Traveller on your phone

I don't usually post about electronic games, but because of the local connection and the game involved, I thought this was worth sharing.  The Austin American-Statesman reports a pair of brothers has ported the Traveller role-playing game to the iPhone and iPad.  From the article:

From Austin American-Statesman

When they were children, brothers Tony and Kieran Howlett were big fans of Traveller, a pen-and-paper game similar to Dungeons & Dragons that was released in the 1970s.

Thirty-five years and two attempts later, they've released their own version of the space-themed game for decidedly modern devices — the iPad and iPhone.

"Traveller AR" is a massively multiplayer online game, in which players can battle one another in flight combat. And like its old-school predecessor, there's a heavy choose-your-own-adventure element, with players able to explore, battle or trade virtual goods.

In an interesting take on crowdsourcing, the article states, the developers will allow players to create their own missions as a reward for exploring distant parts of the setting.  I'm glad I don't have an iPhone--I'm already distracted enough with all my other toys--because I'm sure this game would become a huge time sink.