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<blockquote data-quote="Staffan" data-source="post: 8434280" data-attributes="member: 907">The RPG market is already basically split into three tiers (with some differentiation in the middle tier).1. Wizards of the Coast.2. Other RPG companies that are handled as serious businesses. Some are doing well, but even those that from the outside seem to be healthy often rely on underpaid employees and freelancers, often in what ought to be senior positions. As an example, Onyx Path Publishing seems to be a fairly solid publisher. But their release of Exalted 3e, after a hugely successful kickstarter, was seriously delayed because the guy they had as the primary developer got really sick, and since he was doing that on a freelance basis he had to run a GoFundMe to cover healthcare costs. And that was the line developer whose job it was to coordinate the other people writing the book. From a consumer point of view, these books are often polished and look good, so it's not easy to tell which companies are doing what behind the scenes.3. Hobbyist stuff where the designer/publisher is basically doing things because it's fun, gives bragging rights, and might support their other gaming expenses. But they're not making a living from it – they usually have a day job (or a very understanding spouse) who pays the bills and, since most of them are in the US, makes sure they have health insurance.What I'd like to see is the middle tier having prices raised across the board. That's probably going to cause some people to be more careful about where they spend their gaming budget, which will mean some companies will either leave the market or realize that they belong in tier 3.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Staffan, post: 8434280, member: 907"] The RPG market is already basically split into three tiers (with some differentiation in the middle tier). 1. Wizards of the Coast. 2. Other RPG companies that are handled as serious businesses. Some are doing well, but even those that from the outside seem to be healthy often rely on underpaid employees and freelancers, often in what ought to be senior positions. As an example, Onyx Path Publishing seems to be a fairly solid publisher. But their release of Exalted 3e, after a hugely successful kickstarter, was seriously delayed because the guy they had as the primary developer got really sick, and since he was doing that on a freelance basis he had to run a GoFundMe to cover healthcare costs. And that was the line developer whose job it was to coordinate the other people writing the book. From a consumer point of view, these books are often polished and look good, so it's not easy to tell which companies are doing what behind the scenes. 3. Hobbyist stuff where the designer/publisher is basically doing things because it's fun, gives bragging rights, and might support their other gaming expenses. But they're not making a living from it – they usually have a day job (or a very understanding spouse) who pays the bills and, since most of them are in the US, makes sure they have health insurance. What I'd like to see is the middle tier having prices raised across the board. That's probably going to cause some people to be more careful about where they spend their gaming budget, which will mean some companies will either leave the market or realize that they belong in tier 3. [/QUOTE]

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