Playing OOP Games

[Bullgrit]

If my players and I want to run a game, it's a lot easier for me to tell them to grab something that's still in production - either online or offline - than it is to ask them to prowl the secondary markets and find a deal on eBay.

Obryn made this comment regarding OSRIC vs. AD&D1 books, but it got me wondering about games in general.

How much does in-print and out-of-print affect your choices for what game to play? (Any game, not just D&D.)

For instance, my current game group (formed circa 2003) has played a few OOP games, with no hesitation. IP vs. OOP didn't even really enter our discussions for what to play.

We played a campaign of d6 Star Wars. Only the GM originally had the rule book, but two of us bought off of ebay once we started the campaign.

We're currently playing a campaign of Battletech. Only I (not the GM) had the rule book at first, but the GM had a friend in another state mail him his old books. We gave the other Players a one-page photocopy of the core charts.

We started an Alternity campaign with only the DM having the books.

And D&D3.5 is our D&D of choice, regardless of it being OOP.

Do you, or does your group, take a game's IP/OOP status under consideration when deciding on what to play?

With the Internet, we've been able to find any OOP game we've been interested in. I've been able to find cheap [enough] books online faster than driving out to the FLGS, so "in print and in stores" is completely irrelevant to me in chosing a game to play. (If a game is in print and in stores, I'll go to the FLGS to get it.)

Bullgrit

 

[Crothian]

It doesn't both me at all. I use the net to get books all the time so using it to get oop gaming books is easy to do. Most of them are cheaper then when they were first printed.

Of course some games have become harder to find like Changeling the Dreaming. So, when I was going to run that a few years ago I purposely bought many spare copies of the main book and key suppliments so players could borrow from me if they wanted to.

 

[karlindel]

In print vs. out of print isn't a distinction that I would make in choosing a game. I think accessibility,cost, and support are the real factors. Out of print is sometimes used as shorthand for something very hard to find at a price the person is willing to pay or that is incomplete.

I am not particularly concerned about player access to the game material, as I can usually find some time to spend with them individually building a character and going over world and system information. If I have the materials for a game that is out of print, then it being out of print isn't a factor for me at all. If I don't have the materials, then the question is whether I can find all of the materials that I feel I need for the game at a price that I can justify for the amount of fun I expect to get out of the game.

Another factor with out of print games can be the support. If the game line was short lived and important books are missing (or so rare that they are prohibitively expensive), then that means more work for the GM in filling in holes in the rules, setting information, and coming up with adventures. Whether or not this is a factor depends a lot on the GM and how much time they are willing to spend to make it work. I personally tend to prefer games that have significant support for the GM, with supplements and published adventures that I can use and modify to my liking. If the game is no longer in print, but it had a good run with plenty of support products, then this is not really a factor.

 

[Thunderfoot]

IP or OOP - makes no difference to me....
The biggest consideration, is it fun?
If test A equals yes then play ensues.

 

[Nikosandros]

IP or OOP - makes no difference to me....
The biggest consideration, is it fun?
If test A equals yes then play ensues.

Exactly. In-print status has never been a factor for me and my groups.

 

[the Jester]

The only reason out-of-print would matter to us would be if none of us had, or could get, the rules for a given game.

 

[Treebore]

ITs been much easier to get Traveller games going since Mongoose started publishing it.

Its become much easier to generate games of Swords and Wizardry and Basic Fantasy RPG since new books have been available on Lulu.

IT was slightly easier when only the PDF's were available.

I am excited to see what happens if Labyrinth Lord actually makes it onto the shelves of my LGS.


I think gamers who aren't a specific RPG elitist become very motivated to play a RPG when a brand new shiny book is involved.

 

[Ourph]

IP or OOP doesn't really matter to my group, but with AD&D/OSRIC it's the same game and buying the B&W OSRIC hardback (~$30 delivered) is significantly cheaper than buying the AD&D PHB, DMG and MM separately online. That does make a difference to most people. Assuming a minimum of ~$2 shipping for each book, you'd have to find someone selling the AD&D PHB, DMG and MM for $8 or less in order to get the same amount of material for that $30 price tag. Even if you found someone selling all three books with combined shipping, they would still need to be selling them for $9 or less each. The AD&D books aren't expensive, but it's very rare to find them going for less than $15 a piece these days.

 

[Grimstaff]

I don't think inprint/oop makes much of a difference to a fan of a particular game. If you already know you like a game and want to run it, then you'll probably be willing to track it down on the secondary market.

Where it makes a bigger difference is for new players interested in trying out a particular game, or even returning to one after a long hiatus. To use OPs example of OSRIC vs AD&D, its a lot easier for someone to click on the free .pdf of OSRIC and check it out, like what you see, and maybe order the $10.00 printed version for further exploration, than it is to track down the three core books on ebay, wait for bidding to end, wait for shipping, and *then* take a look at what you've got and decide if you like it or not.

I recall a couple of cases, at least, where checking out Labyrinth Lord inspired someone to take the time to buy actual copies of B/X, so it seems like the RCs actually, for some folks, providing a sort of "stepping stone" to oop games.

I also know of few people who are using one or the other exclusively; most of the folks I talk to are using the Retroclones and original books concurrently.

 

[Jhaelen]

I don't think inprint/oop makes much of a difference to a fan of a particular game. If you already know you like a game and want to run it, then you'll probably be willing to track it down on the secondary market.

Where it makes a bigger difference is for new players interested in trying out a particular game, or even returning to one after a long hiatus.

Agreed. Introducing new players to an OOP system (or edition) isn't something I'd do, unless they were explicitly okay with it.

Most players I know want to have their own books or even start collecting (almost) every book for the games they play. That's difficult or even impossible to do for an OOP game.