Lets get some discussion going

[Valamir]

Its been about a week since V4 went out, who has some further thoughts, comments, criticisms to share?  Baliley and Balbinus got things started, lets keep it going.

Anyone thinking they might try to play the game this weekend?  Are the rules clear enough that you think you could actually run the game?  Are there aspects you don't quite get that you'd like clarified before trying to play?

Surely the game isn't perfect as is, I'd love to start hearing what works and what doesn't work.

[Ron Edwards]

Hi Ralph,

Speaking strictly as a guy who's been through this a couple of times ...

Playtesting is going to be a long, painful bitch of a wait for the designer. People simply do not hop to it as quickly as (for instance) I would like. There are lots of good reasons, first among them being that a single person needs to get the group into doing it, and least (but significantly) among them being that no one is as jazzed about the game as much as the designer is.

It's a grim truth. I like Universalist a lot, but it has to get added to a list which is already stuffed - JAGS, Nobilis, Ephiphany, Wyrd, Sin (a local game), and a couple others - as well as come in over the top of my regular games, which at the moment are Hero Wars and L5R, both of which pretty much demand multiple-session play.

None of this means I don't want to play Universalis, but it does mean that the mill grinds very slowly.

Best,
Ron

[Valamir]

Ouch.  I didn't think my post sounded like I was chastising anyone.

Just trying to drum up a little discussion and interest.  The more people are talking about it and thinking about it, the more likely they are to want to play it.

I have found if you don't beat the bushes a little bit the project does tend to slip down a few notches in the pile of "things I mean to do eventually".

Mike and I are both hoping to have something presentable, even if only an ashcan, at Origins, so there isn't a tremendous amount of time in that regard.

[Ron Edwards]

Hi Ralph,

No "ouch" necessary, as I totally understand your situation. I'd like, very much, to get a whole ton of playtesting going. My post wasn't to say, "Back off" so much as "Brace yourself for the wait-stage, 'cause here it is."

Best,
Ron

[Mike Holmes]

Heck, we've been in the "waiting for test returns" mode for six months, now. Not here, but we've had other groups working on it. The most interesting, IMO, was a group doing Vampire (yes, the WoD setting), using Universalis. They had some interesting oblique comments but never said how play went, really. Several others have agreed to test it only to not be heard from again on the subject.

Anyhow, I think we understand that information will trickle in slowly, but like Ralph, I also feel that there's little harm in reminding people. Meanwhile we're all for any discussion that anyone wants to start. Certainly a lot more ground to cover. Like suggestions on improving play-flow mechanics, for instance.

Mike