Rechan said:
However, and I say this with the utmost respect: when you purchase anything, like a computer, a car, or even an RPG, you must expect, on some level, that a newer version will come out.
Indeed. (I'm saying that a lot it seems.) The problem I have is that despite the clever title, 3.5 was for all intents and purposes a new edition. That means this is the third new edition in what... seven years? Eight? That's a little fast for me. No... that's a lot fast for me.
I mean, I'm not exactly complaining, I'm just saying that for me, the cost/benefit of 4e isn't as compelling because of all my 3e stuff. And for other reasons too---even though I think it sounds better than 3e---it's still not better enough (from what little I know so far) to make me feel like I'm better off upgrading.
I'm OK with that. I have a computer that's 7 years old, and can't really handle much in the way of modern games. I have a car that's 12 years old, and although it's neither a thing of beauty or comfort, it's been paid for for years, it still runs pretty darn well, and all I do is drive it to and from work anyway. I don't have a current gen game console; although I have an Xbox and a Gamecube. Maybe in a year or two I'll pick up a 360 and a Wii.
Maybe I'm just not the kind of customer WotC really wants; I'm fairly cheap, even about my hobbies. Not a compulsive spender, really. I'll never be the big spender, even though I'm much more heavily invested in 3e/3.5 than I ever have been in any other game system ever. I'm just not Mr. Compulsive Spender Early Adopter, I'm Mr. Cheap-ass Wait and See and make do with what I already have that still works just fine.
That's OK. That's just my own personal reasons, not a broad condemnation of WotC. If my game group hadn't expressed similar sentiments, I'd be concerned about finding a group where I could play my system of choice, though. That's the only thing that I could find it in my heart to resent about a new edition I wasn't ready for. And honestly, I could probably figure out how to deal with that without too much trouble.
Rechan said:
Ultimately, here is my feelings: if WotC continues to update/revise every 4-8 years, I'll stop buying. Namely because that's just Too Soon to say "Okay, everybody buy new books". I will only purchase a finite number of books before I toss in the towel and say "I'm done".
Exactly. The rate of upgrades since 3e is higher than I'm willing to support. The only reason 3.5 slipped by me was because 1) I could use the SRD (never bought the 3.5 core books, although I did pick up plenty of splat books) and 2) backwards compatability with 3e was high enough that I could mix and match sourcebooks without too much trouble.
Honestly, if backwards compatability were expected to be relatively high with 4e, I'd be a lot more interested in it than I am now.
Rechan said:
But then, I only play D&D because it's the most widely played game, the easiest to find groups with, and I know it much better than other systems.
Yeah, it's not my first choice either. It's kinda the "compromise choice." Some iteration of d20 would be, though. Even though I do have a few lingering complaints about a few things with the various d20/OGL games, the ability to pick up almost any OGL source and use it as is in any game based off the OGL is such a
huge thing for me that any improvements to 4e will almost certainly be unable to compare.
Then again, I'll still use the SRD 4e and keep in touch with what's going on, and at least be in a position where I could play a 4e game if someone were running one.
Can't imagine I'd run one myself, though, with just the SRD.