How would you keep 3.5 in print? (Forked Thread: WotC to Revise D&D 4th Edition GSL)

[Crothian]

As far as the rules being online well then you are consciously limiting your market to only those gamers who use the internet for gaming...and have even less availability for the new player whose looking through books in a store. Not really smart if you want to expand or grow your player base.

Your last idea might be good...except nice color hardbacks sell, plain and simple. They're more attractive, draw more attention, etc. Again if you actually want a fanbase and want it to grow... why skimp on production values.

It is not an either or list of ideas. You do them both together. You get people to use the on line rules for those people who like and want them. You advertise in your books that they are there for people that would use them if they knew about them. Even fans who don't normally use the net would at least see they are there and they might find a way to look at them and see them there.

Sure a nice 50$ full color book might sell well, but what about a simple to read 20$ book? Inexpensive books sell, too. Combine that with the on line rules and you have a simple way to keep the rules available for the customers.

The books that then are written to build off of these are the ones I would go to full color for.

 

[Imaro]

It is not an either or list of ideas. You do them both together. You get people to use the on line rules for those people who like and want them. You advertise in your books that they are there for people that would use them if they knew about them. Even fans who don't normally use the net would at least see they are there and they might find a way to look at them and see them there.

Sure a nice 50$ full color book might sell well, but what about a simple to read 20$ book? Inexpensive books sell, too. Combine that with the on line rules and you have a simple way to keep the rules available for the customers.

The books that then are written to build off of these are the ones I would go to full color for.

Well Paizo is offering the Beta version for $17 on Amazon...or free on their website after release, so those who just want those tweaks or whatever get them for free or minimal cost.

That said, the reality of the hobby is that most of your money is made off corebooks, not supplements and eye candy sells. I mean in all honesty I can't find fault with Paizo's price point... especially having purchased the 4e books and looking at the font size and amount of whitespace in these books for $35 each. D&D has one of the highest buy in costs for the complete game throughout the rpg industry... and it's the top seller (not to mention they quickkly canned their plans to offer anyone who purchased the core free PDF's). I just think you're being a little unrealistic here (did WotC do this when they released 3.5?), almost as if Pathfinder should be treated like a second rate product as opposed to a new game, and going that route does nothing but reinforce that image.

And let's be real, unless WotC changes their stance on OGL and GSL products in the same line... Pathfinder the brand will eventually be defined by this rulebook, I wouldn't risk doing it in a cheap version that is the bare minimum and unattractive, or as an online format.

 

[Darrin Drader]

Well Paizo is offering the Beta version for $17 on Amazon...or free on their website after release, so those who just want those tweaks or whatever get them for free or minimal cost.

That said, the reality of the hobby is that most of your money is made off corebooks, not supplements and eye candy sells. I mean in all honesty I can't find fault with Paizo's price point... especially having purchased the 4e books and looking at the font size and amount of whitespace in these books for $35 each. D&D has one of the highest buy in costs for the complete game throughout the rpg industry... and it's the top seller (not to mention they quickkly canned their plans to offer anyone who purchased the core free PDF's). I just think you're being a little unrealistic here (did WotC do this when they released 3.5?), almost as if Pathfinder should be treated like a second rate product as opposed to a new game, and going that route does nothing but reinforce that image.

And let's be real, unless WotC changes their stance on OGL and GSL products in the same line... Pathfinder the brand will eventually be defined by this rulebook, I wouldn't risk doing it in a cheap version that is the bare minimum and unattractive, or as an online format.

Also remember that the final Pathfinder book will be the PHB and DMG combined. So you're really going to be getting two rulebooks worth of content for $50. With D&D, you get those two books for $70. The Pathfinder RPG wins the value game as long as the final price remains as previously announced.

 

[Crothian]

almost as if Pathfinder should be treated like a second rate product as opposed to a new game

It is not a new game, it is an old game that is just being tweaked and repackaged.

Also, this is not what I think Piazo should do. This has nothing to do with Piazo. The question I am answering is "How would I keep the 3.5 rules in print?" I have no issues with Piazo or Pathfinder. I helped nominate Pathfinder Alpha for an ENnie and other Piazo products. Trust me when I say I'm a fan.

 

[ProfessorCirno]

It is not a new game, it is an old game that is just being tweaked and repackaged.

Also, this is not what I think Piazo should do. This has nothing to do with Piazo. The question I am answering is "How would I keep the 3.5 rules in print?" I have no issues with Piazo or Pathfinder. I helped nominate Pathfinder Alpha for an ENnie and other Piazo products. Trust me when I say I'm a fan.

And I disagree strongly. As others have said, Pathfinder is a new game, it's just a step up from an old one.

 

[Crothian]

And I disagree strongly. As others have said, Pathfinder is a new game, it's just a step up from an old one.

Frankly, it doesn't matter if I or other people consider it new or not new. I'm going to buy it next year and I imagine many people will to no matter what they think. Heck, maybe when the game is actually out I might change my mind.

 

[ProfessorCirno]

Frankly, it doesn't matter if I or other people consider it new or not new. I'm going to buy it next year and I imagine many people will to no matter what they think. Heck, maybe when the game is actually out I might change my mind.

Oh, I'm not trying to get angry at you. There's just some sick, soul-less part of me that enjoys arguing semantics

 

[The Little Raven]

Your quoted people are obviously not aware of the whole reason behind PAthfinder, and then complain out of ignorance.

You might be right if I had, in fact, been talking about Pathfinder. However, since I wasn't talking about Pathfinder (because I (a) understand it's purpose and (b) don't care about it at all), I'd prefer if you didn't label me complaining or ignorant when you are, in fact, ignorant of the context of my post.

 

[Darrin Drader]

As others have said, Pathfinder is a new game, it's just a step up from an old one.

I like to think of it as an alternate new edition of D&D with the logo filed off. In many ways it is new. It fixes a lot of things, and they have promised to make high level more playable by the final release, but it's doing this without nuking the field full of sacred cows from orbit. I don't like my steak radioactive.

 

[Imaro]

You might be right if I had, in fact, been talking about Pathfinder. However, since I wasn't talking about Pathfinder (because I (a) understand it's purpose and (b) don't care about it at all), I'd prefer if you didn't label me complaining or ignorant when you are, in fact, ignorant of the context of my post.

In Treebore's defense... the poster whose views you were defending did cite Paizo, specifically, in reference to what he was talking about.

This is also why so many people are talking about Pathfinder.