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<blockquote data-quote="Obryn" data-source="post: 4954687" data-attributes="member: 11821">It was a different market back then.&nbsp; For one thing, WotC wasn't releasing books very quickly, and third-party publishers filled the void.&nbsp; (For example, the S&amp;S Creature Catalog came out before the actual 3e Monster Manual.&nbsp; )&nbsp; For another thing, the whole idea of third-party content was new and fresh.&nbsp; Finally, the production standards were way lower...&nbsp; AEG put out pamphlet modules, other companies' mechanics were less than solid, and there was kind of a wild west feel to the whole thing.And, importantly, the initial third-party rush gave the success stories a good quantity of cash to make more stuff.&nbsp; The ones who are still around today took their success and branched outwards - so Green Ronin has M&amp;M; Mongoose has Paranoia, Runequest, etc.; Paizo had the magazines and a whole line of edition-neutral products, and so on.&nbsp; Production values improved, less competitive companies dried up, and by the mid-end of 3.5, everything being produced and sold was of a pretty high standard.We're still at that point.&nbsp; Standards are high.&nbsp; There's an expectation that 3pp's understand the mechanics they're writing for.&nbsp; Full-color is almost demanded nowadays, too.&nbsp; A 3pp needs to be able to compete with WotC on their home turf, and that's frankly a pretty tall order.-O</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Obryn, post: 4954687, member: 11821"] It was a different market back then. For one thing, WotC wasn't releasing books very quickly, and third-party publishers filled the void. (For example, the S&S Creature Catalog came out before the actual 3e Monster Manual. ) For another thing, the whole idea of third-party content was new and fresh. Finally, the production standards were way lower... AEG put out pamphlet modules, other companies' mechanics were less than solid, and there was kind of a wild west feel to the whole thing. And, importantly, the initial third-party rush gave the success stories a good quantity of cash to make more stuff. The ones who are still around today took their success and branched outwards - so Green Ronin has M&M; Mongoose has Paranoia, Runequest, etc.; Paizo had the magazines and a whole line of edition-neutral products, and so on. Production values improved, less competitive companies dried up, and by the mid-end of 3.5, everything being produced and sold was of a pretty high standard. We're still at that point. Standards are high. There's an expectation that 3pp's understand the mechanics they're writing for. Full-color is almost demanded nowadays, too. A 3pp needs to be able to compete with WotC on their home turf, and that's frankly a pretty tall order. -O [/QUOTE]

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