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Message: <blockquote data-quote="JustinA" data-source="post: 3499281" data-attributes="member: 51618">No. And I doubt a company ever will be.The problem here is not just that you have to generate a new fanbase, it's that a typical RPG requires a certain time commitment: They require a time commitment to learn and then master the rules. And they require a time commitment to run a typical campaign (which usually lasts for several months and perhaps longer).This is dissimilar to video games in two ways: First, most video games have a very low learning curve -- and that learning curve is usually built into the gameplay. Second, most video games have only 20-40 hours of solo play. The typical person will learn the game, play the game, and be done with the game in less than a week. That supports a once-a-month release schedule.RPGs can emulate those qualities to some degree. (And in the case of better support for integrating the learning curve into the gameplay, I'd argue that they should be emulating it. The 1984 Basic Set was an excellent example of how to do it right, but it's never been emulated since for some reason.) But, ultimately, RPGs as we know them today support an open style: Gamers can take the game and do what they want to with it. So even if you decide to stop supporting the game, plenty of gamers are going to (at the very least) finish their current campaign. Which means they aren't going to be in the market for your next 12 games released on a monthly schedule.There are video games that look like RPGs: They're the FPSs and MMORPGs. These games, due to their strong multiplayer content, have essentially unlimited gameplay and a mastery curve. And you'll notice that these are the games that most closely resemble RPG release schedules: Nobody releases a new MMORPG every single month. Nobody releases a new FPS every month. Partly that's the amount of work that goes into these titles, but mostly it's because they know that fracturing their fanbase doesn't make sense.This is the reason for the "supplement treadmill": Supplements aren't designed to support entirely new campaigns. They're designed to be slotted into existing campaigns. You're actively marketing to everyone playing your game a that very moment.What you can get away with is what White Wolf is doing: Release "mini-series" games. These games come out, they support a typical campaign, and then the company moves on to the next mini-series game. The yearly release schedule means that a typical campaign will be wrapping up just as the next game comes out.In many ways these "mini-games" are similar to the Adventure Paths: No company in its right mind is going to release multiple 1-20 adventure paths in a single year. You're automatically dividing your potential customer base.</blockquote>

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