There's more info now about what Messrs. Mentzer, Ward, Kask, and now Clark are up to. There's a lot here to like, not the least of which that they are talking about it on Dragonsfoot. The range of games they're talking about is promising, though the fact that Swords & Wizardry isn't listed seems odd.
I love the fact that these guys are jumping in like they are, and that they are treating it as a serious business. As I've mentioned before, there are real benefits to treating this sort of thing as a profit-making venture.
That said, they sure want a lot of cash up front. And that, honestly, is the most fascinating thing about it. Can they raise that kind of scratch? If anybody can, it's them. And if they can, it'll mean there are some real legs to this OSR thing. That'll be very, very interesting to watch.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
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4 comments:
Does it count as co-option when the guys who originally thought of something decide they want back in? Or is it more in the vein of 'getting the band back together'?
My heart says the latter. But solicitation of $250K seed money when production and distribution entry cost hurdles are the lowest they've ever been thanks to the magic of DTP and the interweb does make me wonder...
The "co-option" issue looks like much ado about nothing to me.
As for the money, they're not interested in putting out a fanzine like Fight On! or dribbling out a few modules like Chogwiz. They're looking at building a business and making this their jobs. They want the full battery of art and editing and playtesting resources at their disposal that they (and I, I'll eagerly admit) believe a first-class game company should have.
Yeah, sure, they could knock together some PDFs and make a little beer money, but that's clearly not what these guys are about. Maybe they're out-of-touch with the market as it is today, or maybe they know things that others are ignorant of. My gut says their wrong, but this guy is still paying his bills with doodles and t-shirts, and I'd have said that was impossible a few years ago.
And last time I checked, my gut hadn't earned an MBA, so I take its advice with a healthy helping of salt. ;)
Why the hell did Blogger mess up my link? I mean Scott Kurtz of PVP, of course.
www.pvponline.com
Although I'm not putting money out into this, I think it would be nice to see them succeed. But if everyone feels the same way ... their chances seem slim even if they do get enough seed money.
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