Report To The Stakeholders

[Steve Jackson]

I see fewer comments here than in previous years. Does that mean . . .

- you're not interested?

- all your questions have been answered?

- the Martians are eating your forum posts?

- or what?

[Turhan's Bey Company]

Originally Posted by Steve Jackson

I see fewer comments here than in previous years. Does that mean . . .

- you're not interested?

- all your questions have been answered?

- the Martians are eating your forum posts?

- or what?

Certainly, Martian involvement is a factor, but for me, I think that the company's business practices have reached a point of sufficient transparency that there's a lot less mystery around what you're doing, which invites a lot of speculation, leaving the stakeholders report more revealing about how you're doing. I see comments from Phil and others in various places (Twitter, Facebook, Kickstarter, etc.), and as a result, basically nothing about products (Car Wars, more Munchkin, more Fantasy Trip) or policies (getting out of the international fulfillment game) comes as even the slightest surprise. It's almost as though you've got a sensible, sober business plan and are executing it. My own curiosity about the near future is mostly about GURPS, and I suspect I already know as much about that as anybody not directly employed by SJ Games is going to be allowed.

Also, there's no recent link to the report at the moment as there was in prior years, so it may be less accessible. (It's over here, folks!)

[Kalzazz]

The handling of recent Kickstarters for DFRPG and Hexagram has dampened my enthusiasm for stuff meaning less interest in SJG crowd funding

[totalfailure]

In some cases, we’ve already had the discussion, like moving Ogre to Indiegogo. I will never support that platform, period. It was discussed at the time, anyone not on board was brusquely dismissed, so there isn’t much left to consider now.

That things are tough in the game industry is pretty obvious now, and SJG has its plans in place for how they are dealing with that. Munchkin continues to drive the company, for now, and everything else is back of the bus. I am not interested a bit in Munchkin, so there is not much news there, other than the depression of seeing so little of anything else crack the top 40 in sales when checking the stakeholders report.

I still appreciate the transparency provided, given this is a private company, and is not required to share anything. Perhaps the issue is really I don’t feel like much of a stakeholder any more. Reality is I’m just not interested in the stuff driving the company these days as in the past, or don’t feel like I can support some of the directions taken for non core products.

[ghostofjfd]

Originally Posted by Steve Jackson

I see fewer comments here than in previous years. Does that mean . . .

It means I'm reading with interest, lurking to advantage, and not wasting bytes. "Speak less than thou knowest," as the Fool says. Besides, I have been busy this week "rolling" up TFT characters.

As for questions, I wonder whether pocket-box Ogre and G.E.V. will be available retail or through Warehouse 23.

[Refplace]

I'm with Turhen's Bey. The transparency is awesome but because of it here and elsewhere I have few remaining questions.
One thing I would like to see is more efforts towards marketing.
Youtube videos have gone up, and I think the same for Twitter and Facebook, can you tell if there helping?
One thing I have asked for is a button or something that can be carried around and plainly visible to identify myself as a GURPS gamer when I'm at school, the store, a party, or wherever to generate buzz and maybe get more people involved.
Same could be for other items, including a generic Steve Jackson Games logo.
Maybe add a marketing tab or category on W23 so we can quickly and easily sort through the items available?

[Murezor]

Originally Posted by Steve Jackson

I see fewer comments here than in previous years. Does that mean . . .

It's been a rather long time since I've been on this forum. It's a coincidence that I happened to look at the forum on the same day as this post. I generally only get on this forum when I want to share ideas or ask for inputs on world-building or GURPS. Though I play D&D, Call of Cthulhu, Burning Wheel and other systems, GURPS is still my game system of choice when I run any kind of custom game. Unfortunately, I haven't had the time for a custom world. On top of that, I find GURPS to be pretty complicated - especially when trying to create all the needed monsters, characters, and what-not. That's probably the main reason I haven't been online much. While I have been saddened by the lack of recent investment in GURPS, the above is the main reason I haven't been on the forums.

I would really love to see a 5th edition of GURPS focused on simplicity and ease of world building. My 2 cents.

[Anders]

Originally Posted by Steve Jackson

I see fewer comments here than in previous years. Does that mean . . .

- you're not interested?

- all your questions have been answered?

- the Martians are eating your forum posts?

- or what?

Silent and thoughtful and bold in strife
the prince's bairn should be.

I think the report is complete and leaves little to question. Good job, Phil!

[namada]

My big takeaway is: Support Munchkin, Support The Fantasy Trip, Support DFRPG, no support for GURPS. That's a shame for me, because GURPS (not DFRPG, not anymore anyway) is the only thing SJG makes that I actually do support.

[baakyocalder]

For the type of report that it is, the Report to the Stakeholders is clear.

Steve Jackson Games, without showing us the exact financial details per GAAP or some other accounting reporting framework, is letting us know which products they have which sell a lot, which projects are going forward as planned, which projects hit snags, and where the strategy is for lines you've gotten to the point where it's time to execute.

For the GURPS fans, Dr. Kromm posts a weekly update in his blog about his work--so that pretty much keeps us informed of the progress. There's also a quarterly report.

As for the rise of crowdfunding and difficulty keeping games in stock, I'm glad to see that discussed. I started gaming in the mid-1980s and while not my first game, Car Wars was one of my early games. GURPS followed in 1990. The world has changed a lot since then and it's a testament to good business practices and creativity that Steve Jackson Games is still in business.

I am with the other posters who are not fans of Munchkin. However, it's a game that many people enjoy and it enables other Steve Jackson Games projects to happen. As such, if someone would like Munchkin, I suggest they support it. If they are not fans of Munchkin, they need to understand it's part of your product mix and the current flagship product.

Steve Jackson Games has been in business for 40 years or so and that means your product mix has changed--we're never all going to get everything we want for the game lines we love that you make. However, from the Car Wars Sixth Edition Kickstarter, I know you strive to give us great games while also keeping the company going.

Looking forward to seeing my Car Wars Sixth edition at the end of the year and hopefully to play some at Gencon. . .

Good stakeholder report--just it's not a big news item to most people.