Rappan Athuk: Reloaded SOLD OUT by wide margin!!

[Arnwyn]

More and more I'm seeing this attitude on these boards - that the consumer is basically getting screwed by companies because the consumer can't get their product at the price they want, at the specific shop they want, exactly when they want it.

A reasonable position (well, except the price part), since consumers can do so nowadays with almost every other product out there (yes, including luxury items). That's just what happens with business in the 2000's.

Gaming products are not necessities - they are luxury items. As such, they can cater to the consumers who are willing to go the extra mile for their products.

Totally agreed. But then of course, maybe gaming companies can stop whining about their sales, and how bad things are (not pointing out anyone specific, here). They can't have it both ways.

 

[Ghostwind]

And maybe we should just go back to the days when there was one company making D&D products and you either had to buy their stuff or come up with something else on your own.

Companies are whining because the distributors are not ordering, therefore the retailers are not stocking and consumers don't know it exists. The existing three tier system is severely broken but no one is willing to come up with an alternative because the existing system is so established.

Want the companies to stop whining and be able to get gaming products at good prices? Every individual on this board needs to support whatever gaming store they use (online or not) with their money and request that those stores carry products X,Y,Z from publishers A,B,C and then follow up with that by buying those products from that store. It is the only way that things will improve.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

And maybe we should just go back to the days when there was one company making D&D products and you either had to buy their stuff or come up with something else on your own.

Companies are whining because the distributors are not ordering, therefore the retailers are not stocking and consumers don't know it exists. The existing three tier system is severely broken but no one is willing to come up with an alternative because the existing system is so established.

Want the companies to stop whining and be able to get gaming products at good prices? Every individual on this board needs to support whatever gaming store they use (online or not) with their money and request that those stores carry products X,Y,Z from publishers A,B,C and then follow up with that by buying those products from that store. It is the only way that things will improve.

I tried that and I would never get my books.
Me - "Is it in, it has been 4 weeks now"
LGS - "Uh we can order it again and see what happens..."
Me - *typing amazon.com*

I've given up on the game stores.

 

[Umbran]

Okay, folks, it is quite clear some aspects of this have people in... shall we say, high spirits. It would be nice if everyone would remain respectful, even if (heck, especially if) you feel another poster isn't being so.

 

[Treebore]

So is there any chance of a reprint? What's the plan for a PDF release?

Since part of the pre-order deal include free pdf's of the originals and the new version your safe on the pdf front.

I'l post a thread here in general when the pdf's go on sale.

Personally I would hope they can make the pdf available on August 10th. Lets see if they can get their ducks in a row on this one.

 

[Treebore]

My attitude? How about you just back right off, Treebore.

He did look into reducing shipping to a reasonable/normal price to Canada (and I see you've mentioned it twice in this thread already) - but of course, since you seem to be as well informed as I am, I'm sure you know that he didn't. If he had gotten the price to something more reasonable (as Malhavoc did with Ptolus), I'd have been all over that pre-order like a dirty shirt. But they didn't.

"Knowing the risks" ("risks" for a product?) does me no good when the best I can reasonably do is sit with my fingers crossed and hope that my LGS gets me the product I asked for.

Your "loyalty" comment is, of course, irrelevant. I have no more "loyalty" to Necro as I do WotC, Sony, or Procter & Gamble. I'm speaking wholly as a consumer.


Indeed it is. Of course, speaking as a consumer, I don't give two s about your process. I have absolutely no doubt in the world that the decision you made is the best for Necro Games. You're still in the industry while focusing on adventures, so you guys must know what you're doing.

But again, I don't care if the decision is good for you. (Why would I? That's your concern, not mine.) As a consumer, I care if the decision is good for me. And hearing all this "We warned you guys! We warned you guys!" over the last little while isn't all that heartening.

In any case, I have every intention of (happily!) taking back what I said as soon as my LGS puts that product into my hands. We'll see if that occurs.

Everyone is allowed to sing two different tunes if they want to.

 

[Arnwyn]

And maybe we should just go back to the days when there was one company making D&D products and you either had to buy their stuff or come up with something else on your own.

Based on sales numbers, isn't that what's really happening anyways?

*Ahem* In all seriousness:

Want the companies to stop whining and be able to get gaming products at good prices? Every individual on this board needs to support whatever gaming store they use (online or not) with their money and request that those stores carry products X,Y,Z from publishers A,B,C and then follow up with that by buying those products from that store. It is the only way that things will improve.

Word. I'm continuing to do so.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

So what is the .pdf of this supposed to cost?

 

[freebfrost]

A reasonable position (well, except the price part), since consumers can do so nowadays with almost every other product out there (yes, including luxury items). That's just what happens with business in the 2000's.

But that's *not* the case for luxury items. That is a seller's market.

Believe me, I would have loved to order my custom RX8 from the car dealer down the street, but that didn't happen, and I had to find a dealer who could accomodate me. When I want authentic italian proscuitto, I have to drive across town to buy it. I have to search eBay, out-of-print gaming stores, and local bookstores to find the missing super-rare D&D items for my collection.

None of that is convenient. None of it is cheap. And none of those items are necessities. If I want those items, it will cost me money, or time - essentially it costs me convenience.

RA:R is a super-luxury item in a entire genre of luxury items. You can buy Rappan Attuk in other forms, much like you can get that used Ferrari on eBay or from a local luxury car dealer. But if you want the super-shiny new one instead, it will take effort, time, and money.

 

[Mercule]

I ordered mine through Amazon. Why? Because I really don't need another campaign adventure right now (currently running two games), but had confidence that RAR would be of high quality and worth shelving. That the real utility to potential utitility ratio made $25 a great deal -- $40 would have been a good deal, still. That isn't to say $75 is ridiculous for this product. It is perfectly fair. Just that it's value to me isn't $75.

That said, I knew going into it that getting something for 1/3 of the cover price was unlikely. Yes, yes, you can talk about how a company should honor prices they list, the obligation Amazon has to you, etc. That's very special. It's also complete bunk. They mismarked something. Did you really expect them to leave it that way? I think anyone who didn't see some risk in that is being deliberately obtuse.

I gambled. I lost. *shrug* These things happen. Personally, I'm happy that at least one company is showing stronger-than-expected sales.