It’s August and that means that the annual #RPGaDAY ‘question a day’ is here to celebrate “everything cool, memorable and amazing about our hobby.” This year we’ve decided to join in the fun and will be canvassing answers from the ENWorld crew, columnists and friends in the industry to bring you some of our answers. We hope you’ll join in, in the comments section, and share your thoughts with us too… So, without further ado, here’s Day 3 of #RPGaDAY 2017!
#RPGaDAY Question 3: How do you find out about new RPGs?
Morrus: We get a lot of announcements directly from publishers (being a news site), so that's my primary source. Those publishers who don't send out information, I'll usually hear about it via the forums, or social media before too long, especially if it's a successful Kickstarter. And I discover a lot of new stuff via the ENnies -- I usually check out as many of the nominees each year as I can. Sadly, given that time is what it is, I can only play so many games (I'm in three weekly games right now!)
Christopher Helton: People messaging me and going "Hey, what do you know about this?"
Angus Abranson: I ‘follow’ a load of people (producers and backers) on Kickstarter so get email notification whenever they launch or back a project. This results in me finding out about ‘most’ (not all as some still slip through the ‘friends’ net) new RPG KS campaigns. This obviously helps a lot as I write the weekly crowdfunding column here on ENWorld and also act as ‘janitor’ of the RPG Kickstarter News Facebook Group where new campaigns are posted and discussed. Beyond that I am signed up to a number of retailer and distributor ‘new releases’ lists as well as individual companies mailing lists. I also see a lot of announcements and news through various social media platforms as designers, publishers, and fans talk about the cool new products that have been announced. That often means you guys… so keep up the great work!
Darryl Mott: Aside from EN World, the best source for roleplaying game news in the world, you mean? One place that I hear about a lot of independent and new games are live streaming game channels. Saving Throw, Happy Jack's, Geek & Sundry, and HyperRPG among others all spend time highlighting new games from independent creators. And you get to see those games in play to get a feel for how the mechanics work.
Michael J Tresca: Kickstarters. I learn so much from the folks I follow and the games they support.
Jeff Richard (Chaosium, Guide to Glorantha): Word of mouth, primarily through Facebook. Or through the artistic grapevine ("I'm working on a book about YYYYY," and six months later, "That book about YYYYY I told you about is available! Yeah!").
Mike Lafferty (BAMF Podcast; Fainting Goat Games): A mixture of ENworld, Kickstarter and word of mouth on Facebook and G+
Ian Sturrock (RPG writer and game design lecturer): Mostly through social media, or listening to Ken And Robin Talk About Stuff. I tend to follow the designers and publishers whose work I like best, and they lead me to loads more cool stuff.
Uli Lindner (Space: 1889; Clockwork Publishing): Mainly through Facebook. Due to a rather big friend list of people working in the industry, there is never a shortage of interesting news being posted or shared.
Simon Brake (Stygian Fox): Usually Facebook or Kickstarter (or a combination thereof). Sometimes Twitter or email. I tend to Like or follow companies on social media, so frequently get alerted to new stuff from publishers of my favourite games. I also check Kickstarter (tabletop games) fairly frequently, although I generally stick to backing to PDF level – I figure that, if I really like a game I’ll be happy to pick up a physical copy at a later date.
Laura Hoffman (Black Book Editions; Polaris RPG): The people around me, the internet (social media, news sites, forums, newsletters, online stores), FLGS’s and my RPG club
Martin Greening (Azure Keep, Ruma: Dawn of Empire): Mostly via Kickstarter nowadays since so many games use that venue for fund generation or preorders. I certainly have an addiction to the site.
Garry Harper (Modiphius Entertainment; The Role Play Haven): Facebook, EN World, and RPGnet.
Stephanie McAlea, Stygian Fox Publishing, The Things We Leave Behind): Usually Kickstarter.
Darren Pearce (EN Publishing; Savage Mojo): Websites and word of mouth, but mostly word of mouth. Often I see info on new RPGs from friends in the industry on facebook.
Federico Sohns (Nibiru RPG): Generally via social media, following publications and articles from sites like RPGnet and ENWorld.
Ken Spencer (Rocket Age; Why Not Games): I find out about new RPGs largely through social media. Our FLGS is a small affair that cannot afford to take many risks with something as high cost as an RPG. I read forums, scan through FaceBook, and keep an eye out for banner ads here and there. ENWorld helps with their weekly release round ups and picks.
****
Originally created by Dave Chapman (Doctor Who: Adventures in Time & Space; Conspiracy X) #RPGaDAY os now being caretakered by the crew over at RPGBrigade. We hope you’ll join in, in the comments section, and share your thoughts with us too!
#RPGaDAY Question 3: How do you find out about new RPGs?
Morrus: We get a lot of announcements directly from publishers (being a news site), so that's my primary source. Those publishers who don't send out information, I'll usually hear about it via the forums, or social media before too long, especially if it's a successful Kickstarter. And I discover a lot of new stuff via the ENnies -- I usually check out as many of the nominees each year as I can. Sadly, given that time is what it is, I can only play so many games (I'm in three weekly games right now!)
Christopher Helton: People messaging me and going "Hey, what do you know about this?"
Angus Abranson: I ‘follow’ a load of people (producers and backers) on Kickstarter so get email notification whenever they launch or back a project. This results in me finding out about ‘most’ (not all as some still slip through the ‘friends’ net) new RPG KS campaigns. This obviously helps a lot as I write the weekly crowdfunding column here on ENWorld and also act as ‘janitor’ of the RPG Kickstarter News Facebook Group where new campaigns are posted and discussed. Beyond that I am signed up to a number of retailer and distributor ‘new releases’ lists as well as individual companies mailing lists. I also see a lot of announcements and news through various social media platforms as designers, publishers, and fans talk about the cool new products that have been announced. That often means you guys… so keep up the great work!
Darryl Mott: Aside from EN World, the best source for roleplaying game news in the world, you mean? One place that I hear about a lot of independent and new games are live streaming game channels. Saving Throw, Happy Jack's, Geek & Sundry, and HyperRPG among others all spend time highlighting new games from independent creators. And you get to see those games in play to get a feel for how the mechanics work.
Michael J Tresca: Kickstarters. I learn so much from the folks I follow and the games they support.
Jeff Richard (Chaosium, Guide to Glorantha): Word of mouth, primarily through Facebook. Or through the artistic grapevine ("I'm working on a book about YYYYY," and six months later, "That book about YYYYY I told you about is available! Yeah!").
Mike Lafferty (BAMF Podcast; Fainting Goat Games): A mixture of ENworld, Kickstarter and word of mouth on Facebook and G+
Ian Sturrock (RPG writer and game design lecturer): Mostly through social media, or listening to Ken And Robin Talk About Stuff. I tend to follow the designers and publishers whose work I like best, and they lead me to loads more cool stuff.
Uli Lindner (Space: 1889; Clockwork Publishing): Mainly through Facebook. Due to a rather big friend list of people working in the industry, there is never a shortage of interesting news being posted or shared.
Simon Brake (Stygian Fox): Usually Facebook or Kickstarter (or a combination thereof). Sometimes Twitter or email. I tend to Like or follow companies on social media, so frequently get alerted to new stuff from publishers of my favourite games. I also check Kickstarter (tabletop games) fairly frequently, although I generally stick to backing to PDF level – I figure that, if I really like a game I’ll be happy to pick up a physical copy at a later date.
Laura Hoffman (Black Book Editions; Polaris RPG): The people around me, the internet (social media, news sites, forums, newsletters, online stores), FLGS’s and my RPG club
Martin Greening (Azure Keep, Ruma: Dawn of Empire): Mostly via Kickstarter nowadays since so many games use that venue for fund generation or preorders. I certainly have an addiction to the site.
Garry Harper (Modiphius Entertainment; The Role Play Haven): Facebook, EN World, and RPGnet.
Stephanie McAlea, Stygian Fox Publishing, The Things We Leave Behind): Usually Kickstarter.
Darren Pearce (EN Publishing; Savage Mojo): Websites and word of mouth, but mostly word of mouth. Often I see info on new RPGs from friends in the industry on facebook.
Federico Sohns (Nibiru RPG): Generally via social media, following publications and articles from sites like RPGnet and ENWorld.
Ken Spencer (Rocket Age; Why Not Games): I find out about new RPGs largely through social media. Our FLGS is a small affair that cannot afford to take many risks with something as high cost as an RPG. I read forums, scan through FaceBook, and keep an eye out for banner ads here and there. ENWorld helps with their weekly release round ups and picks.
****
Originally created by Dave Chapman (Doctor Who: Adventures in Time & Space; Conspiracy X) #RPGaDAY os now being caretakered by the crew over at RPGBrigade. We hope you’ll join in, in the comments section, and share your thoughts with us too!
