benjoshua wrote:I curious about the overall interest in rpg's of any kind. It seems like WOTC has made some serious blunders, but if the interest in rpg's is strong, they'll be able to jump back in. They may not be a major player anymore, but at least someone will keep publishing cool stuff.Therefore, I am curious about everyone who went to GenCon or anyone who has been to other gaming conventions recently as to whether the crowd is getting older and fewer, or younger and larger, or staying about the same. The effect of Gary's passing certainly registered a positive blip on internet sales, and there was widespread talk of internet sales increasing because of gas prices keeping people at home, so the internet/eBay sales of late may not be the best gauge of overall rpg interest.One reason I ask is that eventually we, or our remaining kin, will unload our collections on the free market. Whether our collections will be sold for a lot of money or a little depends largely on the size, focus and intensity of the rpg community. I guess I am also wondering whether WOTC's blunders will damage our avocation and its participation. Thank goodness for companies like Goodman who publish stuff I like and have 1/2 off sales! I don't worry about it too much because my most valuable collection by far is my comic book collection, and with all the Marvel and DC movies coming out lately, I have some reason to hope that prices should hold steady for a while. Not that I collect as an investment, but no one likes to lose a lot of money. Finally, if the interest in rpg's is strong and a major gaming company like WOTC keeps making big blunders, then the gates are open for someone else to be the leader. Pathfinder has a shot to take the lead or maybe it will be some other game that appeals to the lifestyle gamer and the FLGS will shift to appeal to that constituency. "Always in motion is the future."
benjoshua wrote:I curious about the overall interest in rpg's of any kind. It seems like WOTC has made some serious blunders, but if the interest in rpg's is strong, they'll be able to jump back in.
benjoshua wrote:Finally, if the interest in rpg's is strong and a major gaming company like WOTC keeps making big blunders, then the gates are open for someone else to be the leader. Pathfinder has a shot to take the lead or maybe it will be some other game that appeals to the lifestyle gamer and the FLGS will shift to appeal to that constituency.
benjoshua wrote:"Always in motion is the future."
benjoshua wrote:Pathfinder has a shot to take the lead or maybe it will be some other game that appeals to the lifestyle gamer and the FLGS will shift to appeal to that constituency. "Always in motion is the future."
Rakeesh sah Tarna wrote:in general it isnt. hang out with 20-something crowd on general fora and gaming IS computer gaming. wotc misunderstood how to interpret this + tried to pander to that instead of focusing on retaining core remaining niches with $$$ as a minimum
benjoshua wrote:But let's face it, computer games hold some strong advantages. One of them is that you don't need other players to play and/or you don't need other players physically with you. They can be from all over the world! WOW groups with dozens of players from everywhere "game" together to conquer whatever. Plus, the DM'ing is consistent if not boring and you don't need paper, pencils, dice, minis and a ton of other equipment. Of course, if you are really old school, you don't most of that stuff anyway.
deimos3428 wrote:Well, there's this thing called the internet, and you can play D&D on it. You've been able to do so for about 25-30 years. You don't have to play WoW.All you need is a text chat, maybe some rulebooks, and some friends with spare time. That's no more financially demanding than owning a table...probably less if you take into account wood polish. You can use voice/whiteboarding/dice rollers, if you wish. Some might suggest it's just not the same thing as playing around a table. That's true. But it's still a far cry better than playing a video game, in terms of social activity. Assuming you can all stay up, you can be from all over the world. No need to wait until the next GenCon to play with your friends from overseas.You can still eat chips, unless you're one of those jerks that never brings the chips. The internet does not support chip mooches. You can definitely have late-night craziness. You do miss out on the farts, but that's the price you have to pay, I guess.(As a sidebar, the great thing about playing D&D is that generally speaking, we already know the rules. Try playing a "new" game where nobody has the books!)
benjoshua wrote:That's what I suspected. But let's face it, computer games hold some strong advantages. One of them is that you don't need other players to play and/or you don't need other players physically with you. They can be from all over the world! WOW groups with dozens of players from everywhere "game" together to conquer whatever. Plus, the DM'ing is consistent if not boring and you don't need paper, pencils, dice, minis and a ton of other equipment. Of course, if you are really old school, you don't most of that stuff anyway. What I'm saying is that, while I love 1e/2e and the commraderie that comes with the bags of potato chips, unexpected farts, late night craziness and everything else, we are going against a stiff challenge which will likely never be overcome. Not surprisingly, WOTC has turned our game primarily into a business, but they've likely had to do that. When market share is growing, companies can take risks and be highly creative, but when the market share mainstream isn't with us, frankly we're lucky to get much of anything good. I'm not happy about it, but it appears to be reality.There is hope however. Take a look at this site. We come from all over the world, to communcate and even strengthen our interest. We pool resources, give each other encouragement at deals, help each other avoid idiot sellers and buyers and more. This site is flowing with the changes in the world and our gaming community.Which brings me to an uncomfortable point. If what I have said so far is basically true, then one of the best things we can do is recruit if we want our style of game to stay and our collections to grow in value. Unless we are actively seeking new people, welcoming them and making this a welome place, then our hobby has a much shorter life. The problem with that is I'm not really interested in becoming someone I'm not. I like the Acaeum as it is. I think most of us would rather go out of this world as we are than someone or something we're not. And hell, complaining is fun! Anyway, time moves on and so should we. We were a part of history, we had a dang good time and we died. Right?
JasonZavoda wrote:New players and DMs are fine, but I hope there are no recruiting drives. Some people will be drawn toward the style of the early RPG material, unpolished artwork, Gygax's early published adventurtes, Judges Guild. Once those of us for whom it is nostalgia have passed on, it will be those interested in the history of gaming who will keep collecting.I have no worries about this old-style aspect of gaming going extinct at all.
27 August 2008 * (diff) (hist) . . White Dwarf (magazine); 22:04 . . (+666) . .
Invincible Overlord wrote:My rants and raves about the future of D&D (in its various editions) and gaming in general:WOTC F***ed up with their current version of 4th edition. Had they just cleaned up 3.5, instead of catering to the 18yr old WOW player, they would have retained their current player base.Being a member of the RPGA for more than 20 years, the WOTC F-up brings certain things back full-circle. 20 Years ago, you could play Boot Hill, Marvel Superheroes, Rolemaster, or most other game systems under the banner of the RPGA, because they supported gaming in general (back when it was run by TSR). WOTC failed to grasp the concept of promoting gaming for all, and just used the RPGA to promote D&D. Most other game systems fell by the wayside due to lack of support.Currently, those disenfranchised with 4th Ed. (like myself) didn't play and 4th Ed. at Gencon. I played Pathfinder (which I loved), Heroes of Rogukan (AEG Games), and I sat in the auction and was outbid by Blackmoor a few times Sorry for the rambling on of loosely coherent thoughts. Dungeons and Dragons will always be the big man on campus. But instead of the 90% share it used to have, it may shrink to 50%. Why still that much? Because even most of the disenfranchised players like myself still purchased the 4th Ed. product to see what the end result was going to be like. (I bit the bullet for my gaming groups back home)This was the first year at a major con (in the last 20) that I did not play any RPGA events ever. WOTC has other problems besides 4th Ed. Hasbro is hitting WOTC hard for further profits, and now WOTC is leaning much harder on their M:TG tournament coordinators for a bigger cut from their business. I have a friend of mine that didn't have a real job for 5 years, because he ran Magic tournaments in the Chicago / Milwaukee / St. Louis region. In addition, they cut back from 5 worldwide tournaments, down to 3. The Magic Pro Tournament, IMHO, is what has sustained Magic for the last 17 years (because you always need the 2 or 3 most current sets for the tournament). Sell your magic cards now, because their value will probably peak in another year (maybe 2), at most.
Invincible Overlord wrote:Note: How do you put someone's comments in that small white box?
