Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is coming! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Mike Mearls Talks (er, Tweets) About the Industry
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Iosue" data-source="post: 7674019" data-attributes="member: 6680772"><p>[HQ][Promoted Thread][/HQ] So Cam Banks asked this question on Twitter on June 18, setting off a string of interesting tweets by Mr. Mearls. Tweety caveats apply (limited characters, loss of nuance, etc.) I've ordered the posts by time as best I could, and sblocked tangents so that they don't interrupt the flow. But be sure to read them. Also, I used Mearls as my guiding star, so conversations generally end with him. However, there were other interesting posts by other folks that I haven't included here, so if you're interested, check out Mearls' Twitter feed, for June 18th, around 11 AM.</p><p>[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]</p><p></p><p><strong>Cam Banks</strong>, 11:04</p><p>But the question is: is there a D&D 5e-sized market for a new SF RPG, whether it's Traveller or something else revisited?</p><p></p><p> <strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:10</p><p>I don't believe out of the gate. I think an audience could be built, though.</p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Cam Banks</strong>, 11:11</p><p>I think so, too. I think we've seen sufficient market interest in other media that it's almost a no-brainer.</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:11</p><p>challenge with RPGs is publishers go all in on one title, compared to how board game publishers manage their lines</p><p></p><p><strong>Cam Banks</strong>, 11:12</p><p>Multiple lines with multiple support?</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:12</p><p>I'd love to see an FFG of RPGs emerge, focusing on new games and following the hits with support.</p><p></p><p><strong>Gurney Halleck</strong>, 11:13</p><p> I think the markets are very different due to the nature of the games themselves.</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:13</p><p>yeah, with most titles core game and nothing else if they lack traction</p><p></p><p><strong>Gurney Halleck</strong>, 11:13</p><p>To make that sustainable you would need a MONSTER hit of a core game.</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:13</p><p> yeah, current RPG fans have a script that plays out badly for publishers</p><p></p><p>[sblock=Eurogame Tangent]</p><p><strong>Gurney Halleck</strong>, 11:13</p><p>The Euro-stylegames created a new market. RPGs are an existing one, and that’s hard to alter.</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:14</p><p>board game fans of 1995 (pre-Settlers) were much different beasts, different expectations than today...</p><p></p><p><strong>Gurney Halleck</strong>, 11:15</p><p> The Euro-stylegames created a new market. RPGs are an existing one, and that’s hard to alter.</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:16</p><p> in some ways, but I think Euros captured the old market + added all sorts of on ramps</p><p></p><p><strong>Gurney Halleck</strong>, 11:18</p><p>Not sure I agree. SOME wargamers got carved off, and some mainstream players. But I think Settles built something.</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:19</p><p>it established some new norms, and redefined what came before, says the guy who just ordered Heroes of Normandie[/sblock]</p><p><strong>Rob Donoghue</strong>, 11:13</p><p>"support" means something pretty different.</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:15</p><p>yeah, board games have such clear expansion paths - more players, expand card deck X to size Y, replace A with B</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:15</p><p>RPG fans are like - publish another entire game worth of stuff that just adds complexity!</p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Rob Donoghue</strong>, 11:17</p><p>Yah. I think there's a lack of a real playbook for how to handle RPG success consistently. Many one offs.</p><p></p><p>[sblock=Supplements tangent]<strong>Dean Gilbert</strong>, 11:18</p><p>I'm starting to think that there isn't a very large market at all for supplementary material.</p><p></p><p><strong><strong>Mike Mearls</strong></strong>, 11:21</p><p>it's tricky, and I think it looks much more like the board game expansion market than what RPGs have been[/sblock]<strong></strong></p><p><strong>Cam Banks</strong>, 11:17</p><p>Many of us are experiment-minded at heart but feel bound by the past.</p><p></p><p><strong><strong>Mike Mearls</strong></strong>, 11:18</p><p>no one has solved it, in terms of a business model. the biggest challenge of 5e will be years 3 - 5.</p><p></p><p><strong>Rob Donoghue</strong>, 11:18</p><p>Curse of super thin margins, little time, and a tyrannical streak. <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /> </p><p></p><p>[sblock=Magazine Tangent]</p><p><strong>Adam Jury</strong>, 11:18</p><p>Big problem is educating retailers about new things.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:19</p><p>and fans! We need a White Wolf magazine for the 21st century</p><p></p><p><strong>Rob Donoghue</strong>, 11:20</p><p>Magazines unfortunately are facing the same uncertainty. </p><p></p><p><strong>Cam Banks</strong>, 11:20 </p><p>I'm looking at Dragon+ to see how that performs.</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:21</p><p>it's funny, people get really loud and upset if they aren't getting stuff for the game they already play</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:22</p><p>that's been very consistent across Dragon's lifespan[/sblock]</p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 11:20</p><p>yeah, the most expensive product I can do is an RPG book. board games have components, but dev time is way shorter</p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Jim McGarva</strong>, 1:14</p><p>Are you hoping to change that over at Wizards? To stop going all-in on D&D and branch out to multiple lines?</p><p></p><p><strong>Mike Mearls</strong>, 2:41</p><p>we're pretty much the D&D company, and that works for us because D&D is also video games, board games, etc</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Iosue, post: 7674019, member: 6680772"] [HQ][Promoted Thread][/HQ] So Cam Banks asked this question on Twitter on June 18, setting off a string of interesting tweets by Mr. Mearls. Tweety caveats apply (limited characters, loss of nuance, etc.) I've ordered the posts by time as best I could, and sblocked tangents so that they don't interrupt the flow. But be sure to read them. Also, I used Mearls as my guiding star, so conversations generally end with him. However, there were other interesting posts by other folks that I haven't included here, so if you're interested, check out Mearls' Twitter feed, for June 18th, around 11 AM. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] [B]Cam Banks[/B], 11:04 But the question is: is there a D&D 5e-sized market for a new SF RPG, whether it's Traveller or something else revisited? [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:10 I don't believe out of the gate. I think an audience could be built, though. [B] Cam Banks[/B], 11:11 I think so, too. I think we've seen sufficient market interest in other media that it's almost a no-brainer. [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:11 challenge with RPGs is publishers go all in on one title, compared to how board game publishers manage their lines [B]Cam Banks[/B], 11:12 Multiple lines with multiple support? [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:12 I'd love to see an FFG of RPGs emerge, focusing on new games and following the hits with support. [B]Gurney Halleck[/B], 11:13 I think the markets are very different due to the nature of the games themselves. [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:13 yeah, with most titles core game and nothing else if they lack traction [B]Gurney Halleck[/B], 11:13 To make that sustainable you would need a MONSTER hit of a core game. [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:13 yeah, current RPG fans have a script that plays out badly for publishers [sblock=Eurogame Tangent] [B]Gurney Halleck[/B], 11:13 The Euro-stylegames created a new market. RPGs are an existing one, and that’s hard to alter. [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:14 board game fans of 1995 (pre-Settlers) were much different beasts, different expectations than today... [B]Gurney Halleck[/B], 11:15 The Euro-stylegames created a new market. RPGs are an existing one, and that’s hard to alter. [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:16 in some ways, but I think Euros captured the old market + added all sorts of on ramps [B]Gurney Halleck[/B], 11:18 Not sure I agree. SOME wargamers got carved off, and some mainstream players. But I think Settles built something. [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:19 it established some new norms, and redefined what came before, says the guy who just ordered Heroes of Normandie[/sblock] [B]Rob Donoghue[/B], 11:13 "support" means something pretty different. [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:15 yeah, board games have such clear expansion paths - more players, expand card deck X to size Y, replace A with B [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:15 RPG fans are like - publish another entire game worth of stuff that just adds complexity! [B] Rob Donoghue[/B], 11:17 Yah. I think there's a lack of a real playbook for how to handle RPG success consistently. Many one offs. [sblock=Supplements tangent][B]Dean Gilbert[/B], 11:18 I'm starting to think that there isn't a very large market at all for supplementary material. [B][B]Mike Mearls[/B][/B], 11:21 it's tricky, and I think it looks much more like the board game expansion market than what RPGs have been[/sblock][B] Cam Banks[/B], 11:17 Many of us are experiment-minded at heart but feel bound by the past. [B][B]Mike Mearls[/B][/B], 11:18 no one has solved it, in terms of a business model. the biggest challenge of 5e will be years 3 - 5. [B]Rob Donoghue[/B], 11:18 Curse of super thin margins, little time, and a tyrannical streak. :) [sblock=Magazine Tangent] [B]Adam Jury[/B], 11:18 Big problem is educating retailers about new things. [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:19 and fans! We need a White Wolf magazine for the 21st century [B]Rob Donoghue[/B], 11:20 Magazines unfortunately are facing the same uncertainty. [B]Cam Banks[/B], 11:20 I'm looking at Dragon+ to see how that performs. [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:21 it's funny, people get really loud and upset if they aren't getting stuff for the game they already play [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:22 that's been very consistent across Dragon's lifespan[/sblock] [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 11:20 yeah, the most expensive product I can do is an RPG book. board games have components, but dev time is way shorter [B] Jim McGarva[/B], 1:14 Are you hoping to change that over at Wizards? To stop going all-in on D&D and branch out to multiple lines? [B]Mike Mearls[/B], 2:41 we're pretty much the D&D company, and that works for us because D&D is also video games, board games, etc [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Mike Mearls Talks (er, Tweets) About the Industry
Top