Constitution of the hobby

[Heisler]

Computer gaming will definitely make inroads but in the long run it can replace what most of us get together for. To have a good time. Having been deep several times into the online games, Everquest and DAOC, they do lose their appeal after a while. There is only so much that you can do when your trying to interact with a computer rather than a flesh and blood person. So people may make the diversion to computer games but they won't replace our games completely for a long time, hopefully never.

[Vapok]

Not if the person playing the video game never gets the experience of knowing what it feels like to be with a "flesh and blood person". For kids, they get the experience of maybe going to a LAN Party which is ALMOST like what we know and love doing table top, except that their army is their computer case and monitor, and their art is how many bumper stickers they can put on the side of their case and how many fans it takes to cool their processors.

[Lawgiver]

I think the biggest problem with stagnant growth in the RPG industry is the nature of the current generation. They are overstimulated. They want instant action with 3D products with flashy graphics and don't care for imagination/paper based gaming.

 

The other problem is the explosion/fracturing in the game systems. it is no longer a market dominated by one mega company. With so many small companies vying for power there aren't the large pools of resources available to produce/distribute/market products en masse. games survive largely by word of mouth and the FLGSs. FLGSs are slowly dying with the advent of the internet and their inability and/or unwillingness to compete.

[vejlin]

Maybe looking at sales numbers from people like WOTC would shed some light on the development. Maybe reaper has some info about the way things are headed from their DHL sales (which atleast around here is bought for role playing games)

 

Actually around here LGS's are popping up all over the place, not closing. What is driving their sales though is not paper roleplaying but LARP'ing. Most of the gaming stores around here have about half their shelf space filled with latex weaponry.

[Froy The Orc]

I think it was best said by FrankMentzer at the end of the Gen Con auctions last year. Introduce young people, a friend, a neighbor and there children to the fun that is Gaming, or else one day it will not be there.

 

I personally believe that when 25,000 or so people are willing to make the journey to Indianapolis for Gen Con, that the industry is not in any pain. I know for certain that when I go to Gen Con I am buying for four other people who could not have made the trip but want all the cool things that are newly released. So if I am buying for 4, how many others are doing the same?

 

The one thing about this hobby that seems to have its downfall, is the requirement to have social interaction in person. Interaction nowadays is so easy when you turn on your computer and there the world is just setting there waiting for you without the need for face to face, but going out and making friends in person can be a bit of a nightmare, and the fact that scheduling a game for those of us who have fulltime jobs and families to go home to can kind of be tiresome if something falls through and things need to be rescheduled.

 

 

I do know that Palladium Games tryed to go under, but there fanbase put together 100k in less then two weeks to bring them up and out. So the industry as a whole still must have some money in its veins.

[Lars Porsenna]

Re: Organizing real-world games. How easy (or hard) it is really depends on the committment of the players. I have a full-time job and a family as well. My group schedules one nite a week when we can get together an play. This nite rarely moves. Having a single nite to do this sort of thing helps because we can create schedules around it like we do with everything else. And if you choose wisely (we play friday nites), usually we can get good attendance without having to cancel. There's still the occasional issue of school plays (which IIRC usually are not on friday nites) or the like, but these days, if the kids want to get into Karate class, we just schedule that for a thurs nite or similar. In the end it all works out...

 

Damon.

[axegrrl]

One female RPGer is rumored to live in Chicago.

I'm northwest of Chicago, and can vouch that there are a number of gaming groups in and around Chicago. I'm in two. One of those is actually 3 females and 1 male plus the GM (who's male). Last Game Day, there were five other females in the room.

 

While I've seen a fair number of old-timers at Games Plus, I've seen a decent number of kids, too.

 

Another thing to keep in mind is that there are starting to be more "second generation gamers" out there.

[Heisler]

Despite my distaste for most CCGs, those have done a lot to introduce kids to gaming and they do play face to face. Eventually some even turn to other games as well. The RPG group that my youngest plays with at the FLGS has a number of kids that were converted over to RPGs from CCGs. Thank goodness!

[Joe Kutz]

You can get sales data for WoTC pretty easily (sort of). They are publically traded and you can find most of that data in the quarterly reports put out through Hasbro.

 

A few interesting bits of info. In 1999 when WoTC did there survey they managed to control roughly 66% of the PnP market. In 2001 following the release of 3E - their market share actually dropped to 45%. What makes this really interesting is that the market share is based on cost of the materials - the books produced in 1999 cost almost half as much as the new 3E books in the 2001 survey, so their actual circulation nearly dropped in half. By comparison companies like Palladium how had 8% of the market in 1999 went up to 12% in 2001 without increasing their book costs.

 

Anywho, lots of good companies continue to exist and even expand based entirely on PnP RPG sales. Lots of not so good companies don't. It rarely is because of the lack of interest in RPGs that causes the companies to fail, rather lack of good business practices.

[smokingwreckage]

Yeah, often RPG and other hobby busniess startups dont know much about business. Hell, almost all small businesses fail, gaming or no.

[Decado]

As much as I like computer RP games they will, for me, never replace PN RPGing. You just cannot get the same feeling of camaraderie with a CRPG IMO. What is really the seller for me on CRPG is the visual feedback and if they are really good the story draws you in as well. I do not think too many of the CRPGs pull off the story aspect that well.

 

Decado

[paleskin]

Sounds pretty much like your tales of the trials and tribulations of executing a regular RPG session are remarkably similar to those of our group in the UK,we are six at full strength,but I cant honestly remember the last time we had that number at a gaming session.

Regarding the little wee people spied at conventions etc. think you will find they are indeed the offspring of older gamers who have taken them along with them,either that or they are halflings or sprites maybe........

[Heisler]

I admit to contributing two such small beings to the local conventions. They are now the 14 and 16 year olds that sit down across the table from you and proceed to demolish you with glee. Sigh. They are hardened convention veterans, having not missed either of the local conventions (2 per year) since they were born (that's what happens when your parents run cons). They have each been to Origins and Gencon several times as well. I imagine they have been to more conventions than most of you.

 

So I have done my part with second generation gamers (third generation on their mother's side).

[Gimp]

The gaming community will continue to evolve and change.

 

Gaming used to be an oddity, but it has slowly become mainstreamed as time went on and more people found out what it was about.

 

Computer gaming will not destroy paper gaming, simply because the two are different animals. They share similarities, but the core essence is different. TTG's have never replaced RPG's for similar reasons. Their appeals overlap, but they are also very different.

 

Online gaming and LAN parties have given computer games more capability to allow personal interaction, but nothing at the level of traditional RPG's and TTG's. It can actually lead to more crossover, as people find the joy of gaming, and them discover the additional possibilities of gaming directly with friends.

 

Just as the worry that the plethora of pre-painted army games will destroy paint and play games has not come to pass, neither will other options.

 

Look at the reasons people get into the hobby. Some come just to paint. Some come just for paper RPG's. Some come for LARPS. Some come to play armies, but don't want to paint. Some want to paint and play armies. Some want to play cards. Some come for board games. Computer gaming is another option, but not a complete replacement for any of them.

 

Each of those options is a path into the gaming community, but once there a lot of people will travel several paths. Some players will find a comfortable niche and stay there, but a lot of people will branch out.

 

Some people will only be interested in specific games within their niche, but others will be drawn to a variety of games. The number of gamers has consistently grown through the years, but the number playing any single game have waxed and waned.

 

Modern games are more expensive if everything available is purchased, but no RPG requires everything to be playable. It's $50 for a new console game, and even kids pony up that change frequently. $35 for an RPG book is cheap in comparison.

 

Look at the cost of a miniatures game. Rulebooks are normally not too bad, but buying an army goes from moderately to ridiculously expensive. There are a lot of young players here that have mulitple armies. There are a lot of older, established players that have helped young players borrow or start their armies. Cost hasn't driven young players out of the community. A maturing community can help it grow.

 

As the older age population category of gamers grows, both for computer and real world gaming, the expense of available product is going to increase, because a working professional can generate a lot more disposable income than a kid on an allowance.

 

With more adults accepting gaming, kids have an easier time getting into it. With established adults having income that lets them splurge on games, they have an easier time staying with or returning to it. College age and early professional adults can be the hardest hit group, because they might not have been able to get the disposable income or the functional time scheduling to make gaming easier.

 

Gaming is a hobby that can appeal to the old and young. Someday they may have fully virtual games that will add even more options, but even then a group of friends gathered together laughing and playing will be a worthwhile way to spend time.

[Vapok]

Gimp has hit it on the nail...

 

Les not forget the nearly $500 that parents shelled out to get their kid the latest in the gaming craze: The Xbox 360.

 

If they are willing to spend that much on a console game... They will be willing to spend that much on other gaming.