What do other RPG designers think?

[OnlineDM]

Litmus test: Do you make enough money in game design to have to legally claim it on your income tax (whether you actually do or not)? If yes, you're a professional. If no, keep going. Do you earn enough money per month on average to buy at least a single used video game? If yes, you're probably an amateur. If no, you're probably a homebrew.

Interesting. I see this very differently. Maybe I'm too literal on the definition of "amateur" but I understand it to me someone who does something solely for the love of it rather than for money.

So, Matt James and Mike Shea would both be professionals in my book. I'm an amateur - I've released four adventures on my blog for free, but I've at least put them together and put them out there. Had I just written those adventures for my own game and never shared them with anyone, I'd be a homebrewer.

I'm sure there could be some fine distinctions made: "Oh, I once got fifty bucks ten years ago for an article in an RPG magazine..." would probably be an amateur in my book since they're not doing it for money any more, but if that guy wanted to call himself a pro I wouldn't fight him.

In any case, the poll is asking us to self-identify, so there's no right or wrong definition here. It's whatever you call yourself.

 

[Blood & Bones]

Most amateurs and professionals on EN-World are OGL-designers, so that they are happy with a new game that is similar to d20 is not that surprising.

I would also be curious how you distinguish professionals and amateurs?

Professionals - Individuals who write RPG material for a pay check.
Amateurs - Individuals who write book-long RPG material and give it away for free on the interwebs (See: Free RPG Games)

Makes sense?

 

[Kavon]

I think I'd fall in the "house ruler" category..

I like the direction they're going in, in the sense that they (plan to) give a simple base on which you can add optional rules and constructs with which your can personalize your game.
In a sense, they will do some of the house ruling for us. I can see it being much easier to alter things to my preferences this way.

I also like that they plan to give options for simple/complex versions of a particular class so any player can decide for themselves how they want to play their character.
Hopefully they will make it so that *every* class has this. Simple fighter + complex fighter.. Simple wizard + complex wizard, etc..
I also hope that they will give the DM/players options to chance the way magic works (i.e. not Vancian). It would help if the simple wizard doesn't actually have any magic system, like the simple fighter doesn't have a maneuver system.

 

[slobo777]

House ruler. Although I have not tinkered at all with 4E rules, my group's current game. Just home-brewed monsters, races etc.

I used to run my own-designed games exclusively (starting with writing new RPG systems in pen in exercise books when I was at school)

Nowadays I play D&D because it is "off the shelf", and I simply don't have the spare time and resources to provide services like DDI and rules support for a balanced game with all possible fantasy characters that my players might want.

My main problem is that the Vancian spell casting system (in D&D also with arbitrary spell lists), and character builds based on a class system in core are pretty much "meh" to me. So I cannot get excited about the new product yet. The main reason for tracking it, is to be familiar because my group probably *will* move - most likely to either 5E or Pathfinder, to get away from 4E's over-focus on combat.

I'm waiting with some interest for the board-based combat rules. If they can keep the speed up, but get just a little of 4E's dynamics in there, then 5E may beat Pathfinder, at least for "fun to play".

Good support/tools for DM prep work could make or break it, too. I really don't want to be picking out a dozen spells by hand for the spellbook of a minor NPC - I will expect tools that put together something rational and functional, else my prep time for NPCs will be too high! The return to Vancian casting brings back memories of taking an hour just to create an NPC build, even using automation such as e-Tools :-(

 

[gdmcbride]

Greetings,

My name is Gary McBride. I am owner and publisher of Fire Mountain Games, the maker of Pathfinder's only evil adventure path "Way of the Wicked" (for sale now at Paizo.com and DriveThruRPG). I've also written for Earthdawn, Warhammer and many other RPG companies and product lines. I've been fulltime in the RPG industry since 2003.

I like the fact that WotC is being so open about their design process for D&D Next. I also think having an open playtest is a good idea. So, I voted 'approve'. Hardly original terrain to be sure, but sometimes the best ideas are old ideas.

What will make me applaud 5th edition even more if it uses the OGL or something very like it. This will mean I am likely to support the game and hopefully we will see the same explosion of creativity in the 3.x era that lead us to magnificent products like Ptolus, Mutants and Masterminds, the Vault of Larrin Karr, and others.

Even if they do not, I will be buying Fifth Editions initial release. I'm not only a designer after all, I'm a hard core gaming geek whose been playing since 1984. Miss an edition of D&D? I don't think so.

But if its not open, I'll always know that this version of D&D could have been better.

Anyways, game on, my friends.

Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
"Build a man a fire, he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life." -- T. Pratchett

 

[Mattachine]

I voted "indifferent" since I like a fair bit of the direction DDN is going, am indifferent to another chunk, and dislike the rest.

I like speed of combats and the character backgrounds/themes, I dislike some of the sacred cows being brought back (or kept), and I am indifferent to modularity.

 

[Tequila Sunrise]

I find 5e design almost devoid of interest. Nostalgia tripping? Yawn. Modularity? Even if I didn't already know what kind of game I like DMing, I predict the modularity thing will mostly fall flat.

The only detail that's even vaguely interesting from a designer's perspective is the flat math. It has the potential for mathematical elegance, but I suspect that stat boosts and +X items will get in the way of that elegance.

And for what it's worth, I'm an amateur.

 

[CleverNickName]

I would also be curious how you distinguish professionals and amateurs?

I'd say that if you've ever been published AND gotten paid for your design materials, then you can call yourself a professional. If you're published but unpaid, you are an amateur. And if you're unpublished, you are a house-ruler.

By that criteria, I am a professional (thank you, Atlas Games!) And I voted "indifferent" because I like the retro stuff they are doing, and I like some of the new mechanics too...but I'm seeing a bit too much power creep.

 

[Lord Mhoram]

Amateur (wrote a number of articles for the Hero game magazine - about 50 pages total - was paid) - like the direction.