Marketing Question

[Waylander the Slayer]

Have there been any companies that cross packaged settings based on books along with the book? For example, A Game of Thrones Novel packaged with a small "intorductory booklet" for A Game of Thrones RPG. Or is this too difficult to do? Too gimicky for the author?

 

[Sigurd]

I can't think of any instances of packaging an RPG product with a book. My gut reaction is that you would hurt the appeal of the product. Leaving aside the issue of the geekyness of rpgs, I think a majority of readers don't game (so you'd hurt the books appeal) and many gamers are not necessarily heavy readers.

Unless it was done at a game con or something I don't see it happening.

The book has to be well known enough to be an appealing setting but by then it doesn't need any help from the RPG element.


The closest example I can think of is actually Enworld's WotBS where they are putting together a book based on the campaign. I think cross presentation might work if it was a free story with an RPG module. Thats sort of the White Wolf format with short stories and\or comics.


Sigurd

 

[Fifth Element]

It certainly wouldn't work in the mass market, but I can see the potential is the hobby shop trade. The only question would be whether it would be cost-effective to do it for such a small segment of the market.

 

[Roudi]

WotC does something similar for Magic: the Gathering... each new set features a "Fat Pack" which comes with a whack of cards, some accessories, and the set's associated novel.

 

[Bardsandsages]

It certainly wouldn't work in the mass market, but I can see the potential is the hobby shop trade. The only question would be whether it would be cost-effective to do it for such a small segment of the market.

Yes, I would have to agree. I think it would be an interesting "exclusive" at a convention or something, but extremely difficult to market on a mass level. The fiction market and the RPG market are two completely different things, even if gamers read and readers game.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

In general, I think you're lucky just to get a link from the author site.

Waaaay back around 1990 or so, Weiss and Hickman took a trilogy that I think was called "spellsword" or something like that and released an RPG as a paperback sized book that was to be sold as a novel just like the books, so everything was in the same spot. That later became the Sovereign Stone setting.

 

[Sigurd]

A simple gauge might be to ask yourself: do (did) dragon magazine readers look forward to the various fiction pieces included in the magazine.

Personally, I always thought they were an item in the way of the game material.

 

[Waylander the Slayer]

What I am thinking of is more along the lines of a small booklet in the back of a novel that could easily be ignored. It seems a good way of pulling in new gamers.