Predictions of the d20/gaming Industry

[Mistwell]

Okay rounser, you're point is well taken.

I'm sorry I mentioned your name in my prior post.

I'm sorry you were lumped in with the contention I was making.

It was never my intention to call YOU naive or biased. My statements, in my mind, were not directed at you. I did, however, call you those things, and I apologize.

 

[rounser]

That's big of you Mistwell (no sarcasm about it). I apologise for my inflammatory comments towards you as well.

 

[Ranger REG]

Wow. All this times, some gamers could not comprehend the business side of RPG publishing.

With customers like these, who would want to go into RPG publishing, even if it is part-time (as one employee at FDP puts it)?

For those of you who are brave enough, I commend you, even if you provide niche marketing (filling the gaps left by Wizards).

Unfortunately, there is still that double standard between electronics and paper-based games. It provide the same entertainment value, but never the same price.

P.S. I have never been a fan of pay-2-play RPGs like EverQuest, and I am hoping that NWN will surpass in sale because you pay only once (the purchase of the software) to play it anytime you want. But if EverQuest pen-and-paper RPG is good, then Sony Entertainment will get my money ... once (the purchase of the rulebook).

 

[King_Stannis]

Wow. All this times, some gamers could not comprehend the business side of RPG publishing.

With customers like these, who would want to go into RPG publishing, even if it is part-time (as one employee at FDP puts it)?
...

by last count i had spendt well over $800 on D20 stuff alone. please forgive me for wanting to save a little of my money.

i think the problem here, might be, that maybe you in the D20 industry want to try to justify to us why you are raising prices. in a free market, you don't necessarily have to do that. just raise them and see what happens. but this contention that, over a TWENTY FIVE year period, prices have been maintained at an artificially low level in a competitive situation, i just can't swallow. the price for rpg material is not artificially low, and it's not artificially high. the price is exactly what the market will bear.

and those threats to close this thread are absolutely ludicrous. it may have gotten heated, but can someone please tell me where it has gotten at all personal? heaven forbid there should actually be a lively exchange on these boards. as someone said earlier, this is tame compared to other places.

*edited out general grumpiness *

 

[Simon Magalis]

Why would you think he is speaking to you King Stannis? He didn't name anyone. He merely suggested that the offender knew who he was. If you haven't used offensive or inflammatory language (which is what you are claiming), then he obviously must be talking to someone else.

In other news... I think the problem is not really the pricing, but addictive buying habits by the consumer. Most gamers buy more stuff than they can use and spend alot of money IN TOTAL. For the most part, gaming stuff is cheap when compared to say going to a movie when you consider the time you use it for the money you spend. However, if people went to see 15 movies a month, then they would complain that movies cost too much.

 

[Psion]

I just hope we dont see an end to non-D20 gaming. It will be a very sad day if this comes to pass imo.

Unfortunately, I think too much of a price boost would push things in that direction.

Again this is speculation and there will be other factors, but bear with me.

D20 games get shelf space at Waldens and can be ordered through major booksellers by Amazon. However, smaller press games depend almost entirely on specialty shops for their distribution.

A significant upward push in price will leave many gamers considering alternatives, and more gamers will look to the big bargain online sellers like Amazon and Booksamillion to get their books. This, can end up damaging small specialty stores and could damage the distribution channels for independant games.

 

[King_Stannis]

Why would you think he is speaking to you King Stannis? He didn't name anyone. He merely suggested that the offender knew who he was. If you haven't used offensive or inflammatory language (which is what you are claiming), then he obviously must be talking to someone else. ...

not hardly. seeing as it was pretty much me vs a who's who in the rpg industry in the time period morrus is referring to, i'm willing to bet that he isn't talking about any of them.

as i said, forgive me for standing up for my rights as a consumer.

 

[Simon Magalis]

forgive me for standing up for my rights [/B][/QUOTE]

Very well... you are forgiven.

 

[King_Stannis]

A significant upward push in price will leave many gamers considering alternatives, and more gamers will look to the big bargain online sellers like Amazon and Booksamillion to get their books. This, can end up damaging small specialty stores and could damage the distribution channels for independant games.

that is a whole other aspect that i had not even considered. what about the mom and pop hobby shop? selling fewer higher-priced units might help atlas games and others, but will it necessarily help your FLGS? what of the hobby shop employees?

 

[Tuerny]

Re: a note about the computer game industry

The computer game industry pays rather poorly too, just in case those of you in the PnP industry are envying those on the other side of the fence. The typical programmer in the computer game industry gets hired out of high school, gets paid no more than $18,000, and works 100 hour weeks. 5 years later, he's burnt out, and if he's smart, he'll quit the game industry and go into a more lucrative field. The John Carmacks who are multi-millionaires and own their own game companies are the exception, not the rule. I wonder how many of the PnP designers who moved on to computer games really made it rich. I know Sandy Petersen did, by hooking up with the right people, but Greg Costikyan? I looked at his web page and it didn't seem like his projects were doing that well.

Just out of curiosity, where do you get your information on this?


Jesse Dean
Potential Future Video Game Developer After College