Comments on: The hobby gets bigger, and more expensive http://blog.thomas-robertson.com/63-the-hobby-gets-bigger-and-more-expensive Inside the Mind of Thomas Robertson Tue, 31 Jan 2012 03:19:19 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 By: Do Mega-Conventions Hurt Game Quality? « My Play http://blog.thomas-robertson.com/63-the-hobby-gets-bigger-and-more-expensive/comment-page-1#comment-680 Do Mega-Conventions Hurt Game Quality? « My Play Wed, 30 Aug 2006 02:47:07 +0000 http://www.thesmerf.com/blog/61-the-hobby-gets-bigger-and-more-expensive#comment-680 [...] After GenCon 2006, a similar discussion has begun in the indie RPG community [EDIT: this post at Thomas Robertson’s blog Musings and Mental Meanserings is also part of the discussion, and played a large part in getting me to write this post], while traditional RPGs have always suffered from the same problem. Cynics have always accused companies of deliberately releasing flawed RPGs in order to have an excuse for a Second (and Third, etc.) Edition cash grab. I suspect that playtesting an old school, complex RPG like Shadowrun or D&D 3.x enough to ensure absolute balance would bankrupt a company, though. [...] [...] After GenCon 2006, a similar discussion has begun in the indie RPG community [EDIT: this post at Thomas Robertson’s blog Musings and Mental Meanserings is also part of the discussion, and played a large part in getting me to write this post], while traditional RPGs have always suffered from the same problem. Cynics have always accused companies of deliberately releasing flawed RPGs in order to have an excuse for a Second (and Third, etc.) Edition cash grab. I suspect that playtesting an old school, complex RPG like Shadowrun or D&D 3.x enough to ensure absolute balance would bankrupt a company, though. [...]

]]> By: Brennan Taylor http://blog.thomas-robertson.com/63-the-hobby-gets-bigger-and-more-expensive/comment-page-1#comment-679 Brennan Taylor Tue, 22 Aug 2006 13:51:49 +0000 http://www.thesmerf.com/blog/61-the-hobby-gets-bigger-and-more-expensive#comment-679 I tried really hard to make Mortal Coil a finished project, and it pretty much is. However, there are always things you miss when you release a game, and when the same questions start popping up over and over again, it's very tempting to make corrections and release a new version of the game. I think that's what you're seeing with the Dogs in the Vineyard and Universalis revisions, for example. Flat-out broken games (basically beta version RPGs) are a different matter, though. I tried really hard to make Mortal Coil a finished project, and it pretty much is. However, there are always things you miss when you release a game, and when the same questions start popping up over and over again, it’s very tempting to make corrections and release a new version of the game. I think that’s what you’re seeing with the Dogs in the Vineyard and Universalis revisions, for example.

Flat-out broken games (basically beta version RPGs) are a different matter, though.

]]> By: Fred http://blog.thomas-robertson.com/63-the-hobby-gets-bigger-and-more-expensive/comment-page-1#comment-678 Fred Tue, 22 Aug 2006 12:21:03 +0000 http://www.thesmerf.com/blog/61-the-hobby-gets-bigger-and-more-expensive#comment-678 Small price to pay, I say. Small price to pay, I say.

]]> By: Gerald Cameron http://blog.thomas-robertson.com/63-the-hobby-gets-bigger-and-more-expensive/comment-page-1#comment-677 Gerald Cameron Tue, 22 Aug 2006 03:18:09 +0000 http://www.thesmerf.com/blog/61-the-hobby-gets-bigger-and-more-expensive#comment-677 Funnily enough, I've recently been thinking about similar things. Underdevelopment is a complaint that comes up a lot among boardgamers (including me), but I especially got intrigued by the topic after reading <a href="http://gaming.powerblogs.com/posts/1155678282.shtml#659" rel="nofollow">a comment by Chris Farrell</a> about Iron Heroes. I think that the biggest problem is the perception that a game HAS to be launched at one of the major conventions (primarily Gen Con for North American games, including RPGs, Essen and Nuremburg for European boardgames). This results in an artificial rush to finish a game up and get it out "in time" rather than take the necessary time to get the last details that make the difference between a good (or adequate or even bad) game and a great game. Obviously, there are real, albeit overemphasized, business pressures to launch at a major convention, since it is possible to generate a larger amount of money making buzz in a shorter amount of time at a con than it is in any other way. While this is an unspophisticated view of things, it is an understandible one for someone that has their life's savings (or more) invested in a product, as is frequently the case with minor "mainstream" publishers. One would think that indie designers, who are (supposedly) focused on viral marketing and evergreen products would be able to see the wisdom of getting things right over gettings things done, but I think the history of the Forge indicates how hard it is to slay established beliefs. Funnily enough, I’ve recently been thinking about similar things. Underdevelopment is a complaint that comes up a lot among boardgamers (including me), but I especially got intrigued by the topic after reading a comment by Chris Farrell about Iron Heroes.

I think that the biggest problem is the perception that a game HAS to be launched at one of the major conventions (primarily Gen Con for North American games, including RPGs, Essen and Nuremburg for European boardgames). This results in an artificial rush to finish a game up and get it out “in time” rather than take the necessary time to get the last details that make the difference between a good (or adequate or even bad) game and a great game.

Obviously, there are real, albeit overemphasized, business pressures to launch at a major convention, since it is possible to generate a larger amount of money making buzz in a shorter amount of time at a con than it is in any other way. While this is an unspophisticated view of things, it is an understandible one for someone that has their life’s savings (or more) invested in a product, as is frequently the case with minor “mainstream” publishers.

One would think that indie designers, who are (supposedly) focused on viral marketing and evergreen products would be able to see the wisdom of getting things right over gettings things done, but I think the history of the Forge indicates how hard it is to slay established beliefs.

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