What is your general impression of RPGers? Forked Thread: WotC tryin to kill FLGS?

[Mark]

Forked from: Why is WotC trying to kill my FLGS?

RPG players might take ‘a’ break, but generally will be at the table for hours, wanting to bring in food, wanting to befoul your bathroom and wanting you to stay open past closing.

Is this the general impression of RPGers? If not, what is your general impression of RPGers?

 

[frankthedm]

As the person being quoted, That was in context of a discussion of why a store would favor providing space to CCG events over RPG events.

[sblock=the post]

Stores come up with all kinds of ideas for CCG customers, but why not RPG customer incentives?

Because CCG players and their money are soon parted. Between games, CCG players are far more likely to pick up more CCG cards. Whether trying to get trade-bait, hoping to make their deck better after a crippling loss or just impulse buying, the CCG players swiftly fritter away the $5 per hit for their drug of choice.

RPG players probably already have their books. Impulse buys can happen, but those won't be generated by Competitiveness or Collectability. And that is ‘if’ the store has any of the books for that edition of the game in at the time. Also you may have RPG players looking up rules in the books rather than buying them to bring to a home game. And I’d suspect sometimes impulse buys are even averted by since the DM can give the Yes or No answer right there in the store before the book is bought.

Also CCG players drift from game to game, often with time to do some shopping between games or pop out to go for a burger. RPG players might take ‘a’ break, but generally will be at the table for hours, wanting to bring in food, wanting to befoul your bathroom and wanting you to stay open past closing.[/sblock]

As it happens Mark and I have the extreme fortune to have accesses to the Best FLGS I have seen in my entire life, Games Plus. It actually has a Huge back gaming room, a open washroom in the gaming area and the store does stay open long past closing for its customers. Games Plus has the capacity to handle and encourage RPG events, but it is not a normal store. Most simply don't have the room.

 

[Mark]

As the person being quoted, That was in context of a discussion of why a store would favor providing space to CCG events over RPG events.

Does that change the impression?

 

[Jack99]

Overweight and socially challenged with a really poor taste in clothes?

 

[Dragonbait]

Overweight and socially challenged with a really poor taste in clothes?

Did someone mention me? Oops, I mean..

Is this the general impression of RPGers? If not, what is your general impression of RPGers?

Really, the last D&D group parody I saw written by non-D&D players was a bunch of skinny nerds (and one good looking one) sitting around a table wearing funny hats. That was about six years ago. I think, for the most part, our negative images have transferred over to video game players and most people don't even think about D&D players any more.

Ah, I just remembered another reference from the radio: D&D? Oh my god people still play that? I thought they would have all committed suicide by now.

 

[frankthedm]

Does that change the impression?

Incredibly considering it is now an issue more of customer logistics than 'gamers'.

will be at the table for hours = How the game is played. In my frame of reference 3 hours is a short gaming session.

wanting to bring in food = Some stores are cool with folks eating on premises, others don't want to risk cleaning up a mess or can't have food or drink on premises due to lease restrictions/zoning laws. If a group will be at a table for hours, somebody will get hungry and at least one other will be thinking "Hey, could go for some food." Of course they somehow won't see the No Food or Drink sign, which now means the store clerk has to handle the issue after they bought and brought in the food. Having to balance reasonable restrictions with keeping potentially unreasonable customers happy is not something stores relish.

wanting to befoul your bathroom = many stores don't provide bathrooms to customers due to bad experiences or fear of them. Again if you have people on site for hours, they are going to want to get at the precious employee bathroom.

wanting you to stay open past closing = if a game is going good then potentials customers will want to stay longer and may even lie about how much time remains in the game. Insisting they go guarantees they won't be buying anything on the way out and if you keep the register open waiting for them in hopes they do buy something before they leave, that delays clusing even further. Also zoning laws may dictate closing times.

 

[Mark]

Incredibly

I don't think we are connecting here. Is your own impression the same or different from the one you profess is that of gamestore owners? In context, I was under, perhaps, the misconception that you felt this was a general impression of gamers rather than just that of gamestore owners, and, thus, also an impression you felt was accurate. Is that the case?

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Overweight and socially challenged with a really poor taste in clothes?

For the most part I have to agree with this assessment though I see more underweight players than overweight.

I'd have to add unhygienic. Body odor and bad breath has kept me from returning to more than one LGS.

 

[ki11erDM]

The ones at my LGS? Yea. But then the LGSs in this area don't even know what WoTC book is coming out next so not like I even go to them any more.

 

[frankthedm]

I don't think we are connecting here. Is your own impression the same or different from the one you profess is that of gamestore owners? In context, I was under, perhaps, the misconception that you felt this was a general impression of gamers rather than just that of gamestore owners, and, thus, also an impression you felt was accurate. Is that the case?

Ahhh. There it is. That original statement is my general impression of customers, mayhap the bulk of humanity, notably those who would be in any store over a extended time.