| From: | Ereskanti@***.com Ereskanti@***.com |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Breaking the Silence (Re: Wait and see.) <and an apology> |
| Date: | Wed, 18 Aug 1999 14:11:59 EDT |
come...Twist, the time has come.
In a message dated 8/17/1999 11:14:14 PM US Eastern Standard Time,
Twist0059@***.com writes:
> The recent growth in the past year, yet again, is not so much do to SR3
> coming up with brilliant new concepts. VR2 and R2 were out longer before
> SR3. It's that finally Shadowrun exists in one core rulebook. Even if
Dowd
> were still DLOH, this probably would have been done by now, with the same
> results.
Were T. Dowd to still be in charge we'd be next to nowhere. Its' been shown
that his style of direction was not gainsaying any growth in the industry.
He *WAS* given the invite to go elsewhere within the company, and he *DID*
choose to go. However, the pressure for him to go was also there as well.
Tom is, as you and several others have pointed out, just like the game he had
worked on. "Action and Adventure." And he had the attention span to match.
See him at the cons ever? Watch how as long as he was in the middle of doing
something and the center of attention, he'd be animated and energetic. The
instant he wasn't, he'd poubt.
He (Tom) had begun to poubt within the structure of SR (and other associated
material he worked on). Tom had final commentary and editorial/write-up
concerning "Burning Bright", but that novel, nor the power behind that novel,
were his creation, and many people knew that fact. Hell, keep digging around
and I'm sure there's likely more out there.
Nigel and Paul were more powerful movers/shakers within the SR storyline as
well as the SR mechanics themselves. Hell, theres' another name out there
that has momentum as well, and he's one of the people who founded FASA in the
first place.
> And the argument was which would sell better, Neo-A books or Target. You
> claimed Target because of the sales figures, when that's really like
> comparing box office totals between Titanic and Gone With The Wind. GwtW,
> adjusted for inflation, still beats Titantic. If a Neo-A book was put out
> right now, with this larger audience, it would sell at least as well as
the
> Target books, and maybe better. The Shadowrun line also grew in sales
just
> between 1990 (NAGNA) and 1994 (Bug City). The years when Dowd was still
in
> charge, the years when we didn't have the new cool decking or rigging
rules.
Actually, FASA:SR has mimicked the power of the passing FADs and Social
Shake-Ups in its' time. Back in the days when the NEO-A's were written, the
whole concept of "Anarchists" was still in its' strength. That strength has
faded, and as such, marketing ploys had to change to keep the sellability of
the upcoming material in line.
SR has a larger target audience because of general awareness. Because of
organized FAN support (that's us folks ;). Because of a growing Internet
Presence. Wants some indicators of this? The RN Mailing list alone is at an
all-time high right now. More members on it than it has had ever.
More indicators? Lady J's Shadowrun Webring is, for RPG's, the most nailed
webring in all the WWW. The sites on it generate far more traffic than all
the other gaming websites that exist. Additionally, sites such as the
Shadowrun Archive generate as many hits as some of the VIDEO GAME websites.
And, as you did astutely point out in another post, Video Games generate
massive income because they are part of the inundated masses.
However, because of Shadowrun's "Near Video Game Status" ending last year, as
well as its' previous VG status (Sega/Playstation?), some people sought out
the information concerning the basis for the games. Because of that combined
increased awareness, Shadowrun has grown.
I keep thinking you must have been at Gencon or Origins, because at times in
your posts you do seem to know information that came from there or from like
sources. In truth, as Mike M. stated to the HHH game group last winter
(January and February visits), SR3 had done the impossible. It not only kept
the majority of its' original player/consumer body, it also managed to entice
more people to it. Its' player base expanded, and because of that, combined
with far smarter marketing controls (Kudos to Rett, Rob, Mike, Sharon, Jill,
and everyone else here) on the product(s) that were being released, the
product expanded. Mike repeated this information to us all at the Gencon (I
believe at Origins), and in the Freelancers' Guide release (which yes, I have
read a copy).
Tom wasn't stupid. I'll grant that. He had/has intelligence. He did, and
at last knew, continues to lack a strong degree of common sense. He's not a
solid "Group Player", nor has he ever been. Sure, he like any of the rest of
us he *can* work with a group. But he worked better when he was the center
of attention and the central Focus.
Shadowrun, and ALL corporate business as a whole, had to get smarter if it
was going to survive. That meant it (FASA Corporation) has had to make some
strong, difficult, even painful, decisions in order to further continue and
guarantee its' own growing survivability. The modern world we live, and
interact, in is vastly more dynamic and takes far more than just one person
to guide it along.
This is btw, the same problem that happened with regards to Gary Gygax and
the "Fallout Period" at TSR he had.
It takes a team, a working, dynamic team to succeed today, or one Hell of
Genius. Tom had/has imagination, but he was not a genius. But, as has been
said in another post here lately, one person only has one persons'
imagination to draw upon. No matter how imaginative, sooner or later that
imagination is going to be tapped without exposure to outside, group-level,
inspiration.
Clarity of Purpose, Clarity of Direction, Clarity of Understanding...these
things and so much more are needed to survive today in the business world.
The company that produces the RPG's we all enjoy so much is continuing to try
and develop and hone those skills into the sharpest edge possible. They've
obviously done something right. That is the reason Decipher is seeking the
purchase of FASA Corporation. That is *THE* reason Decipher is seeking to
purchase FASA Corporation. They want to grow, and they want to ensure that
potential for growth. FASA is the best offer for the best attainable price.
Like it or not, what has been said about the material we would ALL like to
see (personally, I would LOVE to have downloadable .PDF stuff like Lone Star
and the RBB) is simply not going to be brought back. That is because it was
NOT making money, nor would that line make money today.
Twist, I have seen that you have been given some insight into the workings of
FASA:SR. I would LOVE to be able to tell everyone here what I have heard,
pointing out what is rumor and what is not. I can NOT do so. I am not
saying that I know *EVERYTHING* that is going on. But, from what I have read
that you have posted (and I have read everything I have received from the
listserv, 1000+ WPM reading speed allows for that ;), there is still a great
deal of information that I have that you don't have.
There is one more thing Twist. I consider Mike M. more than just the Line
Developer for FASA:SR. I consider him a friend. And apparently, he returns
the feelings. I was *STUNNED* to walk up to him and recieve a hug from
someone I hadn't seen in a couple months (he was sick for a long time) and
then receive the value of the honorable mention he gave to the HHH website
that he did at the last seminar on Sunday. (To everyone that was
there...I'll admit it now, I was embarrassed, but not to hear him say it, but
to have the honor that I feel other sites deserve just as much, if not more
so than the one we operate).
And Twist, you wrote something in a post, something I don't even recall
clearly now which tells me I can get past it. You wrote something that
directly insulted me and the view I have of my friends. You did not write
with Clarity of Recollection the whole statement of your conversation with
Mike M. in the AOL Chatroom that you had. The information was displayed
half-assed and in a manner that was incredibly misleading. That is just
wrong to do. We have here on ShadowRN a large subscriber audience. Many of
those people, as I have tried to say before, come in search of this mailing
list because they have heard good to great (or even better) things about this
mailing list community. They have heard that a great deal of insight can be
gained from this mailing list concerning the actual Shadowrun game that FASA
produces. And they come here to be a part of that.
It is yours, and mine, and everyone elses' responsibility therefore IMO to
try and make this "Electronic Community" of ours the best and most dynamic
and developmental that it can be.
Yes, that means that at times we will have disagreements in opinion.
Yes, that means as being the human beings we are, we will lose our tempers
and say things that are not reflective of a good, mature, nature.
Yes, that means that like now, we will find a way to apologize to those we
have attacked in a "verbal" manner.
And I am doing so now Twist.
I am sorry to have stated things that to not only yourself, but to other
individuals as well, were perceived as aggressive or derogatory in nature.
I am sorry that I could not find a more mature manner in which to state my
opinions when I should have.
I am sorry that you are not privileged to have the information given to you
that some other people have been given (can you just imagine what Jon S. and
Steve K. know??? Let alone someone like Rob Boyle... I know it boggles my
mind at times).
I am sorry, but I will NOT repeat everything that there is out there.
I am sorry for being human.
-K
"It's what <we> humans do best ... everywhere <we> go, <we> form
communities ... no other race does that ... no other race can ..."
(Paraphrased)
