Here are some thoughts on awards, and why I personally think you should vote for them. I was asked on Twitter why D&D needed to be nominated for an award, and whether it would affect its sales. So. When the ENnies judges evaluate products, one question they never ask themselves is "Will this nomination affect this product's sales?" They also never ask themselves "Does this company need an award?" What they ask is "Do we think this product is among the best in this category?" You may or may not agree with their conclusion (and that's OK - if everybody liked everything in the world exactly the same amount, it'd be a pretty dull world; plus the judges are elected, so there's a great opportunity to vote judges more to your liking next year! Or run yourself!), but that's how it comes about.
Awards aren't about sales. They're about people. At least, these ones are; I can't speak for awards in general.
When I and Eric Noah started the ENnies 15 or so years ago, all we thought was "Wouldn't it be cool if the fans got together and congratulated some of the awesome stuff out there?" And so we organised a little process, and a whole bunch of companies participated, and we all had a blast just saying "Well done!" to some people who had produced some awesome stuff that year. That's still what it's about.
Companies get their sales-based rewards in the form of profit. Individual writers and artists get personal rewards in - amongst other ways, of course - the very pleasant form of being awarded and lauded in front of their peers. Fans give publishers money, sure. But in this case, they also get chance to congratulate the contributors to a product on a more direct, personal level. It makes people feel good.
And a room full of people feeling good, enjoying seeing their friends and peers being publicly lauded is a good thing, especially in this increasingly toxic internet environment. It's a couple of hours of sheer positivity.
So WotC or Paizo or any other company might or might not need an award; I honestly don't know. That's not the point though. Let's assume they don't. The people who worked on it and who are part of that company? They may well very much appreciate and enjoy an award. They may well get something positive out of fans saying "Hey, good work!" And let's face it, these days a lot of people are spending a lot of time saying exactly the opposite.
Awards are about people and community and positivity and a break from cynicism. Anyone who bangs on about sales is missing the point. And when you've seen a few people getting their first award, whether they work for a big company or are a one-person publisher, you know that it matters.
So go vote in the ENnies! Because even if you hate award ceremonies, or you don't think they matter, or you don't think anybody needs an award, or you only feel qualified to vote in one or two categories (you're definitely qualified to vote in the best cover art category - the ballots even link to the product pages) ... what you're actually doing is giving a little something positive to the people who worked on the games you love. It won't change their life, but it will make them smile. And that's why it's worth it.
Awards aren't about sales. They're about people. At least, these ones are; I can't speak for awards in general.
When I and Eric Noah started the ENnies 15 or so years ago, all we thought was "Wouldn't it be cool if the fans got together and congratulated some of the awesome stuff out there?" And so we organised a little process, and a whole bunch of companies participated, and we all had a blast just saying "Well done!" to some people who had produced some awesome stuff that year. That's still what it's about.
Companies get their sales-based rewards in the form of profit. Individual writers and artists get personal rewards in - amongst other ways, of course - the very pleasant form of being awarded and lauded in front of their peers. Fans give publishers money, sure. But in this case, they also get chance to congratulate the contributors to a product on a more direct, personal level. It makes people feel good.
And a room full of people feeling good, enjoying seeing their friends and peers being publicly lauded is a good thing, especially in this increasingly toxic internet environment. It's a couple of hours of sheer positivity.
So WotC or Paizo or any other company might or might not need an award; I honestly don't know. That's not the point though. Let's assume they don't. The people who worked on it and who are part of that company? They may well very much appreciate and enjoy an award. They may well get something positive out of fans saying "Hey, good work!" And let's face it, these days a lot of people are spending a lot of time saying exactly the opposite.
Awards are about people and community and positivity and a break from cynicism. Anyone who bangs on about sales is missing the point. And when you've seen a few people getting their first award, whether they work for a big company or are a one-person publisher, you know that it matters.
So go vote in the ENnies! Because even if you hate award ceremonies, or you don't think they matter, or you don't think anybody needs an award, or you only feel qualified to vote in one or two categories (you're definitely qualified to vote in the best cover art category - the ballots even link to the product pages) ... what you're actually doing is giving a little something positive to the people who worked on the games you love. It won't change their life, but it will make them smile. And that's why it's worth it.
