The Ennies are working!

[der_kluge]

So, in researching the Ennies this morning, I came across a cool product (the subject of a different thread), and it occurred to me that the Ennies *do* work. This was a product I hadn't heard of before, and might eventually lead to a sale which might not otherwise happen.

So, what have the Ennies done for you? (Publishers and customers alike)

 

[Turjan]

Well, I think this extended voting period is a good thing. I was already plugging the Valus setting as one of the Ennie contenders, when someone wanted to know whether there's a setting dealing with the problem of racism in fantasy other than ignoring it. It's not a definite buy, but mentioning the Ennies might spur some interest that a 'normal homebrew' doesn't see.

 

[trancejeremy]

Eh. I've heard of all of the things on the Ennie list, and actually own the only ones (IMHO) worth owning (which would be about 4 things - Valus, Capes, OQL, and I think I'm forgetting one)

 

[Crothian]

Eh. I've heard of all of the things on the Ennie list, and actually own the only ones (IMHO) worth owning (which would be about 4 things - Valus, Capes, OQL, and I think I'm forgetting one)

Wow, if that is not an easy position to argue with. All of them are worth owning or none of them are. It all depends on what games and style a person wants.

 

[Hand of Evil]

I will not go into a rant but I am rather POed about UPS and the flyers.

 

[Henry]

Something similar happened for me, in that I recently bought Poisoncraft (Blue Devil games), based on some recommendations made back during the post-ENnies debates last year. It's a little late, but better than never.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

So, what have the Ennies done for you? (Publishers and customers alike)

I had a long talk about this with my partner last night.

OK, in a dollar sense, the answer is "not much", but we expected that. We didn't enter for the bucks, we entered because we were proud of some of the things we did and we wanted to see how they compared to others in an ojbective way.

In an emotional sense, the answer is "a whole lot". It's made the project worthwile. It's a validation. I know in the voting that we are going to be *smacked* by White Wolf and Privateer. There's just no question. You want to know how bad it's going to be?

That bad. Pandahead will probably come by afterwards and take our wallets.

But we don't care!

This has shown us that we can write a quality product. That lets us know where our strength lies and we're proud of that. We want to write books that gamers will keep coming back to and pilliage for ideas or play outright. The nomination has shown us that's a viable goal and it is one we will persue.

Even if Destan beats us up again.

 

[Red Spire Press]

Traffic at the Red Spire Press website has definiely increased since our ENnies nomination, so I can't complain. Woop!

 

[The Sigil]

I had a long talk about this with my partner last night.

OK, in a dollar sense, the answer is "not much", but we expected that. We didn't enter for the bucks, we entered because we were proud of some of the things we did and we wanted to see how they compared to others in an ojbective way.

In an emotional sense, the answer is "a whole lot". It's made the project worthwile. It's a validation. I know in the voting that we are going to be *smacked* by White Wolf and Privateer.

Seconded. For me, an ENnie nomination hasn't translated into huge sales (though I have seen a small spike), but most importantly, it's a nice emotional validation. It let's me know I can actually DO this and produce quality material (of course you always believe in your stuff, or you wouldn't do it, but there's always niggling doubts in the back of your mind). To be honest, I was hitting the point of burnout with RPGs... I just didn't feel like I had "it" any more. With the nomination, my creative juices are flowing again and I want to get a lot of projects done. I did a burst of work on two more short subject pieces, one of which has been started and is nearly finished in the last three days, and attacked the Basic GM's Guide in earnest (I know what goes into it now, but it's still a lot of cutting and formatting).

I have no illusions about winning. I'm competing against people who really know their stuff and do this for a business. I do it as a side hobby a couple of hours a week. Heck, I won't even be able to make GenCon, much less the ceremony (I expect our home will be nearing close of escrow at the time). I wish I *could* go... I would love to see all these other folks... but still, just to be nominated is a thrill that very few people in my current circle of friends understand (with three kids born and two moves in the last five years, I haven't been able to have a stable gaming group - or much of ANY gaming group, for that matter - for about 4 years).

I'm excited. I'm humbled. I'm happy. I'm a bit melancholy that I don't have anyone "in person" who really understands it. But most of all, I'm rejuvenated. Instead of "burned out" I feel "brand new" in RPGs again. I want to game. I "have" to write and turn the ideas in my head into reality. I have a hundred ideas begging to get out. And that's a great feeling!

--The Sigil

 

[HellHound]

Eh. I've heard of all of the things on the Ennie list, and actually own the only ones (IMHO) worth owning (which would be about 4 things - Valus, Capes, OQL, and I think I'm forgetting one)

That's particularly harsh. I think that Burning Wheel is definitely worth owning, and am quite happy with the new WHFRP. I'm starting reading Murchad's Legacy as we speak, and just finished rooting through Black Company with has some very nice changes to the d20 core mechanics when it comes to lethality of combat. Ex Machina is without a doubt the best CyberPunk styled RPG I have EVER seen and is a brilliant piece of work. As someone who was initially underwhelmed with Arcana Unearthed, I am enjoying Arcana Evolved. Ars Magica 5th edition is a great update to a great RPG, and I'm very happy with Werewolf the forsaken.... and the list goes on.