Blah blah blah durp fart.
So I guess some random self-loathing gamer guy is pissed because his anonymous friend tried to sell his (the friend's) anonymous product to anonymous "tabletop gamers" and failed because they (the gamers) are cantankerous doodyheads too busy having the temerity to question which products are actually worth buying to bother marketing to. Same old song and dance, new outrage.
So-called discussion rapidly devolves into whether it's okay to criticize WotC and their games in public or if this makes you a bad gamer who's harming "the hobby." No kidding.
Personally, I have to give credit to Corinth for his thread-winner of a post. I agree 100%. The ranter linked to in that thread's first post and the marketing woes of his mystery pal are not my concern. What I want is good stuff born of and presented with real passion by real gamers like me.
Where's my money going now? Fight On! Knockspell, The Dungeon Alphabet, Castle of the Mad Archmage, Stonehell Dungeon, Labyrinth Lord and so on.
That reminds me, there's a new FO issue now...
So forgive me for not being down with the devastating tag-team combination of bitter failed novelists churning-out White Wolf splatbooks for pennies on the word and douchebags with MBAs. Go ahead, guys: Don't make me any more B-movies, videogames, cartoon shows, iPhone aps, or transmedia thingamawhatzits based on (i.e. named after) my favorite RPGs. Really, don't. I'll be just fine. Better than fine, actually. I'll be having a blast. I'll not only have "nice things", I'll have far more than I can ever use!
On the other hand, this does serve as a great reminder of why I've ditched forums for blogs when it comes to my online RPG discussions.
6 hours ago
.JPG)
So forgive me for not being down with the devastating tag-team combination of bitter failed novelists churning-out White Wolf splatbooks for pennies on the word and douchebags with MBAs.
ReplyDeleteI just about spit my drink on the monitor when I read that. Well played, sir.
I wish to subscribe to your controversy of the week posts.
ReplyDeleteKeep em coming.
What I took away from malcolm's post was that the people spoiling the market were the kind of bitter message-board whine-mongers and know-it-alls I'm all too familiar with from my work on AEG's games.
ReplyDeleteI think the problem is not "tabletop gamers" but a small fraction of them who present a disproportionately negative face on Internet forums.
"I think the problem is not 'tabletop gamers' but a small fraction of them who present a disproportionately negative face on Internet forums."
ReplyDeleteMaybe I'm just not convinced that having strong opinions and expressing them is "negative", "toxic" or whatever the else you want to call it.
If that's all it takes to "spoil the market", the market may have it coming. And in any case, f*** the market. Great gaming doesn't need (and may not even want) it.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteMe and my horrid typos. Let's try that last one again:
ReplyDeleteBasically, what I'm getting at here is that the top-down corporate way of creating and distributing tabletop RPGs is on its deathbed, and the hobby as a whole will only be better for it. Gradually (but not too gradually at all), more and more emphasis will shift toward the type of lateral (gamer-to-gamer), low/no-cost, passion-over-profit content creation and distribution that the OSR is currently exemplary of. And the content itself won't suffer for it one bit.
This scares some folks like this Skarka fellow absolutely shitless and it's easier to blame "toxic jerkwads" and "Comic Book Guys" for the old business model's failure than that model itself, especially if you were a part of it on some level.
It was a long time since I was a regular on forums. Guess why. :)
ReplyDeleteWow, you need to pay attention more. You're all starting to sound like religious conservatives; Loud, misinformed, and potentially violent about it: 'I don't agree, so therefore it must be sh*t, and of course its on its way out.'
ReplyDeleteThe 'top down, corporate way of manufacturing rpgs' has been 'on its death bed' as you put it since the mid -ninties. Since it still proceeds to make money hand over fist vs. the rest of the industry, it is likely not going away any time soon. We as fans of our particular styles of gaming should be doing more to change that. rather then sitting around trolling about it.
Or I guess you could continue to take your cues from evangelical christian television.
What do you mean "potentially violent?" I kill at least three WotC employees a day. And that's just before breakfast.
ReplyDeleteAlso pinging this a month late.
ReplyDeleteThe guy's first bullet-point: "Instead of having social conversations, they focused on concrete goals." That's meant as a complaint? Holy shit. That's like a description of who I want as friends/ collaborators.
As Andreas says above, I'm way down on forums these days. Better to visit a blog with one person in charge and a specific point-of-view (and that won't be co-opted by some random OCD loudmouth).