This has got to be THE single most pointless piece of gaming news I've seen on/. in a while. That's 60 seconds of my life spent scanning TFA that I'm never going to get back.
I know that things are slow pre-E3, but a long-winded article about an unofficial game that never got developed for a "system" that never should have been... why do I care again?
C'mon, now, let's face facts. There are really only three possible ways they decided who to send their threats to.
1. They took a list of all the universities in the country and, using a complicated algorithm and selection process, chose every tenth one from it.
2. They said screw the algorithm and just took the first forty names. I didn't RTFA, but it wouldn't surprise me if all the school's names started with A.
Comparing Asteroids to The Great Gatsby is like comparing a Harlequinn romance novel to Citizen Kane. By that logic, books aren't art. C'mon Ebert, do a little research before you spout off.
The trick to running a small store in a community with a Wal-Mart is to not directly compete. Fill the areas that Wal-Mart can't, or won't. If you run a music store, sell non-edited music. Book stores, furniture stores, specialty shops can all fill areas that Wal-Mart really only give token selection for in the stores.
There are definitely options for co-existing with Wal-Mart, but people prefer to bitch over acting.
Plus K-Mart, while a large corp., is nicer to the community and it's employees.
This is bull. I've worked for both and the treatment is comparable.
Besides, Wal-Mart doesn't build stores until they're going to make money. They're replacing the D1 store in town with a SuperCenter and we've already got another SuperCenter in town. However, that store makes a ton of money, and the people who would normally shop at the old store shop at the new one because it's "new and shiny." Split that "new and shiny" group between two new stores and you've got two profitable stores.
If you don't shop there where do you go? Drive 20 miles for everything?
Which is exactly what you'd do if the Wal-Mart wasn't there. I've lived in both rural and low-density suburbs, small towns on the plains and college towns in the mountains. Small towns without Wal-Marts are not some mystical bastion of consumerism where Mom and Pop stores thrive on fair prices and a vast diversity of goods.
Small town grocery stores tend to have very limited selections and much larger markups than the bigger stores. Add to that, most of the people living in rural areas tend to be in the lower to middle income brackets, and that hike in prices can make it difficult to purchase the necessities of life.
Wal-Mart is not the death of small shops or small towns. You just have to learn to fill the spaces Wal-Mart doesn't, but most try to compete directly and fail miserably.
I hate to agree with this, being the life long Mac devotee that I am, but you've pretty much hit the nail on the head. I'm planning on getting an upgraded 20" iMac now that you can dual boot. I only plan on using the XP side for games, and really, not even for Half Life 2 or Oblivion, but older games like Dungeon Keeper that hasn't come out on Mac, or Civ3 that has, but can't connect to PCs for LAN games.
I have no intention of doing anything else on the XP side. There's no way in hell I'd surf the web or check email in XP, and I've got all my other needs covered with the software currently on my Mac.
At the same time, while I can see this hurting companies like Aspyr, smaller companies and shareware game makers probably won't be affected at all. Ambrosia Software has been a dedicated Mac developer for years, and while I love quite a few of their games, I wouldn't want to waste my time booting into XP just for one of them. Same goes for GameHouse or PopCap. Smaller games, games my wife would play with regularity, I imagine will continue on as they have been without too much trouble.
I keep seeing the "I don't have time" or "I don't have friends" posts, but I just don't buy 'em. You make the time and the acquaintances for the things you truly want to do. A lot of my GMing experience has been with large groups, five to seven people, and I'll never do that again, if I can avoid it. I'm running a game right now with three people. It started with two. It's the most enjoyable game I've ever run. I just can't believe that it's somehow impossible to find two or three people to play a game with.
As far as time constraints, how much time do you spend playing video games? How much time do you spend watching TV, surfing the internet, reading a book, twiddling your thumbs, whatever? My friends and I play once a week, from 8-Midnight. Four hours is enough time to get in some good role-playing, do some exploring, find a few clues and get into a fight. It's a nice, well-rounded, enjoyable session, one that I can almost always end on a cliffhanger, and keep everyone's interest for the duration.
Now, I'm not trying to make this personal or anything, but it's just irritating to hear "I don't have time. I don't have friends that want to play. Other people must be the same way. That's what's wrong with the industry." You've got time, you've got friends, you just don't have the interest. Loss of interest is a real problem. Loss of interest is something that might be addressed, something that can be changed.
Sorry about that. I will agree, though, that P&PRPG companies have an uphill climb ahead of them, no matter how you slice it. It's a hobby that requires that one person either be able to pull stories out of thin air, or have a lot of time and patience for prep. It requires imagination and an attention span not often found in the age of TV. It requires a hefty entrance fee, when you take into consideration the fact that an RPG book has no other reasonable use except as an RPG book, whereas a gaming PC has many many other uses. Hell, even wargame miniatures can look cool on a shelf. The PHB is worthless if you're not actually playing D&D.
It doesn't surprise me that the P&P industry is in decline. I just think that, unlike player attention span, time constraints and storytelling ability, price is one of the factors that can be changed, and might make a difference if it was.
RPGs are a niche luxury item, they dont work like larger audience goods. The companies behind them often dont have cash reserves from other sales to fall back on. This IS their product. You don't buy it, they fold.
I can accept this for Tabletop Adventures, Swords & Sorcery, maybe even White Wolf, or TSR back in the day, but not Wizards. They're owned by Hasbro, they have other sales, and large cash reserves. They could be the catalyst for lowering prices and bringing in new people. Instead, they charge as much as, or more, for their product than others, while at the same time releasing supplement after supplement after supplement.
I agree with all of thise, except the last sentence. Unlike the music industry, illegal downloads of RPG books are definitely detrimental, however, the price must go down before I will buy books not the other way around. To say that I have to pay outrageous prices in order to avoid even more outrageous prices is not going to work. If a company bites the bullet and releases a book or a system at a reduced price, I would support it, even if I didn't care about the game.
It is the consumer that should determine the price, not the industry. If I vote with my wallet and choose not to buy your product because it's overpriced, you don't win me back by raising the costs even more.
Then they really should reconsider how they package these books. Take the Complete series (Complete Adventurer, Complete Arcane, etc) for instance. I'd seriously consider paying $50 to $60 for a single book that held all five of the Complete series of books. I'm sure there's quite a bit of filler that they could remove from each in order to reduce the page count to the 300-350 range and still get in all the interesting bits.
In contrast, I pick up and look at Complete Warrior, see that it costs $35, and put it right back down. There's not even any consideration. I don't just play fighters, or wizards, or clerics, so I would want all of the books, and at $175, there's no chance in hell, so why bother with even one?
I know this argument from video game pricing discussions I've had too. I know, and admit, that gaming is not as popular as other leisure time activities like reading and watching movies. However, I'm not certain how much of that is due to it being a niche pproduct, and how much is due to the fact that the industry prices itself into a niche.
Granted, the video game industry is far more likely to gain major popular support than RPGs, and thus isn't a great comparison, but I know 10-20 people who really enjoy table top RPGs, get together on a regular basis to play, and don't buy any of these books, due to the price. Lower that price $10-$15, and half of us by books more often. $15-$20 and all of us do.
I understand that publishers are trying to recoup their costs and that writers and artists want to get paid. That doesn't matter a lick, though, in the store, when I'm looking at the shelf. These books perceived value, in my eyes, is far lower than the asking price, so I don't buy, and neither do my friends.
And what now? Sales are down, profit margins are shrinking. Do these companies charge more so that they recoup what they're losing on the decreased sales? I'm no economist, but I was under the impression that decreased demand should result in decreased prices.
I would imagine part of the decline of the industry is due to the expense of books. RPG books simply cost too damn much. I can't stand it when WotC releases a 100 page book and wants $35 for it. Not only do they overprice everything, but it seems like they set the price for the rest of the books out there. Considering how many books get released and put on the shelves, I think the price range should be $10-$30 not $30-$50.
Never mind the wireless extension cords, I wanted the 1Up Mushroom. I nearly tried ordering one, but it was actually the wireless extension cords that gave the joke away.
It's a carbon-copy of thousands of similar console games.
It was the first successful console RPG in the U.S., or close to it. Final Fantasy released long before Baldur's Gate, and considering it was much easier in the late 80s to have an NES in the house than a computer, it's not surprising at all that Final Fantasy is more recognizable. Final Fantasy is the original DNA strand from which the thousands of clones were spawned.
Do yourself a favor and remove your head from your PC-only hole. Video gaming encompasses far more than just the past decade or so of PC releases.
I couldn't decide if it was worth replying to this. I'm still not sure. I haven't been able to decide if you're an AC troll or if you're really this moronic.
And what do you know, half the entries are Sony games. (Lara Croft, EverQuest, and Final Fantasy.)
Tomb Raider is an Eidos game, and, while it started as a Playstation exclusive IIRC, it's since turned into a multiplatform flop, proving that boobs do not popularity make. Final Fantasy was originally a Squaresoft game (now Square-Enix). While I realize that Square and Sony start with the same letter, they are not the same company.
Also, just as D&D is the first thing people think of when they think of tabletop RPGs, despite the fact that White Wolf or Palladium may have a better rules system, I'd be willing to bet that Final Fantasy is the first name most people think of when asked to name a video game RPG. That's pretty damn iconic.
Point granted. Perhaps replacing "knows what they're doing" with "cares about what they're doing" would be a better way to phrase it. There're media whores everywhere, this guy's not a new phenomenon. Add to that "he's a treacherous (since he doesn't believe in his own message), calculating bastard who is spreading FUD to line his own pockets" pretty much describes the mass media at large, and as long as FUD continues to sell papers and jack up TV ratings, there's going to be a market for people who want to get rich playing the system.
I like PA's take on him. Everybody hates him, but if he disappears, someone might replace him that actually knows what they're doing. The more publicity he gets and the more he's associated with the anti-game movement, the less credibility the movement has, and politicians like Clinton are going to be less likely to glom onto it as a political maneuver.
Anonymity's probably an important factor, as well. Did the participants know who was in the next room or not, and how well? Anonymity is a powerful "jackass" motivator.
Violence is probably misused in this context. I'd say the noise blast probably indicates a higher level of aggressive tendencies, more along the lines of taunting them for losing than punching them in the nose. Gloating over a kill online comes to mind.
If there have been a number of different studies that have come to different conclusions, then I'd say that would indicate that there's something else at play here.
Of course, that's not going to stop headline writers, politicians and Jack Thompson from ignoring any other findings and just going to shock value.
Where I live, getting one on walk-in will be extremely difficult, as well. The Wal-Mart I used to work for is getting eight. One EB apparently took 200 pre-orders and is getting 14. I don't know how many the other Wal-Mart or Target in town are getting, but with numbers like that, I wouldn't hold my breath. Also, of the 8 that are coming, only two are the deluxe package. Six are the $300 basic package.
Slashdot Mirror
I know that things are slow pre-E3, but a long-winded article about an unofficial game that never got developed for a "system" that never should have been... why do I care again?
1. They took a list of all the universities in the country and, using a complicated algorithm and selection process, chose every tenth one from it.
2. They said screw the algorithm and just took the first forty names. I didn't RTFA, but it wouldn't surprise me if all the school's names started with A.
3. They chucked darts at a map.
My money's on number 3.
Comparing Asteroids to The Great Gatsby is like comparing a Harlequinn romance novel to Citizen Kane. By that logic, books aren't art. C'mon Ebert, do a little research before you spout off.
There are definitely options for co-existing with Wal-Mart, but people prefer to bitch over acting.
This is bull. I've worked for both and the treatment is comparable.
Besides, Wal-Mart doesn't build stores until they're going to make money. They're replacing the D1 store in town with a SuperCenter and we've already got another SuperCenter in town. However, that store makes a ton of money, and the people who would normally shop at the old store shop at the new one because it's "new and shiny." Split that "new and shiny" group between two new stores and you've got two profitable stores.
Which is exactly what you'd do if the Wal-Mart wasn't there. I've lived in both rural and low-density suburbs, small towns on the plains and college towns in the mountains. Small towns without Wal-Marts are not some mystical bastion of consumerism where Mom and Pop stores thrive on fair prices and a vast diversity of goods.
Small town grocery stores tend to have very limited selections and much larger markups than the bigger stores. Add to that, most of the people living in rural areas tend to be in the lower to middle income brackets, and that hike in prices can make it difficult to purchase the necessities of life.
Wal-Mart is not the death of small shops or small towns. You just have to learn to fill the spaces Wal-Mart doesn't, but most try to compete directly and fail miserably.
Pathetic maybe, but not surprising since they're practically the only company porting games on a regular basisi.
Dammit! Forgot to format. Sorry.
I hate to agree with this, being the life long Mac devotee that I am, but you've pretty much hit the nail on the head. I'm planning on getting an upgraded 20" iMac now that you can dual boot. I only plan on using the XP side for games, and really, not even for Half Life 2 or Oblivion, but older games like Dungeon Keeper that hasn't come out on Mac, or Civ3 that has, but can't connect to PCs for LAN games. I have no intention of doing anything else on the XP side. There's no way in hell I'd surf the web or check email in XP, and I've got all my other needs covered with the software currently on my Mac. At the same time, while I can see this hurting companies like Aspyr, smaller companies and shareware game makers probably won't be affected at all. Ambrosia Software has been a dedicated Mac developer for years, and while I love quite a few of their games, I wouldn't want to waste my time booting into XP just for one of them. Same goes for GameHouse or PopCap. Smaller games, games my wife would play with regularity, I imagine will continue on as they have been without too much trouble.
As far as time constraints, how much time do you spend playing video games? How much time do you spend watching TV, surfing the internet, reading a book, twiddling your thumbs, whatever? My friends and I play once a week, from 8-Midnight. Four hours is enough time to get in some good role-playing, do some exploring, find a few clues and get into a fight. It's a nice, well-rounded, enjoyable session, one that I can almost always end on a cliffhanger, and keep everyone's interest for the duration.
Now, I'm not trying to make this personal or anything, but it's just irritating to hear "I don't have time. I don't have friends that want to play. Other people must be the same way. That's what's wrong with the industry." You've got time, you've got friends, you just don't have the interest. Loss of interest is a real problem. Loss of interest is something that might be addressed, something that can be changed.
Sorry about that. I will agree, though, that P&PRPG companies have an uphill climb ahead of them, no matter how you slice it. It's a hobby that requires that one person either be able to pull stories out of thin air, or have a lot of time and patience for prep. It requires imagination and an attention span not often found in the age of TV. It requires a hefty entrance fee, when you take into consideration the fact that an RPG book has no other reasonable use except as an RPG book, whereas a gaming PC has many many other uses. Hell, even wargame miniatures can look cool on a shelf. The PHB is worthless if you're not actually playing D&D.
It doesn't surprise me that the P&P industry is in decline. I just think that, unlike player attention span, time constraints and storytelling ability, price is one of the factors that can be changed, and might make a difference if it was.
I can accept this for Tabletop Adventures, Swords & Sorcery, maybe even White Wolf, or TSR back in the day, but not Wizards. They're owned by Hasbro, they have other sales, and large cash reserves. They could be the catalyst for lowering prices and bringing in new people. Instead, they charge as much as, or more, for their product than others, while at the same time releasing supplement after supplement after supplement.
It is the consumer that should determine the price, not the industry. If I vote with my wallet and choose not to buy your product because it's overpriced, you don't win me back by raising the costs even more.
In contrast, I pick up and look at Complete Warrior, see that it costs $35, and put it right back down. There's not even any consideration. I don't just play fighters, or wizards, or clerics, so I would want all of the books, and at $175, there's no chance in hell, so why bother with even one?
Granted, the video game industry is far more likely to gain major popular support than RPGs, and thus isn't a great comparison, but I know 10-20 people who really enjoy table top RPGs, get together on a regular basis to play, and don't buy any of these books, due to the price. Lower that price $10-$15, and half of us by books more often. $15-$20 and all of us do.
I understand that publishers are trying to recoup their costs and that writers and artists want to get paid. That doesn't matter a lick, though, in the store, when I'm looking at the shelf. These books perceived value, in my eyes, is far lower than the asking price, so I don't buy, and neither do my friends.
And what now? Sales are down, profit margins are shrinking. Do these companies charge more so that they recoup what they're losing on the decreased sales? I'm no economist, but I was under the impression that decreased demand should result in decreased prices.
I would imagine part of the decline of the industry is due to the expense of books. RPG books simply cost too damn much. I can't stand it when WotC releases a 100 page book and wants $35 for it. Not only do they overprice everything, but it seems like they set the price for the rest of the books out there. Considering how many books get released and put on the shelves, I think the price range should be $10-$30 not $30-$50.
Never mind the wireless extension cords, I wanted the 1Up Mushroom. I nearly tried ordering one, but it was actually the wireless extension cords that gave the joke away.
It was the first successful console RPG in the U.S., or close to it. Final Fantasy released long before Baldur's Gate, and considering it was much easier in the late 80s to have an NES in the house than a computer, it's not surprising at all that Final Fantasy is more recognizable. Final Fantasy is the original DNA strand from which the thousands of clones were spawned.
Do yourself a favor and remove your head from your PC-only hole. Video gaming encompasses far more than just the past decade or so of PC releases.
And what do you know, half the entries are Sony games. (Lara Croft, EverQuest, and Final Fantasy.)
Tomb Raider is an Eidos game, and, while it started as a Playstation exclusive IIRC, it's since turned into a multiplatform flop, proving that boobs do not popularity make. Final Fantasy was originally a Squaresoft game (now Square-Enix). While I realize that Square and Sony start with the same letter, they are not the same company.
Also, just as D&D is the first thing people think of when they think of tabletop RPGs, despite the fact that White Wolf or Palladium may have a better rules system, I'd be willing to bet that Final Fantasy is the first name most people think of when asked to name a video game RPG. That's pretty damn iconic.
$60, actually, for the 360 version.
Point granted. Perhaps replacing "knows what they're doing" with "cares about what they're doing" would be a better way to phrase it. There're media whores everywhere, this guy's not a new phenomenon. Add to that "he's a treacherous (since he doesn't believe in his own message), calculating bastard who is spreading FUD to line his own pockets" pretty much describes the mass media at large, and as long as FUD continues to sell papers and jack up TV ratings, there's going to be a market for people who want to get rich playing the system.
I like PA's take on him. Everybody hates him, but if he disappears, someone might replace him that actually knows what they're doing. The more publicity he gets and the more he's associated with the anti-game movement, the less credibility the movement has, and politicians like Clinton are going to be less likely to glom onto it as a political maneuver.
Anonymity's probably an important factor, as well. Did the participants know who was in the next room or not, and how well? Anonymity is a powerful "jackass" motivator.
Violence is probably misused in this context. I'd say the noise blast probably indicates a higher level of aggressive tendencies, more along the lines of taunting them for losing than punching them in the nose. Gloating over a kill online comes to mind.
Of course, that's not going to stop headline writers, politicians and Jack Thompson from ignoring any other findings and just going to shock value.
Where I live, getting one on walk-in will be extremely difficult, as well. The Wal-Mart I used to work for is getting eight. One EB apparently took 200 pre-orders and is getting 14. I don't know how many the other Wal-Mart or Target in town are getting, but with numbers like that, I wouldn't hold my breath. Also, of the 8 that are coming, only two are the deluxe package. Six are the $300 basic package.