Report To The Stakeholders

[PK]

Originally Posted by Owen Smith

Ah, I don't do Twitter (or Facebook etc.) It seems odd for a company to initially announce something major like the report on someone else's platform rather than here in their own forums or daily illuminator.

That's not odd; that's precisely why social media platforms exist.

[Buzzardo]

Thanks for the transparency. It takes courage to admit that things didn't go as you would have wished, and I appreciate it.

[Ze'Manel Cunha]

Originally Posted by Ghostdancer

I hope that SJGames takes the Kickstarter approach to all new hardbacks. Why? Because that defers the risks and gives you publicity. You can't really beat that combination. While I'm disappointed, I don't think SJGames is going to kill an RPG they've kept in print for the better part of 3 decades.

I'll second that, personally if I see an interesting Kickstarter I tend to hop on, but those hardbacks didn't even hit my radar and I used to buy most things GURPS...

Originally Posted by Ghostdancer

Also, I think the DFRPG is going to do VERY well. It hits all the right buttons, is GURPS-y enough, but not so much that it scares folks off.

That's why I backed the Kickstarter for it, hoping for a resurgence there, even if it's not as popular as something like Gloomhaven, even a touch of that has to help.

[philreed]

Originally Posted by Owen Smith

I didn't say don't us social media. I'm just surprised it's the only place the report has been announced. Why not announce it on your own site as well, like this thread?

http://www.sjgames.com/ill/archive/A...s_Report_Is_Up

There's an order in which things happen. By staggering announcement through different channels we can measure the effectiveness of each.

[philreed]

Originally Posted by Ze'Manel Cunha

I'll second that, personally if I see an interesting Kickstarter I tend to hop on, but those hardbacks didn't even hit my radar and I used to buy most things GURPS...

That's clearly a failure on our part. We _thought_ we had spread word of the two books -- including during the Dungeon Fantasy Kickstarter project -- but something must have gone wrong.

Where do you most often learn of new games and expansions?

[Andrew Hackard]

Originally Posted by Owen Smith

Hopefully next year will see some consolidation, actually finishing the large projects and starting less new ones.

That is very much the plan. We do have some bigger projects we want to move on, but right now we have to clear our plates before the next course can be served.

Originally Posted by Owen Smith

How much longer I continue to read the Illuminator is unclear since it's almost wall to wall Munchkin these days.

In February and March we had a Kickstarter to talk about, and a successful Kickstarter requires active engagement. Hopefully, we can have a better mix of news in the coming months (although Munchkin is still the majority of what we do, so it's going to be a frequent topic on the DI regardless).

[rknop]

Two thoughts on GURPS:

First, it's possible that the Dungeon Fantasy release will kindle some interest. It won't be able to catch, though, if people aren't able to find Characters and Campaigns at the same place as they found Dungeon Fantasy. If Dungeon Fantasy boxed sets are shipping to game stores or other retailers, any hopes of it carrying over to further life in GURPS in print would need to have a reprint of the two core books ready to go at the same time -- and that's not likely.

Second thought: I'm happy with GURPS PDF support. If that's all GURPS is able to do in the future, to me, that's not so bad. My hope is that SJ Games continues to do GURPS support. My fear is that at some point they're going to decide that the tiny return on small-volume PDF games, even if it is a positive return, just isn't worth the attention when compared to high-volume items like Munchkin.

(I've had fun playing Munckin in the past, but it's not really something I personally find as something I'd want to invest in or collect or spend a lot of time with, whereas GURPS could be. It's more of an occasional pastime. Indeed, I have been quite surprised by the continuing market power and lasting appeal of Munckin in the market. To me, it's a fun occasional diversion to play on a game night when nobody's ready to run an RPG, along with Chez Geek and Strange Synergy. But, then, I know that what appeals to the masses and what appeals to me frequently don't line up.)

[philreed]

Originally Posted by rknop

. . . a reprint of the two core books ready to go at the same time -- and that's not likely.

A reprint is unnecessary. We have thousands of copies of both books in our primary warehouse. There are no supply issues when it comes to the two Basic Set hardcovers.

[robkelk]

Originally Posted by Turhan's Bey Company

I'm less concerned about the top 40 that I am with

• Discworld and Mars Attacks having sales characterized as "disappointing",

As of this posting, they aren't showing up as being available in the only nationwide bookstore chain (online and brick-and-mortar) in Canada.

https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca...keywords=GURPS

https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca...playing%20Game

This might be an availability issue.

I'll look at the specialty stores in Ottawa again over the weekend, and see whether any of them have managed to get the books in stock yet.

[philreed]

Originally Posted by robkelk

As of this posting, they aren't showing up as being available in the only nationwide bookstore chain (online and brick-and-mortar) in Canada.

This is outside of our control. We offer titles for sale. Each retailer decides what they wish to carry.

Originally Posted by Owen Smith

Getting stock in the UK has been a problem too.

We make the games available. Individual retailers and distributors decide what to order. This is why preorders before launch are so important to the success of a new game title.