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Message: <blockquote data-quote="HeapThaumaturgist" data-source="post: 2404398" data-attributes="member: 12332">I've come to the conclusion that Star Wars as an RPG is an unholy wooly bugger if there ever was one.  I want to say that part of the reason the d20 line died is that they never got it "right enough".  Nothing's ever perfect, but the "Revised" book was an entirely different game and even that needs to be heavily patched in most cases.  Add to that expensive and ... dunno.  I think more FLGS need to be Non-Gamer Friendly, personally.  I'm a gamer.  I'm a geek.  But I don't LIKE going into most game stores.  It seems that the average gaming store is located in a low-rent shopping district about 30 years old, 20 years of which have been spent needing a paint job.  The (usual) single plate window is so covered with advert posters and mural paintings that little to no light escapes into the store.  The store footprint is small for a speciality shop to begin with, and then they try to pack 3-4 large tables in to give gamers a place to play.  The glass counter/register area is where the minis/ccgs are and are usually clogged with shoppers, making checking out difficult.  The cramped conditions make browsing difficult.  The small quarters mean everybody in the store is talking over themselves and, on the whole, the situation comes across as a dirty little store full of yelling people blocking the way to whatever it is I might want to buy.  That's about 5 out of 6 stores.There's alot of REASONS for those conditions, but y'know where I spend more time reading RPG books and have BOUGHT more RPG books recently?  Barnes and Noble.  The 'local' B&N here has a VERY thriving fantasy atmosphere ... presentations, talks, and seminars by local authors and fantasy authors, a reading section in the middle of the sci-fi/fantasy area, a pretty hefty selection of books by about the top 6 or so RPG  producers, including, last time I was there, RPGO's Blood and Space (which I ALMOST picked up, but had just bought movie tickets and was a little light in the back pocket).  I think the "gaming" store is dying ... but the "geek chic" store might be taking off.  I've been in a few game stores that almost had it right.  An okay shop in suburban Sacramento CA (forget the name) had one of the best selections of games, RPGs, collectibles, toys, comics, etc that I've run across.  We spent at least 200 bucks in there over the last two vacations I've taken to visit my in-laws.  The thing I'd most change in that place would be a little decor ... try to make the general appearance of the store more attractive ... and by the RPGs they had 2 old 6' tables and a collection of mismatched chairs, ostensibly for gaming, but I never saw anybody gaming there the times I was in there and mostly it was browsers stealing a spot to sit and read for a bit, including myself.  If they moved the tables somewhere else and added some chairs ... no need for really expensive ones, just chairs that say:  "We welcome you sitting and hanging out for a while." that would have probably sold me 2-3 more game books.  As it was my wife was uncomfortable standing around twiddling her thumbs while I paged through books and I got drug out by the collar rather quickly.  If she had somewhere that I could sit her down and put a comic in her hands for a while ... (got the wife hooked on comics, woo!), well, that would've allowed me the time I needed to spend more money there.EDIT:  Which is also what I do at B&N ... so B&N has sold us several trade paperbacks over the last few years as well, when I couldn't get her to relinquish her precious so I could buy my own.--fje</blockquote>

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