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Kobold Press Going Down a Dark Road
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<blockquote data-quote="EzekielRaiden" data-source="post: 8978599" data-attributes="member: 6790260"><p>But one can argue--in fact, you just DID argue--that "the business side had no good idea about the business." That seems to be the <em>significantly</em> greater problem there. TSR ran itself into the ground because of faulty business ideas (and a certain amount of active malfeasance, AIUI) <em>completely unrelated</em> to game design.</p><p></p><p>We can also give an example of the reverse: a company that ruthlessly prioritized business above all else, which profited only in the <em>short</em> term, only to suffer for it long-term. Walmart. They took the stance that <em>absolutely all</em> costs should be reduced as much as possible: everything from demanding lower prices from their vendors (which killed Rubbermaid as an American business; they couldn't afford to sell at the prices Walmart demanded without resorting to overseas labor), to exploitation of transportation workers, to dropping employee compensation and benefits through the floor. And for a while, things were great! They made massive profits and expanded all over the country. </p><p></p><p>Unfortunately, this absolutely cutthroat attitude, plus their reputation as a <em>terrible</em> place to work, bit them in the butt hard starting about a decade ago. Their employees didn't care about keeping a job everyone knew was a last-ditch "I had to find work <em>somewhere</em>" job, so stores weren't getting cleaned, shelves weren't getting stocked, customers weren't getting prompt and friendly support, etc. Customer satisfaction dropped into the sub-20% range at many stores. And at the broader level, communities <em>revolted</em> against the possibility of Walmart moving into their area; in my own city (not exactly a "big" city, but not a small one either), there was an active campaign to deny Walmart the permits they would need in order to build their shopping centers. It took years of effort, millions of dollars, and they ended up getting only a fraction of what they'd hoped for.</p><p></p><p>It is just as foolish to prioritize business <em>absolutely exclusively</em> as it is to prioritize product <em>absolutely exclusively</em>. Thus, we are left not with a black and white "well obviously you dump design entirely and do whatever makes money <em>right now</em>" position, but one that requires nuance and careful thought. And, importantly, one that can argue that <em>maybe, just maybe</em>, WotC made the wrong call on a few things--not everything, as I'm sure you'll be eager to assume I'm saying, but on <em>some</em> things--and would have done better with a different arrangement.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="EzekielRaiden, post: 8978599, member: 6790260"] But one can argue--in fact, you just DID argue--that "the business side had no good idea about the business." That seems to be the [I]significantly[/I] greater problem there. TSR ran itself into the ground because of faulty business ideas (and a certain amount of active malfeasance, AIUI) [I]completely unrelated[/I] to game design. We can also give an example of the reverse: a company that ruthlessly prioritized business above all else, which profited only in the [I]short[/I] term, only to suffer for it long-term. Walmart. They took the stance that [I]absolutely all[/I] costs should be reduced as much as possible: everything from demanding lower prices from their vendors (which killed Rubbermaid as an American business; they couldn't afford to sell at the prices Walmart demanded without resorting to overseas labor), to exploitation of transportation workers, to dropping employee compensation and benefits through the floor. And for a while, things were great! They made massive profits and expanded all over the country. Unfortunately, this absolutely cutthroat attitude, plus their reputation as a [I]terrible[/I] place to work, bit them in the butt hard starting about a decade ago. Their employees didn't care about keeping a job everyone knew was a last-ditch "I had to find work [I]somewhere[/I]" job, so stores weren't getting cleaned, shelves weren't getting stocked, customers weren't getting prompt and friendly support, etc. Customer satisfaction dropped into the sub-20% range at many stores. And at the broader level, communities [I]revolted[/I] against the possibility of Walmart moving into their area; in my own city (not exactly a "big" city, but not a small one either), there was an active campaign to deny Walmart the permits they would need in order to build their shopping centers. It took years of effort, millions of dollars, and they ended up getting only a fraction of what they'd hoped for. It is just as foolish to prioritize business [I]absolutely exclusively[/I] as it is to prioritize product [I]absolutely exclusively[/I]. Thus, we are left not with a black and white "well obviously you dump design entirely and do whatever makes money [I]right now[/I]" position, but one that requires nuance and careful thought. And, importantly, one that can argue that [I]maybe, just maybe[/I], WotC made the wrong call on a few things--not everything, as I'm sure you'll be eager to assume I'm saying, but on [I]some[/I] things--and would have done better with a different arrangement. [/QUOTE]
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