Star Wars RPG--What Happened?

[Hattersai]

I liked to to a degree...Shaggy the Wookie got to me though.

Hopefully WOTC will fix other things and this confirmed Star Wars fan can buy more....

 

[trancejeremy]

It's a combination of things.....

I can't speak for everyone, but for me it's a combination of reasons.

I'm a pretty big Star Wars fan. I have just about every WEG SWRPG book, plus most novels, and a handful of comics.

But I never bought the new RPG, for pretty much all the reasons mentioned.

1) It's expensive. Not just the main rulebook, but the supplements. $22 for a 96 page book? Youch

(FWIW, I'm cheap on video/PC games too, but I bought the Sims used for $20 on Ebay a while back)

2) Don't like the rules. I like d20, but d6 is my favorite game system. So the d20 version feels a bit creepy.

3) Episode I was a let down. It wasn't bad (other than Jar-Jar), but it was uninspiring.

4) George Lucas's greed is starting to annoy me. First he yanks the RPG from WEG (while admittedly they went bankrupt, they made George a lot of money and keep the fan base happy during the time when he did nothing with the property. And much of the source material they developed was used in the novels, comics, toys, and video/PC games), then he yanks the card game away from Decipher. He's also put out several really crappy PC/Video games (though a few were good).

5) Too much competition from other d20 products.

 

[AmerginLiath]

Um... I hate to nit-pick, but LOTR has already made over 290 million dollars domestic - more than Empire Strikes Back.

Of course, ticket prices are about five times what they were 20 years ago...

THAT'S why ticket sales nowadays are always so high -- the theaters gouge us...

(Not saying LotR ISN'T a financially successful film -- especially given its prudent budget -- but the numbers are decieving...)

 

[TeaBee]

then he yanks the card game away from Decipher

Yeah, that was really nasty.

 

[Ranger REG]

Re: It's a combination of things.....

I can't speak for everyone, but for me it's a combination of reasons.

I'm a pretty big Star Wars fan. I have just about every WEG SWRPG book, plus most novels, and a handful of comics.

But I never bought the new RPG, for pretty much all the reasons mentioned.

1) It's expensive. Not just the main rulebook, but the supplements. $22 for a 96 page book? Youch

Lucasfilm wants a bigger piece of the pie. I'm sure if WEG had renewed their license with Lucasfilm, they may also agree to raise their price. If they don't, Lucasfilm will still the get the bigger piece but business expense would again bankrupt WEG.

(FWIW, I'm cheap on video/PC games too, but I bought the Sims used for $20 on Ebay a while back)

Then you can do the same for Star Wars RPG.

2) Don't like the rules. I like d20, but d6 is my favorite game system. So the d20 version feels a bit creepy.

While I played d6, the "bucket o dice" was tiresome. Add to it the multiple actions and you have speedy characters that put Pentium 4 computers to shame.

3) Episode I was a let down. It wasn't bad (other than Jar-Jar), but it was uninspiring.

Although I agree with you, how does this affect your purchase?

4) George Lucas's greed is starting to annoy me. First he yanks the RPG from WEG (while admittedly they went bankrupt, they made George a lot of money and keep the fan base happy during the time when he did nothing with the property. And much of the source material they developed was used in the novels, comics, toys, and video/PC games), then he yanks the card game away from Decipher. He's also put out several really crappy PC/Video games (though a few were good).

NOW it annoys you? He has been doing this since the start of Star Wars. Back then, George Lucas already knew the value of merchandising and licensing.

5) Too much competition from other d20 products.

It's best to have variety, rather than wait for one company to put out the variety. The many rules mechanics for d20 offers many options for GM to house-rule their own campaign.

Weird. I'm not a big Star Wars fan (everything from the lightsaber to the mumbo-jumbo that is the Jedi makes it hard for me to classify this movie as science fiction ... unlike Star Trek), but I'm willing to play SW d20.

 

[Ranger REG]

then he yanks the card game away from Decipher

Yeah, that was really nasty.

Although I am not a fan of TCG, I know what it felt like to have your game switch over to another company.

Decipher was able to steal away the Star Trek license from WotC when WotC acquired LUG. For a time, I was pissed off at them.

Of course, as fate would have it, Decipher hired the folks at LUG (who were let go by WotC), so everything is all right with the world.

You may think that was nasty, but as the saying goes: what goes around, comes around.

 

[Kichwas]

I don't want D&D to be putting out new revised core books every year. The game is fine the way it is, before long it won't be D&D anymore if people keep changing it to be inline with other d20 games.

I wouldn't mind it if it was done in an 'Unearthed Arcana' format.

Give me a book every couple years with unofficial rules updates and additions.

A cross between Unearthed Arcana and the GURPS Compendiums in style.

You could even call it Unearthed Arcana Vol. 1-n

"The DnD Annual"

 

[Ashtal]

As far as the magazine goes...

...I have a theory.

Ironically enough, the magazine never appeared in the local comic store. Yes, you could order it, but I only ever saw it on the newstand in the local Chapters (the equivalent of a Barnes and Nobles for you yanks). Even then, they got it earlier than the comic store when they first tried getting issues in. They have no problem with the Dungeons and the Dragons, but SWG never seemed to get the shelf space.

As to the content, I've only seen a handful of the handful of issues released, but I think their content was way too split on all the possible Star Wars paraphanelia that's out there. Granted, Star Wars fiction seems to be one heck of a cottage industry if the book store is any indication, but I know I don't like seeing it in my magazines and from what I've read, I'm not alone. And there there is more coverage of the movies, of the video games, of the card games, yada yada...

What game stuff I saw, I really liked. But there just wasn't enough of it. And there was probably too much game stuff in the magazine to appeal to general fans who might be interested in the other stuff. Add to this that there, if I read correctly earlier in the thread, already another Star Wars fan magazine, and that can't be good. With the split focus, I think it may have hurt them in the long run - trying to capture both markets but in the end not providing enough material to keep either interested.

As for the new edition. Hrm. I won't be buying it. I just bought the original last year. I don't mind shelling out $55 CAN for it, but you won't catch me doing it twice for something with only errata corrections and different pictures. I like the idea of an Unearthed Arcana suppliment. That would have made sense. Or each movie getting it's own source book. Or something. A brand new core rules seems...foolish, IMO. But, WotC may not have a choice in the matter. Plus, if E2 does take off, the new pictures may win over those who didn't get into it the first time 'round.