D&Dopoly
What would the popular D&D, brother to Monopoly in every home, look like?
Culture
All about the traditions, misconceptions, and squabbles of gamers.
Social Media & RPGs
I think social media has impacted five major properties of the hobby. Social media has increased accessibility to the hobby, decreased the time of distribution, expanded the reach of the hobby, made the permanence of the hobby mutable, and finally, social media has bridged gaps in intimacy between hobbyists as well as publishers & designers.
Reinventing the FLGS
Before the internet and online discount retailers like Amazon dominated the book trade, the brick & mortar hobby shops (and a few mail order companies like Wargames West) were the bridge between publishers and players. The Friendly Local Gaming Store had a secure place in the hobby ecosystem. Where else could you buy plastic polyhedrons?
Growing the Hobby Wrap-up
Thanks to everyone who participated in last month’s RPG Blog Carnival, “Growing the Hobby.” Before I get to the participant round-up, I want to present my own thoughts about growing the roleplaying games hobby. I want to make it very clear that these are just my observations and hypotheses and that I really have no hard data to back it up with.
IUPUI @ GenCon 2010
My alma mater, Indiana University – Purdue University of Indianapolis, returns to GenCon this year. Not only are doing a bunch of workshops and seminars concerning making video games, they are also hosting a FREE offsite (four blocks away) event with Tracy Hickman.
Interviewed on Blue Yonder Podcast
Blue Yonder is a podcast concerning general geekery like Star Wars/Trek, sci-fi/action movies, and general gaming. Wednesday, their 22nd episode went live and it features an interview with me, where I talk about RPGs and Gen Con
ENnies 2010 Choices
This year’s ENnies Awards are now open for voting! Below are my picks (second place entries in parentheses) and some commentary.
Growing the Hobby
This month’s blog carnival is about growing the RPG hobby. How can we do it? Do we even need to try?
Concerning Great Designers
Regardless who gets their name on the cover, game material is often the work of a dozen or more people. I can’t tell from looking at a supplement who came up with what idea or mechanic, so it’s nigh impossible for me to make connections between a designer and games I like.
Staying Abreast the Hobby
An overview of how Mad Brew keeps abreast of current events and news in the hobby. He also gives an open invitation for others to share their own methods.