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Message: <blockquote data-quote="tx7321" data-source="post: 3323023" data-attributes="member: 43146">1E is God... <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f600.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":D" title="Big grin    :D"  data-smilie="8"data-shortname=":D" />   Diaglo would disagree. Merric: "I know AD&D (1e) certainly had a time when it was the "hot new thing".Aaron and MerricB, certainly 1E was a new craze (it was the first wide spread FRPG afterall), and in that way a fad. However, when the game was first on the scene it was a stable system, it wasn't marketed as a fad (with flashy new material released on a regular basis). I'm sure Monopoly was a Fad when it was first released, right?  There was a difference (before the termoil and Gygax ouster).We didn't see the "gotta have this new product" model going on.  What we saw were new modules (with pretty conservative covers), Dragon, and smaller supplements.  UA and Dragonlance were (I believe) the first big "gotta have it" products that started the ball rolling.  If you can't see a difference between the way TSR was run between early 1E TSR (Gygax in control) and late 1E and then 2E TSR  (Gygax out)...well I don't know what to tell yah.  All I can say is I do see a difference.  Your statement about how Gygax would have made different choices in the begining if he had 20 years of FRPG markets to look at, is neither here nor there.  perhaps he would have (who knows)...my point is he didn't (for what ever reason). Merric: "3E doesn't come close to your definition of fad, as it - being the core books - focused on ongoing sales. Supplements are a different matter, and being supplements, they don't really belong to a "fad" idea; rather they have few evergreen sales (with some exceptions: the Complete series in particular)."3E puts out alot of material that does effect the core.  A trip to the gaming store this last weekend overloaded the senses.  I could barely find the C&C material I was looking for.  They flood the market with new supplements.  Your right, most don't come off as Fad (its not just pretty covers with blah inside), so I retract that statement.  That said, WOTC set up 3E to create a cash flow through constant release of new supplements that effect the core game (not just adventures, monsters, magic etc.) so its "gotta have that new prestige class, new feat etc." so is, in a way, Fadish (by the definition I posted to PirateCat).TSRs early growth strategy was to focus on supporting 1E and creating new games for different genre (sci-fi, western, horror).  That changed with late TSR (post Gygax).  1E did go Fad with Dragonlance and some of the later books, but early on it was the 3 core books and supporting modules.   I don't expect everyone to agree with my assessment.  As PirateCat suggests, the term "fad" is somewhat subjective (even in the music and clothing businesses).  Each person has to look at the body of work generated for each period and make their own decisions.  I only stated my observations.  That doesn't mean you can't draw a different conclusion.  There was an interesting article I read someplace (I'm sure someone else could post the link) describing the differences between the typical board game market, and the book publishing market (what FRPGs really fall into).  I think early on TSR hoped AD&D would be one feather in a cap of many FRPG games like it; but the economics of publishing required its flagship to continously change to sell new books (so instead of being a stable system like Monopoly, it had to drastically change every few years).  When 1E first came on the scene I think the dynamics of the market weren't really that understood.  Also, I don't think the company really expected to grow the way it did.  Once the engine was their it needed more fuel then ever to keep it running.  It wasn't any longer a few guys in a basement, it was something much bigger.</blockquote>

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