Should companies bother with RPGs?

[Arnwyn]

Should companies continue to work with RPGs instead of doing things like fiction, console gaming, computer gaming, board games, etc...?

So should companies just put out a few premium RPG products a year and let their energies go in other directons?

Companies "should" do whatever makes money for them. If RPGs don't do that, then they shouldn't bother.

On the other hand, speaking as "Arnwyn the Consumer", companies "should" make products tailored specifically to me and my personal tastes.

 

[tetsujin28]

I'd love to know what they thought they were ordering, or why they ordered it at all... I've never seen a hardware store with a book or toy section.

They used to be all over the place. There's still one where I live. Hardware stores often doubled as hobby stores, especially model railroading, which has a strong cross-over element with historical miniatures wargaming. As miniatures wargamers were the first producers of rpgs, it made sense. The phenomenon slowly disappeared as rpgs became their own 'thing'.

 

[Faraer]

What a terrible world in which only the most commercially popular media existed.

Yes, publishers should produce RPG books, and short stories, statless world sourcebooks, poetry, play scripts, and so on.

 

[Ace]

If I remember correctly, there were also efforts to single out "Pippi Långstrump" as a threat to the youths of the country. This means, your story doesn't really surprise me .

Thats Pippi Longstockings here in the US correct?

?Que Pasa? do they have a lot of fundynuts in Sweden too?

 

[JoeGKushner]

This is at least the second post from you where you have nothing to contribute but snarky comments against Joe. Joe's a long-time, respected poster. Who are you?

I believe that's Eric from Paradigm Press. Good guy, heavily involved with the RPGA and one of the guiding hands behind well, Paradigm Press, the markers of the world of Arcanis and some generic OGL Interlink Sourcebooks that tied into Green Ronin's books.

I think he was trying to 'joke' that my topics of late have seemed less than RPG friendly or at least good for general comment as opposed to heated debate.

 

[DaveMage]

This is at least the second post from you where you have nothing to contribute but snarky comments against Joe. Joe's a long-time, respected poster. Who are you?

He's a successful publisher (and game store owner, IIRC).

And I'm pretty sure Joe isn't offended.

Don't sweat it, tutsujin...

 

[wingsandsword]

But still, puts a bit of a hole in the point - big chains retailers are selling gaming products.

Not really, their online stores are a completely different affair. This is about getting the books and the game into circulation, and getting people who might not otherwise see D&D to have a chance to buy the books. If it's on target.com or walmart.com, you'll only find it if you go to their site (many times more people go to the actual stores than their web site). If it's in the actual mainstream chain stores, many people who would never otherwise see or buy RPG's would have a chance to.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

Has any company ever tried to mimic the model that comic book publishers use with multi-title crossovers? In order to fully understand what is going on, you need to buy Book A, Novel B, and Magazine C. Food for thought.

Shadowrun did this. I have no idea if it worked, but I bought a lot of SR crap.

But it seems to me the sequence of events for that to work would be:

1) Have a really great thingie that sells well.
2) Break it up into comics and novels.
3) Profit!

The hard part is getting to #1.

 

[Turjan]

Thats Pippi Longstockings here in the US correct?

?Que Pasa? do they have a lot of fundynuts in Sweden too?

No, they were afraid that children would try to imitate Pippi, fly out of windows, climb lamp posts and high trees and otherwise endanger themselves. Compared to the US, the Swedish society was (is?) rather over-protective. This means it was nothing vicious, though it looks a bit peculiar from an outside view.

 

[Turjan]

Has any company ever tried to mimic the model that comic book publishers use with multi-title crossovers? In order to fully understand what is going on, you need to buy Book A, Novel B, and Magazine C. Food for thought.

Wasn't that to some extent the TSR model? And isn't this still the White Wolf approach?