Olgar Shiverstone
Legend
Paizo, hands down. And I don't even play Pathfinder.
NOMINATE: Best RPG company.
- Thread starter Aberzanzorax
- Start date
MrGrenadine
icastbrainstorm.beehiiv.com
Paizo, because over the past couple years, I've spent more hours having fun with their products than anyone else's.
Runners up:
Gygax era TSR
Green Ronin
Goodman Games
OGL/3.5 era WotC
Runners up:
Gygax era TSR
Green Ronin
Goodman Games
OGL/3.5 era WotC
Mark CMG
Creative Mountain Games
With that as a standard, it would be hard not to put Steve Jackson Games on a list like this. Many of thier games are known by games of all stripes, RPGs, boardgames, card games, but for this thread the one that matters most is GURPS. It's clearly one of the best known and well liked RPGs outside of D&D, with many supplements that people use regardless of the RPG they are playing. It's the first system meant to be played across all genres. GURPS marks a quarter century of being published this year through four editions. SJG has to make the shortlist, at the least.
Steve Jackson Games - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
El Mahdi
Muad'Dib of the Anauroch
Paizo. And I don't play Pathfinder either (though I like their adventures, and I've stolen some of the mechanical bits that I like...
) In my opinion, they are the only one of the top RPG companies currently doing everything right. Good quality products, an extensive but not overly saturated product line, and most importantly: phenomenal public/customer relations and involvement. Their relationship with their customers is the factor that's pushing them to the top of the industry. Want to know how to take a company to the top of the RPG mountain and keep it there, then pay attention to how Paizo interacts with their fans and customers. They are now the industry standard for this.
But, I have to put a vote in for Open Design also. Not a huge RPG company. Not a very large product line. Not even their own system. But the stuff they make (for other companies systems) is of the absolute highest quality. I agree with some of the above posters, Kobold Quarterly is the spiritual successor to the print Dragon and Dungeon magazines. And some of their stuff even go beyond just professional gaming publications and enter the realm of classic epic fiction (i.e.: The Red Eye of Azathoth...I can't wait for this to come out...it's getting so close). Probably the best quality in the industry right now.
Also, I have to put a vote in for Fat Dragon Games. They do some actual RPG books (for other companies systems), but their printable terrain products are the absoulute best anywhere! There might be some printable terrain products from other companies that are individually better, but Fat Dragon Games line is the most comprehensive and all-inclusive line in existence, with industry standard setting quality and unmatched practical usability.
Lastly, I'm going to drop in an off-beat vote for Ki Ryn Studios (Ryan Wolf). The Future Armada line is the absolute best line of products for sci-fi/future spaceships, EVAR! The included art of the vehicles in action, is what puts Future Armada products above other spaceship products. Not just a grid map of the vehicle and the vehicles stats, but professional quality, realistic looking computer generated pictures of the vehicles in action in assorted settings, environments, and from various angles. The pictures are what make them come alive. Show a group of players a grid map of their ship and a stat sheet, and they'll respond well enough. But show them a cool-ass picture of their ship in action, and you've instantly got them hooked. Nobody else in this niche provides this with their products. Ryan Wolf's attention to detail on this line (even though it's a rather small niche product line) has set a new standard for the quality of these types of products. Quality wise, they're light years beyond any other similar products on the market.
Lastly-lastly, I have to add an honorable mention to EN Publishing also. I'm impressed with the new license for Santiago, licensing War of the Burning Sky into an MMO, and developing another new epic AP...along with all of the cool little products they've made over the years. I've bought and integrated quite a bit of the little mechanical goodness they've published. With the increased presence of ENWorld, Morrus is really starting to make a name for himself and ENWorld/EN Publishing. And we can all say I remember him when...
) In my opinion, they are the only one of the top RPG companies currently doing everything right. Good quality products, an extensive but not overly saturated product line, and most importantly: phenomenal public/customer relations and involvement. Their relationship with their customers is the factor that's pushing them to the top of the industry. Want to know how to take a company to the top of the RPG mountain and keep it there, then pay attention to how Paizo interacts with their fans and customers. They are now the industry standard for this.But, I have to put a vote in for Open Design also. Not a huge RPG company. Not a very large product line. Not even their own system. But the stuff they make (for other companies systems) is of the absolute highest quality. I agree with some of the above posters, Kobold Quarterly is the spiritual successor to the print Dragon and Dungeon magazines. And some of their stuff even go beyond just professional gaming publications and enter the realm of classic epic fiction (i.e.: The Red Eye of Azathoth...I can't wait for this to come out...it's getting so close
). Probably the best quality in the industry right now.Also, I have to put a vote in for Fat Dragon Games. They do some actual RPG books (for other companies systems), but their printable terrain products are the absoulute best anywhere! There might be some printable terrain products from other companies that are individually better, but Fat Dragon Games line is the most comprehensive and all-inclusive line in existence, with industry standard setting quality and unmatched practical usability.
Lastly, I'm going to drop in an off-beat vote for Ki Ryn Studios (Ryan Wolf). The Future Armada line is the absolute best line of products for sci-fi/future spaceships, EVAR! The included art of the vehicles in action, is what puts Future Armada products above other spaceship products. Not just a grid map of the vehicle and the vehicles stats, but professional quality, realistic looking computer generated pictures of the vehicles in action in assorted settings, environments, and from various angles. The pictures are what make them come alive. Show a group of players a grid map of their ship and a stat sheet, and they'll respond well enough. But show them a cool-ass picture of their ship in action, and you've instantly got them hooked. Nobody else in this niche provides this with their products. Ryan Wolf's attention to detail on this line (even though it's a rather small niche product line) has set a new standard for the quality of these types of products. Quality wise, they're light years beyond any other similar products on the market.
Lastly-lastly, I have to add an honorable mention to EN Publishing also. I'm impressed with the new license for Santiago, licensing War of the Burning Sky into an MMO, and developing another new epic AP...along with all of the cool little products they've made over the years. I've bought and integrated quite a bit of the little mechanical goodness they've published. With the increased presence of ENWorld, Morrus is really starting to make a name for himself and ENWorld/EN Publishing. And we can all say I remember him when...
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+1! And not only do they have an excellent customer service; they also listen to what their fans want. There are several products that have apparently been inspired by message board discussion (e.g. Cities of Golarion, Dungeons of Golarion, Lost Cities of Golarion and Jade Regent AP)
ShinHakkaider
Hero
Yep. Also Paizo's the reason that I'm probably still playing RPG's.
Derulbaskul
Adventurer
Ditto.
Everything that the current incarnation of WotC does wrong, Paizo does right: LEADERSHIP (!!!), PDFs, engagement with the customer base, etc....
I would nominate Pinnacle Entertainment Group, maker of Savage Worlds, as runner-up for similar reasons.
Shemeska
Adventurer
Paizo: they've become the industry leader on a slew of things. Their product quality is top notch, they're leading the way with PDF releases (and the product subscriptions that give you access to a free PDF copy of each book), and their customer service is a thing of beauty. Perhaps te best thing though is the amount of and ease of communication with their fans. It's not a black box of distant, legendary designers who publish books to the masses and are otherwise faceless cogs. No, they talk and discuss with their fans, they explain design choices, they randomly banter with folks, and their fan base feels a lot more connected and invested in the product because they're more connected with the people working on it. They're class acts and they're really having a level of success few people (perhaps themselves included) thought they'd be making.
Posthuman Studios: Eclipse Phase is just spectacular, and they're doing something really ambitious with the Creative Commons thing. Heck, they seed the torrents of their own stuff themselves to advertise themselves to a larger audience and as a sort of 'try it out, and if you like it, please support us'. Plus, they're just really cool guys and hands down win the award for most unique hair in the business (Boyle and Jury pretty much).
Posthuman Studios: Eclipse Phase is just spectacular, and they're doing something really ambitious with the Creative Commons thing. Heck, they seed the torrents of their own stuff themselves to advertise themselves to a larger audience and as a sort of 'try it out, and if you like it, please support us'. Plus, they're just really cool guys and hands down win the award for most unique hair in the business (Boyle and Jury pretty much).
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