tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670029344758253148.post1212197695277392288..comments2024-02-16T22:05:32.773+02:00Comments on LotFP: RPG: Help me Obi-Blog Kenobi, You're My Only HopeJimLotFPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02992397707040836366noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670029344758253148.post-18046036070694959542010-05-23T22:31:08.333+03:002010-05-23T22:31:08.333+03:00Setting buzz-words aside, I still think that it wo...Setting buzz-words aside, I still think that it would be good if you told more about the practical technique side of the game. Fluffy prose is all well and good, but really - all games promise me fantasy adventures, easy yet complete rules and all other good, yet vague things. What's really going to make the sale are the specific strengths of the game; I can read about those in the Internet, but obviously it wouldn't hurt if the game's box would also say something that would actually make me slow down in the store.<br /><br />I'm trying to reformat an interesting message without buzzwords, but I'm not getting a hit - too difficult to communicate anything really central and interesting in just a few words without using jargon. On the other hand, I'm not enticed by simply marketing fantasy horror; why this particular game instead of any of the other ones with equally appealing cover art? Might be that I just have too many games on my shelves, perhaps a fresher gamer will be more excited by a simple offer of a good game for fantasy adventuring.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670029344758253148.post-11445182850354865842010-05-23T10:22:26.929+03:002010-05-23T10:22:26.929+03:00This target market thing... well... that's com...This target market thing... well... that's complicated. There's the "wishful thinking" and then there's the reality.<br /><br />The reality is that the majority of buyers for this kind of thing don't need to have any sales pitch on the box. They'll be the people who visit this blog, or keep up on the news from the other blogs or whatever, so I might as well just put another picture on the bottom of the box.<br /><br />(and while the game engine certainly works for that really old-school play, the game as presented isn't reflective of that style.)<br /><br />This is going to be in game stores, so people who don't keep up on the online hullabaloo is going to see this... and it is that person I want to appeal to with this.<br /><br />(it would be great if it could get into mass-market stores, but that's just not very realistic at this point)<br /><br />I want to consciously avoid buzzwords and "I'm a part of this clique" in the ad campaign and simply appeal to those who are interested in fantasy and horror. "Innocent" marketing, selling the game on its own merits without any "us vs them" arguments and without inviting preconceptions associated with the "buzzwords."<br /><br />But the newbie-friendliness should be there, since so much of the material is there specifically for them.<br /><br />This box will be a limited run, but if it does well I'll certainly be doing another printing (as a hardcover book, not as a box... don't want to spend my whole life putting books and papers in a very specific order into boxes).JimLotFPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02992397707040836366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670029344758253148.post-31972249504566786812010-05-23T09:50:42.049+03:002010-05-23T09:50:42.049+03:00Who's the target audience for the boxed set? T...Who's the target audience for the boxed set? That's how I figure out what to write, by analyzing the target demographic and what I need to tell them.<br /><br />If you're talking to roleplayers, and especially experienced and Internet-savvy ones, I might suggest that using some OSR-related buzz-words might be a good idea. For instance, I would myself be much more likely to give a generic-looking fantasy game a second look if it could cite some pedigree as part of some specific, unique school of rpg thought. This is because I'm bored and disappointed with the constant glut of generic fantasy games, as is probably a large fraction of the veteran roleplayer audience. For this market demographic lofty words about adventure are near invisible because we've heard it all before. What perks our attention is reference to specific technical approaches and concrete uses the game can be put to.<br /><br />As an example of a paragraph that would sell me on this product, coming to it fresh:<br /><br />"I wrote this game as a lightly modernized and stream-lined take on the sort of challengeful fantasy adventure emblematic of old, first-generation Dungeons & Dragons play. The game is intended to facilitate old-school gaming that uses dungeons, campaign sandboxes, hexcrawls, rulings instead of rules and challenges instead of drama. The box is intended to provide everything you need to learn and play fantasy adventure as it originally appeared."<br /><br />That paragraph hits all the essential points that let me as an Internet-savvy rpg consumer to know that hey, this is about that stuff I've been reading in the blogs for a while now. I guess that if I'm going to give this OSR thing a shot I might as well do it with style, getting a fresh boxed game from a proven member of the movement.<br /><br />In comparison, for a non-roleplayer audience you'll probably want to entice their imagination and emphasize the game's entry-level qualities. Good imagination-inducing prose combined with assurations of being easy to play would seem like a good choice here. This might not be a concern for your box, though - I understand that you're shooting for a limited run and no particular newbie marketing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670029344758253148.post-43552914202599573422010-05-23T03:43:07.296+03:002010-05-23T03:43:07.296+03:00You caught my interest Jim so its a great start. ...You caught my interest Jim so its a great start. One more paragraph pointing out the games distinctiveness would be helpful to encouaging people to choose this system over others. Weird new world excites me especially as subarctic adventuring is rare, has never been done well, and is of particular interest to me.DHBoggshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02170439175265397893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670029344758253148.post-90928189783359058002010-05-22T23:21:32.781+03:002010-05-22T23:21:32.781+03:00All ready sent you some suggestions. Everything el...All ready sent you some suggestions. Everything else looks fine, even if you do not quote from my review for Death Frost Doom. Not to worry, I will get over it.pookiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09521454715536568847noreply@blogger.com