RSDancey replies to Goodman article (Forked Thread: Goodman rebuttal)

[xechnao]

I've always felt that one of the bad things that came out of the OGL boom was the marginalization of all the D&D/d20 alternatives. D&D isn't for everybody(and I'm glad WotC is now embracing that), and people should have alternatives. I'd just rather those alternatives not also be D&D, and rather not have my D&D watered down to be able to cater to thsoe people.

I'd rather the players who are looking for not-D&D to look outside the OGL for a change.

So here's hoping for a non-D&D, non-d20 boom!

Oh I am so right there with you. But give it some time. The 4e change was so abrupt that I cant say I have bad feelings about Paizo. Besides, I believe Paizo fans are more prone to buy something different than say the 3.xe-OGL fans of the past. Could be wrong though. I definitely hope not

 

[thecasualoblivion]

Oh I am so right there with you. But give it some time. The 4e change was so abrupt that I cant say I have bad feelings about Paizo. Besides, I believe Paizo fans are more prone to buy something different than say the 3.xe-OGL fans of the past. Could be wrong though. I definitely hope not

The fact that most of the non-D&D RPG community was focused on the OGL doesn't help matters for non-d20 gaming, and it again will take time to recover from that.

 

[MadMaligor]

The fact that most of the non-D&D RPG community was focused on the OGL doesn't help matters for non-d20 gaming, and it again will take time to recover from that.

I wonder if some of that follows along the same lines as the housing bubble. In other words, "sticking with something that in the past has had such success, so why would you buck the trend?", kind of thing. Which can be a good thing in the short term, but has looming consequences if true.

In addition, as has been said before, WotC leaves behind a huge wake of customer base that still plays and pays, so the market is there for the taking. Its reasonable to expect those companies to try to jump in and grab a share.

I see 4E as more of a gateway to transition to the next type of RPG player. If you can successfully bridge the computer and table top crowds at some point, the market for your products opens up exponentially.

I don't see that as a "good" thing from an old guy standpoint and a love for the interaction that occurs across the table top. But its like any force of nature that changes what was, to what is, and what will be.

 

[Imaro]

The fact that most of the non-D&D RPG community was focused on the OGL doesn't help matters for non-d20 gaming, and it again will take time to recover from that.

I'm a little confused about this past non-D&D = OGL mentality. Last time I checked White Wolf with it's WoD game had the second largest market share of rpg sales, and it's definitely not a d20/OGL game...when did this change? Perhaps your view on the past rpg scene are more influenced by the people you know, and their preferences, as opposed to what the wider gaming audience was actually purchasing at the time.

 

[Mark]

I'm a little confused about this past non-D&D = OGL mentality. Last time I checked White Wolf with it's WoD game had the second largest market share of rpg sales, and it's definitely not a d20/OGL game...when did this change?

I doubt it did, taking into account not only WW but also SJG and some of the other, larger non-D&D/d20/OGL brands/publishers of the period.

 

[Dimitri Mazieres]

Wonder what exactly Dancey meant when he said,

"The forces that are tearing apart the tabletop RPG player networks are utterly outside of Wizards' control".

If it were me, I'd guess that he was referring to either the rapid evolution of electronic entertainment media (which must be one hell of a force to compete with) or the dwindling current fanbase of table-top RPGs effectively fighting with itself on many different fronts (which does nothing to attract newcomers to the hobby).

To compliment jdrakeh's comment, I also think that, in an age where video games, board games and card games have become more and more developed in regards to the provided experience, with a relatively short set up and play process, the table-top RPGs have suffered from having more complex (cumbersome?) learning and set up requirements (again, relatively). Even for a simple adventure, a GM/DM has to devote at least some time to read it beforehand and have a minimum of preparation to run it. Let alone a full campaign.
Also, as it has been mentioned, real life commitments play against the possibilities of meeting regularly, at least for people after certain age group.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Disclaimer: These past lines are solely based on personal perceptions and should not be interpreted as the result of any seriously conducted research... as most things on the internet.

 

[xechnao]

I see 4E as more of a gateway to transition to the next type of RPG player. If you can successfully bridge the computer and table top crowds at some point, the market for your products opens up exponentially.

I don't see that as a "good" thing from an old guy standpoint and a love for the interaction that occurs across the table top. But its like any force of nature that changes what was, to what is, and what will be.

I would not be worried if I were you. You do not need a software to cast to the new generation, or any generation for that matter, the magic of tabletops. Wotc uses it because of its current game and business model. But you really do not need such a game to bridge to the computer crowd. This is my opinion. The only thing you should do is just accept the fact that the two have to co-exist -as it was the case of the 80s or 90s- and try to ride on this point of view. Besides Baldur's Gate did help 3e I think.

 

[ExploderWizard]

Of my nephews and nieces, they're more interested in playing video games. It is as if they never played any board games or even cards. WotC has done very poor job of reaching out to kids and/or teenagers these days.

I remember when I was a kid, TSR had ads in all kinds of areas like comic books, Saturday cartoons, etc ... These days I would question the effectiveness of mediums like comic books, TV, etc ... It seems like kids don't even read comic books anymore, and hardly even watch any TV. Reaching them online via banner ads seems to be largely ineffective. It's as if kids are completely "immune" to online advertisements of any form these days.

It is kind of difficult to advertise to the youth in today's instant gratification culture. The age of the DVR means no more commericials unless you really just want to watch them. If the kids are not reading much then print ads are wasted too. Banner ads are almost mentally filtered out by most people these days. The only places ads are even semi-effective these days are places that provide a kind of captive audience such as movie theaters, screens in supermarket checkout lines, on public transit or other such areas. Even these are only so good since personal devices swallow up all available attention even in these areas.

 

[MadMaligor]

I would not be worried if I were you. You do not need a software to cast to the new generation, or any generation for that matter, the magic of tabletops. Wotc uses it because of its current game and business model. But you really do not need such a game to bridge to the computer crowd. This is my opinion. The only thing you should do is just accept the fact that the two have to co-exist -as it was the case of the 80s or 90s- and try to ride on this point of view. Besides Baldur's Gate did help 3e I think.

I wonder though, that if WotC can incorporate the computer "as" the table top, does it change the landscape of the RPG? You can see them attempting that now. Success along this avenue would change the way business was done as more and more companies produce products to support and cash in on that success.

I am not saying that the computer as a table top immediately surplants the magic of what we have today. But if successful, you can see that at some point it could become the norm, and change how pencil and paper RPG's are played.

 

[joethelawyer]

I would not be worried if I were you. You do not need a software to cast to the new generation, or any generation for that matter, the magic of tabletops. Wotc uses it because of its current game and business model. But you really do not need such a game to bridge to the computer crowd. This is my opinion. The only thing you should do is just accept the fact that the two have to co-exist -as it was the case of the 80s or 90s- and try to ride on this point of view. Besides Baldur's Gate did help 3e I think.

And TOEE helped me learn the 3.0 rules...I may just load that thing up again. It's been a while...