Do your expectations of a product change . . .

[Wombat]

My answer is best expressed by "Yes, but ... No, but...", so I answered "Yes".

There are a number of companies (Green Ronin and Malhavoc are at the top of that list, WotC is not) where I am quite willing to give an immediate look at almost any product they come out with. This does not mean that I will buy it, but that I am willing to give it a chance. Equally there are certain companies (no names here, but not WotC) that simply because of their name I would have to think very, very hard about picking up a product from them even if it is on a topic that would work immediately and directly into my current campaign. And there are several other companies that I know put out good product, but simply have never put out anything that works with my gaming style.

That being said, I am more drawn to a topic than I am to a particular publisher. Given the choice between a supplement by "Fill In Name Of Random Company Here" that covers something I would want to delve into and a Green Ronin book that covers a very different topic, I would take the "Random Company" over the Green Ronin. First and foremost, the book has to be something that I would want/need for my campaign. The publisher is a secondary, but still important, consideration.

 

[diaglo]

i expect (after buying, using, reading, playtesting and other)... anything by certain publishers (WotC) to be crap. and 99 times out of 100 this still holds true.

out of smaller publishers i don't know, i hope for the best. but my FLGS doesn't usually carry their stuff. so even then i can't say much about them.

out of mid level publishers, i can buy stuff from... it is hard to say. some of them produce so few products in my area.. that 1 bad one does not a rating make. nor does 1 good product. even 1 out of say 4 isn't a good determining factor.

 

[Glyfair]

I expect different things from different publishers. Clearly, WotC has the advantage in anything that requires expenses and large quantity of product. However, as a large company, they have communication issues. Even a former employee of WotC has pointed out here that products are sometimes at the whim of a "suit" that happens to be walking by a meeting, decides to walk in and make changes to a product or line.

Smaller publishers tend to have their own personalities. The less people involved, the stronger the flavor. While a number of designers work for Malhavoc, clearly Monte's vision drives the company. Mongoose, on the other hand, has a more fragmented personality with different products have widely different flavors that depend on which designers are working on it.

 

[KB9JMQ]

I expect WOTC products to be of better quality and to use the rules the most correctly, they have the most to invest in a product.

But I will use any product that suits my needs or can be made to do so regardless of who made it.

 

[ShadowDenizen]

There are a number of companies (Green Ronin and Malhavoc are at the top of that list, WotC is not) where I am quite willing to give an immediate look at almost any product they come out with. This does not mean that I will buy it, but that I am willing to give it a chance. Equally there are certain companies (no names here, but not WotC) that simply because of their name I would have to think very, very hard about picking up a product from them even if it is on a topic that would work immediately and directly into my current campaign.

Ditto, though I would change "Green Ronin and Malhavoc" to "Fantsay Flight" and "White Wolf".

So, I picked "Yes" my expectations for products do change based on the publishers. Sometimes substansially, but most times only slightly.

 

[Faraer]

Surely the fact that the publisher is so often considered instead of the author, for instance here and with the ENnies, by itself indicates that publishers -- and their visible logos, trade dress, layout, etc., which we know are a big factor in purchasing -- do unduly influence people's perception of d20 books to some extent.

 

[Roudi]

I think I become attracted to products more because of my relationship with the publishers than the products themselves. For instance, there are a couple of publishers whose products I refuse to buy because I don't like who produces them (in one case, I feel sorry because that publisher employs some very talented writers, and I am missing out on their good work just to spite the jerk of a publisher from getting my money).

On the other hand, there are products out there that I might never have desired, except my good relations with their publishers / writers has improved my opinion of them. For example, I might never have wanted to get Dawning Star if it weren't for the sweet full-page ad they gave me for MODERNIZED's second issue. I tend to desire products from RPGObjects partially because of my good working relationship with them. And I loved the kooky stuff coming from TheLe so much that I actually started to freelance for him.

I'm probably a minority, but most of my purchases are motivated by my opinion of the publisher first and by the actual product second.

 

[Arnwyn]

My expectations? Abso-frootin-tootin-lutely.

Because of the ridiculous amount of d20 product available, I immediately look to certain publishers first because of what I expect from them, and use that to filter the available products.

 

[Varianor Abroad]

Geez, Wombat said it better than I could have.

 

[Commonblade]

I voted "no." A lot of times I go off of what is said here on the boards more than anything, if people like it I might buy it. But then again, I didn't buy any of the WoTC Environment Series or Races of "X." As good as they sound I just don't need them in my kitchen sink game...