" being more like a seventh or eighth edition given all that's been published over the past fifty years.)\n\nRenegade Game Studios already has four **_G.I. JOE Heroscape_** titles due out in mid-March 2026 — titles that mash together nostalgia for product lines from the 1980s and the 2000s — and in a February 27, 2026 livestream, the company announced six new **_Heroscape_** titles that will be released in July 2026, with five of them being offered in both painted and unpainted versions. The least expensive versions of all ten titles collectively retail for US$510, so this is hardly a line being purchased by youngsters.\n\nAnother older title that Renegade Game Studios is still bringing to the market anew is Richard Garfield's _Robo Rally_, which in February 2026 was joined by Kane Klenko's **_Robo Rally Dice_**.\n\nThis new design features the same set-up as the original game, with players programming their robot to move through a warehouse-like space filled with dangers in order to reach all the checkpoints before anyone else can — but instead of programming robot movement with cards, players now roll dice at the same time, locking in movement, turns, and more as they wish. As soon as one player fills all spaces on their board, they function as a timer, trying to keep others from using their dice effectively.\n\nThe new game boards included in _Robo Rally Dice_ can be used in _Robo Rally_ and vice versa, so each is now an expansion for the other game.\n\nAt SPIEL Essen 26, Z-Man Games will debut **_Citadels Duel_**, a two-player-only game from Guillaume Montiage and Manuel Rozoy that's based on Bruno Faidutti's 2000 game _Citadels_. Two city planners compete to design a district that generates wealth and renown, with the building tiles coming in the five types present in the original game and with characters like the thief, king, merchant, and assassin that you will call on for assistance.\n\nOn March 3, 2026, Cryptozoic Entertainment will launch a crowdfunding campaign for **_Fight! Mortal Kombat 1_** , with this being a deck-building game using the \"Cerberus Engine\" game system previously applied to the DC Comics universe, _The Lord of the Rings_, _Street Fighter_, the Cartoon Network, _Naruto Shippuden_, _Rick and Morty_, and _Attack on Titan_, with the latter title being reprinted in a new edition bearing a new \"Season 1\" subtitle ten years after its debut in 2016.\n\nThe _Mortal Kombat_ video game debuted in 1992, and this game series now features sixteen titles, including two reboots in the continuity of the series, with 2023's _Mortal Kombat 1_ ironically being the second such reboot.\n\nIn April 2026, Mantic Games will release **_Noble Team_**, a new expansion for _Halo: Flashpoint_, which is based on the _Halo_ video game series, which is a decade younger than _Mortal Kombat_ , having debuted in 2001, but with seventeen titles compared to sixteen.\n\n• • • • • • • • • • • • • •\n\nSometimes I feel like I should have a moratorium on IP-based games and spinoffs, even for just a month, to force myself to write about games that are bringing something new to the market in terms of setting and world-building...yet at the same time, I know of spinoff and IP-based titles soon to be announced that folks will really want to know about, so it seems wrong to hamstring myself this way. I just need to prioritize the new on a more regular basis — or get over my bias against more of writing about more of the same!\n\n• • • • • • • • • • • • • •\n\nLike what you read? Leave a tip to support independent board game journalism!\n\nLeave a tip",
  "title": "Nostalgia in the Game Market",
  "updatedAt": "2026-03-02T06:00:29.121Z"
}