[LPJDesign] OGL 3.5 logo created to replace D20 Logo for 3rd Party Publishers

[lmpjr007]

With all the recent changes due to the release of 4e, the GSL and the OGL, we here at Louis Porter Jr. Design have decided to create an all new OGL 3.5 logo which can be used by any and all 3rd party publisher, completely and absolutely free of charge, with any of their products that initial had the d20 logo or was OGL created material.

The reason for this new OGL 3.5 logo; beyond the obvious loss of the use of the d20 logo; is to unify those companies who still wish to support the 3.5 OGL rule set. This logo easily brands and makes d20 and OGL material easy to identify with this logo so people can tell on sight what gaming system they are supporting. The initial concept of the OGL was to make the gaming industry stronger by making it possible for more people to create and make products to support the concepts of the OGL. With the changes in 4e and the GSL, and the recent comments by Linae Foster and Scott Rouse of that you can only make products for either the OGL or the new GSL, this is no longer the case. And with those actions have caused the creation of this new OGL 3.5 logo.

This logo has bee created in several graphic formats including Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Illustrator EPS, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Photoshop JPEG and TIFF. Each of these formats comes with three different versions: color, Grayscale and Black and White. A complete zip file containing all these logos can be downloaded directly from this link.


We hope that any and all 3rd party publishers who stick with OGL 3.5 will use and support this initiative. A lot of customers gave us their hard earned money and supported us; I think it is only fair that we return the favor to them. This isn’t the first time David has gone after Goliath and attempted something amazing. Thank you for this support!

[xechnao]

Curious to how publishers will be reacting to initiatives of this kind. See if there will be any posts here.

[Angellis_ater]

We've been suggesting something like this for a long while and it is good to see someone responding to it. I think that third party publishers (and first party for that) need to rally around this concept. If my partner accepts it, our products will soon carry this logo.

LPJ - I would also suggest that you publish that logo under a Creative Commons License to make sure that it is free to use by anyone.

[Hunter In Darkness]

I have heard that pazio was gonna do something like this with pathfinder. Am very glad to see you doing this with a straight 3.5 OGL . It is my hope that many publishers flock to it and band together .

[Orcus]

Originally Posted by xechnao

Curious to how publishers will be reacting to initiatives of this kind. See if there will be any posts here.

A logo like this, while a neat idea, is likely not going to see widespread adoption by the larger publishers. The question is, "What value do I derive from this?" My customers know what my prodcuts are. The d20 logo hasnt really been of much use for some time now. A replacement logo that isnt official is even less valuable.

I can already say "Third Edition" or "Revised Third Edition" witout that logo.

Plus, we gain nothing from using your logo. I dont see any of the larger companies using this. I do see smaller companies wanting us to use this so that they can use it too.

Initiatives like this have come and gone numerous times and none have ever really been supported or adopted. I'm not trying to harsh on your plan. I like the concept in theory. In fact in the early days of 3E I was involved in a discussion about this stuff and nothing came of it. But now you do have the ending of the d20 license, so maybe you will have more interest this time.

Good luck!

And I will say it is a nice looking logo.

Clark

[xechnao]

Originally Posted by Orcus

A logo like this, while a neat idea, is likely not going to see widespread adoption by the larger publishers. The question is, "What value do I derive from this?" My customers know what my prodcuts are. The d20 logo hasnt really been of much use for some time now. A replacement logo that isnt official is even less valuable.

I can already say "Third Edition" or "Revised Third Edition" witout that logo.

Plus, we gain nothing from using your logo. I dont see any of the larger companies using this. I do see smaller companies wanting us to use this so that they can use it too.

Initiatives like this have come and gone numerous times and none have ever really been supported or adopted. I'm not trying to harsh on your plan. I like the concept in theory. In fact in the early days of 3E I was involved in a discussion about this stuff and nothing came of it. But now you do have the ending of the d20 license, so maybe you will have more interest this time.

Good luck!

And I will say it is a nice looking logo.

Clark

Eh, wait... If you are wishing to me, I have to say that I have no personal plan in this sector but thanks anyway , really

I find it interesting though to see any efforts that will promote OGL in the current turn of events. I somehow feel that if OGL publishers join forces somehow, they will have a better possibility, no?

[pawsplay]

Cute, but you know what? "Oggle" just isn't sexy as a brand. "3.5 System Compatible" sounds sort of interesting.

Maybe something like:

System35
OpenSystem

I don't know. "d20" is a twenty times sexier than OGL.

[xechnao]

I would recommend to give it a heavier and more solid feel, in a funny way. Something like
"O.G.L. STRONG"
The biggest license for gamers

[jmucchiello]

Think you'll get any farther than these guys?
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FGA-Prometheus
http://www.prometheusgaming.com/

[pawsplay]

That "open die" logo is also not very exciting. Prometheus sounds exciting, but more like a publisher than a group. I am curious about these guys. They don't really have a lot to say about who they are. Are there any actual products associated with this brand?

[Goblinoid Games]

Originally Posted by pawsplay

Cute, but you know what? "Oggle" just isn't sexy as a brand. "3.5 System Compatible" sounds sort of interesting.

Maybe something like:

System35
OpenSystem

I don't know. "d20" is a twenty times sexier than OGL.

Even more importantly, IMHO, is that with WoTC no longer supporting the OGL, the OGL will come to mean a lot of different things as we have Runequest, Traveller, and many other games released under it. I know publishers have gotten a lot of mileage in the past out of advertising OGL=d20, and WoTC never stepped in to defend that trademark, but I think the meaning of "OGL" will become muddy in the future, and a logo like this would do better to have the "3.5" part be the part that is larger. When I put "OGL" on a product, it only means that the product is released under the OGL and supports open gaming. I don't use it to indicate any sort of compatibility, because the OGL is a license, not a system.

[tensen]

Originally Posted by Orcus

A logo like this, while a neat idea, is likely not going to see widespread adoption by the larger publishers. The question is, "What value do I derive from this?" My customers know what my prodcuts are. The d20 logo hasnt really been of much use for some time now. A replacement logo that isnt official is even less valuable.

I can already say "Third Edition" or "Revised Third Edition" witout that logo.

The only difference now is that many think there is the need to put something over the d20 logos that are on several thousand .pdfs out in the market. Or at least the presumed need.

[Cergorach]

I think that this is the best looking attempt so far. It's clear, it jumps out, and is released at the right time (discontinuation of D20STL). It's about the same size as the D20 logo, so it should be easy to replace the D20 logo. A couple of publishers could even mass produce this as stickers so their older stock can be relabeled (if/when WotC demands it to be removed from old stock).

I really hope this gets adopted by more, if not all, publishers.

[Wulf Ratbane]

Originally Posted by Cergorach

I really hope this gets adopted by more, if not all, publishers.

I think you hit the nail on the head. I'll reiterate:

1) It looks professional. It's not overdesigned.

2) Louis has released it 100% no strings attached. It has no agenda.

3) The timing is right.

I'll very strongly consider using it.


That being said, I really wish Louis didn't spam this announcement across every forum. Bad form.

[lmpjr007]

Here are my personal comments on the whole OGL Logo and 4e:

http://www.lpjdesign.com/RPGPG.php

[Voadam]

Originally Posted by Orcus

I can already say "Third Edition" or "Revised Third Edition" witout that logo.

Are you talking about the authorized compatibility language under the d20 STL or saying you can say that on any OGL product?

[Wulf Ratbane]

Originally Posted by Voadam

Are you talking about the authorized compatibility language under the d20 STL or saying you can say that on any OGL product?

I assume he means that since "Third Edition" or "Revised Third Edition" are not trademarks, authorized compatibility language is irrelevant.

[Big Mac]

Originally Posted by Orcus

A logo like this, while a neat idea, is likely not going to see widespread adoption by the larger publishers. The question is, "What value do I derive from this?" My customers know what my prodcuts are. The d20 logo hasnt really been of much use for some time now. A replacement logo that isnt official is even less valuable.

The problem with the d20 System logo is that it is applied to SRD and MSRD products (as well as anything else that WotC sells). That means that it doesn't really indicate that a product is compatible with anything.

A logo that indicates that things are 3.5 SRD compatible would be valuable to customers who don't want to switch to 4e (or the Paizo RPG), however this logo doesn't indicate that it is connected to the fantasy rules.

And, no offense intended, but I own some of your products and didn't have a clue about what your product line was when I first saw them. I now know your name (and that means your personal name) well enough to trust your word, but at the time I first saw your stuff I struggled to know if I could get it to work with D&D. I'm sure there must be new people coming into the hobby every day, so even if your regular customers know who you are, it wouldn't hurt to let newbies have a clue.

Originally Posted by Orcus

I can already say "Third Edition" or "Revised Third Edition" witout that logo.

Plus, we gain nothing from using your logo. I dont see any of the larger companies using this. I do see smaller companies wanting us to use this so that they can use it too.

AFAIK, you haven't announced any intention to stick with or abandon 3.5 yet, but if you did stick with 3.5 something like this (and I admit you could probably do a better in-house version) would help potential customers understand what rules your products were using.

If you supported several product lines in the future, it might be useful to have old stock labled, so that RPG stores couldn't accidentally "pass off" old stock as being compatible with the new system.

A lot of shops now shrink-wrap things to stop people from browsing, so if you don't have some useful blurb on the back cover some people might hesitate to buy stuff. I know I got confused by things (not necessarily your products) when 3.5 first came out. With shops...ah lets name and shame them, so the good shops don't suffer - Orcs Nest in Central London...shrink labeling everything, customers can't gain any information without talking to their staff (who used to be really really fun and helpful in the days of TSR, but now sit in their pod ignoring everyone). I usually find it easier to research things online, and if I do that I might as well buy online too.

Lets turn your comment around. You have nothing to loose by adding a logo like this. If you don't like this one, then why not add your own one? (Unless you are going to swallow the GSL poision pill - then you will be mothballing your entire existing product line and this logo would be a waste of your time.) When I pick up a RPG book, I want to know if it works with 3.5 (SRD) rules, but I also want to know if it is part of a campaign setting. (You are pretty good at putting campaign setting logos onto things, but some publishers seem to like to pretend that something is generic when it isn't. I actually prefer things that are part of a campaign setting as I'm trying to build a collection of worlds to "visit".)

Originally Posted by Orcus

Initiatives like this have come and gone numerous times and none have ever really been supported or adopted. I'm not trying to harsh on your plan. I like the concept in theory. In fact in the early days of 3E I was involved in a discussion about this stuff and nothing came of it. But now you do have the ending of the d20 license, so maybe you will have more interest this time.

Good luck!

And I will say it is a nice looking logo.

I think that the previous logos (especially Prometheus and OpenDie) have failed to "do what they say on the tin". OpenDie doesn't really have any meaning and Prometheus, while a good idea, fails to indicate any sort of compatibility with anything.

This logo at least mentions "3.5".

And you are right - it does look good.

But, as a consumer, I'd be more likely to trust a logo that indicates compatability with the "3.5 SRD". I'd even consider buy old stuff that indicated compatability with the "3.0 SRD"! The main thing I need from a logo, is to know that it isn't for some non-standard system that rips out half of the SRD and puts in something else.

Its nice to know that you wish people good luck, even when you don't agree with them. I've got to tip my hat to you for that.

<goes off to look for hat>