Some cool sounding stuff coming from Avalanche Press....

[trancejeremy]

After seeing the announcement about the Arabian book, I went to their website for more info (I always loved the Sinbad movies) and noticed that they have a lot more than that coming out...


A book on secret societies, like the Templars and such. (I love the Templars, even if every other book on them disagrees on what they were up to)

A book on King Arthur

A book on the Musketeers (I am a huge Dumas fan, so this I'm really interested in)

An adventure set in Ancient Egypt


The downside is, their stuff is insanely expensive, even more than WOTC. $17 for 64 pages. And it's not in color or anything (if anything, the interior artwork & layout is terrible). Secondly, their other products have had great ideas, but very flawed executions. Bad writing, and poor adherence to the d20 rules.

Though that might improve - I noticed the author of the Arabian book has written some other pretty good d20 stuff.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

I imagine their products are little pricey because their cover artist charges a lot of money. Also, most RPGs are underpriced as has been discussed in the main forum.

I'm also interested to see how their Muskeeters book turns out. I like Dumas also.

 

[Synicism]

Their d20 rules stuff has been getting better in their past couple of books. Read Psion's reviews of Jade & Steel and Twilight of Atlantis.

 

[Talaysen]

If that bit about the price being driven up because of the cover artist's fees is true, then it's PAST time they fired the guy. His so-called "art" (read: near-pornography) is why I haven't been buying Avalanche Press' books. (Well, yes, that and the price.) The subject matter of the books themselves seems interesting, but I don't like to buy anything I'd have to hide when my mother visits.

 

[Ranger REG]

Not ashamed to have such books lying around. Heck, my mother (God rest her soul) even knew I had adult magazines in my underwear drawer. I can tell when all of my briefs are freshly cleaned.

Don't fire the artist, who is known for his works on Heavy Metal magazine. Such cover appeals toward the greater demographic of gamers ages 18-25 (ages of college students).

Anyhoo, the arabian supplement (Endless Sands) sounds appealing. I might want to restart my Al-Qadim campaign.

 

[Talaysen]

Those gamers who care to purchase pornography can obtain more of it for far lower prices. The covers are, in fact, embarrassing to many readers and both embarrassing and insulting to the writer - because the author is, in essence, being told that his work won't sell unless they slap on a meaningless cover that appeals to the lowest common denominator. He also has his name in a book that he might not be too comfortable showing to people.

 

[trancejeremy]

Well, they could put nude pictures of Whoopi Goldberg & Janet Reno on the covers for all I care, I just wish their prices were cheaper. I don't even like spending $15 for a 64 page book. I'll do it - at least in Green Ronin's case, but I'll gripe about it and mutter about it for weeks.

 

[Eosin the Red]

My wife doesn't like the covers but nearly everyone in my gaming group has bought something from them after seeing my copy on game night. The funnything is, I am the only one who owns Last Days of Constanople?

In my redneck area of the woods, hot bods on magazines sell. Avalanche is a company. They exist for profit. It is a wonderfully simple equation, but sadly it costs more money than I am willing to shell out.

 

[Talaysen]

That's my point - hot bods on MAGAZINES sell. How many lust-addled rednecks are going to buy a game book?

Are game books stocked alongside adult magazines now? Are they even sold in the same STORES? And more to the point - why would someone who would buy a book or magazine because it has a sexy woman in a revealing outfit on the front choose an Avalanche Press product (say, 64 pages at $16.95 - I think that's their standard price for that page count) over an issue of Playboy or Penthouse?

If people like the subject matter, they'll buy it. The argument that a book will sell more copies if there's an attractive woman on the cover - even if that image is meaningless, and the trend of lust won't be continued within - makes absolutely no sense.

And if that artist is driving up their prices, he should be fired. Even if they do still want to use the same SORT of cover images - because frankly, there are less expensive artists that can easily produce similar work of comparable technical quality. (Again, I think AP's covers are disgusting on an aesthetic level, but they are very well done on a technical level.)

 

[Eosin the Red]

The argument that a book will sell more copies if there's an attractive woman on the cover - even if that image is meaningless, and the trend of lust won't be continued within - makes absolutely no sense

I find the opposite to be true. Not necessarily empiricly supported, but my limited experiece in sales and advertising tells me that sex sells. It sells shoes, bubble gum, news papers, toilet paper, airplane tickets, and dog food. I don't know why, just that it does.

If I was one of this worlds sellers, you can bet I would find an angle to use sex to promote my product. Avalance is just using a time tested advertising truth. Sex Sells. They aren't evil for doing it, they are capitalists.