kitsune9
Adventurer
I had you figured as an MBA in marketing. Mine is in finance though, but excellent points.
Defining, Finding, and Appealing to the Casual Gamer
- Thread starter innerdude
- Start date
I had you figured as an MBA in marketing. Mine is in finance though, but excellent points.
nedjer
Adventurer
Rare assembly of many-disciplined MBAs 
Let's say your mates all headed off for a holiday weekend, leaving you to work-up a bunch of blog posts and without a game
So you totally ignore the pressing duties and set down to work out how to appeal to casual gamers
Then, after many hours, and surrounded by sheets of paper, you get it. The clouds vanish and the landscape appears - revealing a path to popularising RPGs like never before.
What next - how do you make the sun shine?
Let's say your mates all headed off for a holiday weekend, leaving you to work-up a bunch of blog posts and without a game
So you totally ignore the pressing duties and set down to work out how to appeal to casual gamers
Then, after many hours, and surrounded by sheets of paper, you get it. The clouds vanish and the landscape appears - revealing a path to popularising RPGs like never before.
What next - how do you make the sun shine?
Get hawt people to get large tattoos of FRPG maps, turning D&D into a geeked out version of the refrigerator scene from 9 1/2 Weeks.
This is, I think, the best answer. DMs buy more books and are more likely to read them more casually rather then just when they make their character, and in turn bring even more people into the hobby
nedjer
Adventurer
Ydars
Explorer
I found an interesting post on 'The Alexandrian' the other day, that I think speaks to the point of this thread.
The Alexandrian (see 'Opening your gaming table')
Basically, he writes that a roleplaying game can be liken to a game of baseball; when he started with megadungeon-type games, the commitment required, in terms of time and effort for the players, could be likened to a game of catch. In other words almost nothing. They got together, did a delve and if the same people were not around next day, (he played in school breaks, as did I) then it was no problem.
Now, with games that rely on huge story arcs and loads of plot, each player becomes integral to the game, almost from the moment they join and so they are signing up, possibly for several years of weekly gaming.
His point is that a hobby requiring that level of commitment up front, is analogous to asking someone who is about to join a game of catch for fun, to commit themselves to the baseball leagues right from day 1.
It just doesn't sell well with many people.
I was also thinking something similar when I was hauling out all of my 3.5 books for a game a few weeks ago; looking at the vast amount of rules we need to play this game, it must really intimidate the newbie gamer. I mean I had 30 books on the table at one point. Even the 3.5 PHB is a heck of a lot to learn.
Note that computer games do not do this; they are essentially 'fire 'em up when you want' games of catch and you don't need to know any rules. So they remove both the social and the rules knowledge constraints from gaming.
Hence they are more accessible.
So if someone wants to make TT RPGs more accessible, I think they need to produce a game that is episodic in nature, where the cast can change every session and that is rules lite.
But also make this rules-lite game one that has the same intrinsic rules as something like D&D, so that the more interested gamer can slowly graduate if they want.
I guess this also suggests that we, as DMs, need to think about running this type of game when we first start up in a new area or when we are trawling around for new players.
The Alexandrian (see 'Opening your gaming table')
Basically, he writes that a roleplaying game can be liken to a game of baseball; when he started with megadungeon-type games, the commitment required, in terms of time and effort for the players, could be likened to a game of catch. In other words almost nothing. They got together, did a delve and if the same people were not around next day, (he played in school breaks, as did I) then it was no problem.
Now, with games that rely on huge story arcs and loads of plot, each player becomes integral to the game, almost from the moment they join and so they are signing up, possibly for several years of weekly gaming.
His point is that a hobby requiring that level of commitment up front, is analogous to asking someone who is about to join a game of catch for fun, to commit themselves to the baseball leagues right from day 1.
It just doesn't sell well with many people.
I was also thinking something similar when I was hauling out all of my 3.5 books for a game a few weeks ago; looking at the vast amount of rules we need to play this game, it must really intimidate the newbie gamer. I mean I had 30 books on the table at one point. Even the 3.5 PHB is a heck of a lot to learn.
Note that computer games do not do this; they are essentially 'fire 'em up when you want' games of catch and you don't need to know any rules. So they remove both the social and the rules knowledge constraints from gaming.
Hence they are more accessible.
So if someone wants to make TT RPGs more accessible, I think they need to produce a game that is episodic in nature, where the cast can change every session and that is rules lite.
But also make this rules-lite game one that has the same intrinsic rules as something like D&D, so that the more interested gamer can slowly graduate if they want.
I guess this also suggests that we, as DMs, need to think about running this type of game when we first start up in a new area or when we are trawling around for new players.
GreyLord
Legend
No kidding, Lanefan. I've tried to get another one as a birthday present for a player, but I couldn't find one online for anything less than 3x the original cover price. That's an ODD situation for an OOP game.
My FLGS did have a copy of the 3e PHB in Italian, but then it closed down.
And no, I don't live in Italy. I live in the Puget Sound region of WA state, home to far too many geeks who won't give up their old books! This is the downside of living near WOTC, Paizo, Nintendo, Microsoft, and Big Fish Games, among others . . .
Wow. Is this a West Coast thing. I made a statement just a few weeks ago that I got a PHB for $4 and people made similar comments. I can find a few 3.5 PHB's out here from $5 - $20. Maybe I should start picking them up and selling the to people on the US West Coast or something?
I did note that they had a ridiculous price on the 3.5 core books a few weeks ago as well, totally mystified at why people were charging that much.
Perhaps the West Coast is driving this spike in 3.5 Pricing, at least out there and in some areas online...but it seems that if I travel around a bit to second hand stores it's still relatively easy to find one cheap still. I even found some new ones that are on sale for their original pricing (along with a shelf full of 3.5 books that didn't sell...they also have a glut of 4e it appears...very little 2e and 1e though. I know of a store that HAS 1e and 2e stuff in my local area for relatively good prices, but it seems more stores have the newer stuff rather than the older stuff. The older stuff tends to be cheaper on a whole however).
Starfox
Hero
I recognize myself in this, and I think this is an issue for the industry. Its mostly younger/newer gamers that need to bye canned game products - older gamers either use their own system or picked one they like and stay with it. The same goes for game worlds. What I look for these days is mostly well-deigned adventures/campaigns.
The industry has 2 options in this situation:
* Make a new game for new players (The 4E option)
* Continue an old game and focus on adventures/setting material (The Pathfinder option)
Croesus
Adventurer
Or better yet, design a TTRPG that doesn't require such commitment just to play a freakin game.
Boiled down, most companies have two basic choices:
-Occupy a niche and sell to dedicated customers
-Provide a commodity that you can sell to millions of customers
TTRPG's are an example of the former. Risk, Monopoly, World of Warcraft are examples of the second. The industry can continue to pursue the first strategy, but if so, it will never, ever be more than a very minor niche.
If the industry wants to sell to "casual" purchasers, it needs to give them a reason to buy. Which means it needs to sell games, not a lifestyle.
Similar Threads
