Mongoose in 2006 (and a bit on the Industry in General)

[Belen]

Well let me start by saying this is a complete guess, not based on any insider knowledge whatsoever.

In fact, it's not even a guess, as I don't think anyone will ever get this license for an RPG. Ever.

But if someone were to say to me, "Name one license that if someone were to get it, could produce a game that might sell more than Dungeons & Dragons" I know exactly what answer I would come up with.

Harry Potter.

But if anyone, Mongoose or other, were to get that, I'd not quite be eating my hat (based on the size of the property, and JK Rowling's quite reasonable desire to keep total control of her property)... but I'd be very pleasantly amazed.

(It would be incredibly cool though - think of the new blood it might draw into the hobby).

Potter would make sense, especially if Rowling wanted to go with a UK company. WOTC already lost the previous Potter license.

They could very well have gotten the MIddle Earth license from the death of Decipher. After all, they produced the "Wars" RPG, so we know that Mongoose has a relationship with them. I would count MIddle Earth as one of the "Hoily Grails" of RPGs. In fact, I think Middle Earth would make a killing in the d20 market. The only problem here is the books. They will need to show people have to run an effective MIddle Earth campaign without being overshadowed by the stories.

 

[DaveMage]

The Holy Grail?

Playboy: The RPG

(Bunnies sold separately.)

 

[bubbalin]

Wow, I'm rather surprised at how early in the year this is, considering it is an 'end of year' summary.

Holy grails of RPG licences, DUNE!!! I'll... do something really crazy if thats what it is...

Any hints on what genre the licence is?

 

[twwtww]

Holy Grail of RPGs

Enron D20?

 

[afstanton]

Considering that a movie seems to be in the works, Ender's Game is one option. Time it right so that they come out close to each other, and it should sell well. Plus, Mongoose already has experience with bugs, thanks to Starship Troopers.

But Sci-Fi isn't exactly a Holy Grail of RPG's, despite how cool that would be.

He does say it's something nobody is doing, so it's not Lord of the Rings, unless their collapse is included in the "nobody" bit.

I don't believe that anyone has Vlad Taltos under wraps, and that would be wildly cool. Again, though, it's not wide enough to be a Holy Grail. Besides, I'd think that'd be more Green Ronin's kind of thing, given what they have done in the past. (Pramas, there's a hint...)

So...Harry Potter seems like it would be the killer app of this, though as was pointed out, the licensing on that one would be rough. Then again, Mongoose seems to be getting really good at getting licenses wrapped up. Dune would also be sweet, but considering WotC's announcement/crash on that one earlier, I'd think it would be safer to let that sit.

 

[Ghostwind]

Hmmm, Holy Grail...

Several come to mind:
* Dr. Who
* Harry Potter
* Dune
* Middle Earth
* Star Trek
* Glorantha

 

[Ghostwind]

The Holy Grail?

Playboy: The RPG

(Bunnies sold separately.)

Twins cost extra.

 

[Henry]

Hmmm, Holy Grail...

Several come to mind:
* Dr. Who
* Harry Potter
* Dune
* Middle Earth
* Star Trek
* Glorantha

And though someone might have been joking earlier, I'm still thinking Mony Python. For real.

 

[Eternalknight]

Any plans for Lone Wolf next year Matt?

 

[buzz]

Matt, thank you for posting this. Great info and insights.

Considering that a movie seems to be in the works, Ender's Game is one option.

FWIW, Ender's game has been in the works for about ten years now. It's about as likely to come out in the near future as Watchmen (which has been in some form of production since 1989).