Fantasy Flight Games Discontinuing RPGs?

Back in January, it emerged that FFG was laying off a lot of staff, including RPG staff. Now, GM Chris over at d20 Radio is reporting that the company is discontinuing all RPG development, including Star Wars, Legend of the Five Rings, and its relatively newer Genesys universal system.

He says that all currently announced products will be produced, but in the long-term the RPG production is ending. There's some speculation regarding sales of companies to each other (FFG's owner is Asmodee, which is owned by PAI Partners who bought it from Eurazeo), but it's only conjecture. More info at the link below!

Fantasy Flight Games Long Term Plan will Discontinue RPG Development - d20 Radio

This article is a follow-up to a prior article published on January 8, 2020. We at d20Radio are sad to announce that we have independently confirmed [...]

www.d20radio.com

FFG's Katrina Ostrander appears to have confirmed the news:


Back in January, FFG laid off over 14 staff, and shut down Fantasy Flight Interactive. Reports were that the tabletop RPG department had been "shuttered" -- reduced to a couple of full timers. It sounds now like the cut is more severe even than that.

 

[prabe]

No RPG has an expiration date.

Just because any game or any edition of a game ceases publication doesn't mean it will never again be playable - just no longer supported. People will have to... USE their imaginations to come up with material to support OOP games...

I mean, I like FFG's SW system even if I think it's hardly the best system for Star Wars. But news that they may cease publication of it and all related RPG's for whatever reason... Sad, but that's the business. Once was a time in the late '90's I had largely lost hope of seeing D&D ever published again. I've always been all about D&D and was saddened by that idea, but was secure in the knowledge that at least all the D&D material I'd bought up to that point was still viable (if not slightly more valuable due to being in decreasing supply from then on) and that I and others would continue to create material compatible with various D&D editions and continue to play it - whether the game itself was in print or not.

Not all games succeed forever; not all companies succeed forever. Frankly, even if they didn't use it for the SW IP, I think companies would be foolish to not swarm all over acquiring that system to use for a generic substitute setting, or other settings and genres.

I don't disagree with any of this--not at all--but I think it's easier to get other people into playing a new game if they can go to their FLGS and pick up a copy. It's the biggest advantage of playing a game that's in print, IMO.

 

[aramis erak]

It would certainly be a shame to have an era with no Star Wars RPG.

I strongly suspect Mongoose will try for it again.

 

[aramis erak]

I know. I'm just noting, in the middle of that, the FFG's game design is going to disappear. Someone else will get the license, and design a new system

Maybe, maybe not. All the copyrights are Disney's, not FFGs. It's quite possible that a licensee could ask for permission to use the FFG game, and make a new edition thereof.

While we've not seen it often, we know Disney let FFG reprint WEG's initial 2 books.

I predict Fandom will pick up the license and do a Star Wars RPG using the Cortex RPG system they recently acquired. They would include D&D Beyond-style digital support with DRM content. I also predict it will be awesome!

FFG was very clear that Disney would NOT let them do electronic formats other than for playtest.

Hasbro and EA could agree something about digital content.

EA is so paranoid a corporate culture that they require online license validation for every launch of a game. I doubt they'd be willing to risk their license that way. And if they did, whatever solution they insisted would be used would (1) go through them, (2) have an ongoing cost, (3) require online validation every launch.

 

[Clansmansix]

Last I heard on the SW license - and this was years ago - was that it was in the region of a $100K advance on royalties. That was all through the rumour-milll though. If that's the case, not many RPG companies could do it -- who's had a big Kickstarter in the last couple of years? Or, if all else is lost, Modiphius only has 7,942,274 licenses right now!

I would totally be down for a Star Wars game using Modiphius' 2d20 rules-set. Seems a perfect fit to me!

 

[aramis erak]

One last thought from me on this today:

Disney could just decide to take and put the extant games, all of which they own the copyrights on, and make them available via POD-only. No development cost, very little layout cost. Be a total **** move, but cancelling the MHRP license was, too.

MHRP was and is an excellent game.

I also somehow doubt Cam would be onboard with working with Disney... once bitten, twice shy.

 

[Sunsword]

Star Wars would get picked up (though it's an EXPENSIVE license). L5R will be interesting. Not sure about Genesys.

Maybe Modiphius will make a 2d20 Star Wars?

 

[Sunsword]

But if someone does pick it up, it will probably be, yet again, another new rule system. All because some equity capital investment company could strip it (or more accurately Asmodee) in an effort to boost its apparent value and eventually sell it off for a profit. Hey, no matter that people lost their jobs - some investor has money to make based on the value those unemployed people built up.

Sadly, that's the way the SW license goes. Nothing preventing anyone from play FFG Star Wars still, just like people play WEG SW and D20 SW.

 

[Sunsword]

5E Star Wars here we come!

Star Wars 5e

sw5e.com

 

[Sunsword]

It would be interesting to see if Paizo might try for the Star Wars licence. The owners are HUGE Star Wars fans and actually tried for it years ago. Heck, they could move it over to the Star Finder rules set ...

If I remember right, Lisa Stevens led the development of WotC's 1st Edition of the Star Wars RPG. That being said, the 1st Edition was just D&D in space.

 

[Undrave]

If I remember right, Lisa Stevens led the development of WotC's 1st Edition of the Star Wars RPG. That being said, the 1st Edition was just D&D in space.

So... Spelljammers??