The End of Forge East part 1

[LordSmerf]

Using Mike's number, let's say those 50 Forgites go to 1 con a year (Not including GenCon) and promote indie games with stickers, flyers, logos and cards.

That's 50 cons worth of exposure for all of us.

The problem with this is that if i understand you correctly we would also need 50 different displays/product sets.  That or some way to pass them around.

I think the idea of planning on doing a few booths at larger cons.  If we do a total of, say, 5 cons a year (+ GenCon) then we can gather maybe three or four Forgites at each one (maybe more) and also not have to worry so much about having enough display sets...

Thomas

[Luke]

The problem with this is that if i understand you correctly we would also need 50 different displays/product sets.  That or some way to pass them around.

This is an extremely surmountable problem. Product sets are "your game" and what ever else you choose to bring. Displays and promo materials: I printed an 8.5x11 color sign and mounted it on foam core -- it took me an hour. It would have cost me $10 to do at a copy shop.

Also, I have Forge business cards that list the web address. These could quite reasonably be distributed among 50 people, 100 cards each! (5000 biz cards is nothin.)

HOWEVER, even doing a big collaborative booth at four cons a year would greatly raise the visibility of every game discussed on this site.

I'll be at Origins, GenCon and DragonCon myself. I would love to have company.

-L

[Dregg]

I think the idea of planning on doing a few booths at larger cons.  If we do a total of, say, 5 cons a year (+ GenCon) then we can gather maybe three or four Forgites at each one (maybe more) and also not have to worry so much about having enough display sets...

Thomas

Thomas I agree, if more of an effort can be made to do larger pushes and appearences at these conventions, it won't be so hard to do in the long run. Display sets can be made so they can be shipped out. If people can dedicate to a certain set of conventions then they can hang on to the displays for the duration of those runs. Granted I'm a newbie to this community so plaese at anytime say "Shut Up Dregg!", but I have felt strongly about Indie game designers since my first cons back in 87 when Pacificon and Dundracon were introduced to me. I think it's an awsome thing that can happen here and with the proper spirit and push, the indie designer can grab some major attention for the allmighty dollar machine AKA WotC and WW.

My 2 cents

[Dregg]

HOWEVER, even doing a big collaborative booth at four cons a year would greatly raise the visibility of every game discussed on this site.

I'll be at Origins, GenCon and DragonCon myself. I would love to have company.

-L

If the turn of events keep coming the way they are for me, I might have alot of time to do Cons in 2004. I'd love to help support the forge and the Indie gamer community.
A BIG Giant Robot chubby of a booth would be awsome, even if we could do a demo right at the table as well.
Are there any Non CCG indie games out there?

[Mike Holmes]

Luke, the reason that I, and I presume most of the people who do not attend many little local cons, do not, is that we probably have other things to do. Like, for instance in my case, not abandoning my pregnant wife with my 3 yr old any more than I do so that she doesn't divorce me. Apparently 4 RPG sessions a week and four cons a year are her limit. Damn the wench for being so possessive of my time! ;-)

Oh, and I'm one of the people who would do it locally once a year (how 'bout next Gamefest?). See, I'm one of the fifty, I do go to GenCon. If you had been doing this here, you'd have had my support for at least one Con, maybe more. By my math, every one of those fifty who were near enough to you to make it did attend your cons - as a statistician I'd offer the actual results as proof. Manhattan may be the epicenter of the universe for many things, but Gaming is not one of them.

What I'm saying is that what makes the pool so small is that there are a very limited number of people in any locality who have reason to have an interest in doing this sort of thing. If you want to make this happen, you'll have to actively recruit folks somehow, not just ask for help. And I'm not sure what you can offer that'll make people motivated enough to help out.

OTOH, there's always Dregg. :-)

Mike

[Luke]

Thanks Mike for yet another bleak assessment of the situation!

I was never asking my efforts to be the epic-center of non-GenCon Forge activity. What I am trying to do is provide a model for replicating the incredible experience of the GenCon Forge booth in miniature at various locations around the country (and hopefully world?).

I suppose, according to your analysis, that my biggest failing was in my rampant idealism. I assumed (deliberate word choice) that other game designers would be interested in attending cons in their area and promoting not only their games, but other games with the same spirit.

Oh foolish me! I thought I would be the first of many. Oops!

Well, having passed through the gauntlet and come of age--I'm posting as an "adult" now-- I can safely say that I will continue to support and endorse actual, real-live, in the flesh, collaboration, DIY and mutual support. I will continue to promote the Forge as a venue for said ideals.

I think many people on the Forge fail to realize how utterly unique this place is. There are few forums so well-suited to the aforementioned support and collaboration. RPGs have always been DIY, but having a mutually supportive design community, plus our own channels of distribution and advertising is major strength.


The experience of being at GenCon with all you liked-minded folk was eye-opening to say the least. I will continue to try to attempt to recreate and spread said experience.


blah blah blah blah.
I don't really have anything more to say on the matter.
if anyone wants to come to cons with me or wants me to come to a con, let me know. Maybe you could run a couple of games of Universalis? ;)!

-L

[Mike Holmes]

OK, cool, now that I've crushed your idealism, we can get to work. The point is that your vision is an excellent one. I like everything you said in the above post. Now the question is, without any Pollyanna hopes of people volunteering in droves, how can we make it happen anyhow? Basically, what it needs is some form of further incentive of some sort.

Now, we can't offer money, I think we'd agree, so what else do we have to offer besides our good company, and fun at conventions? I don't have much off the top, but perhaps some brainstorming would result in some effects.

Like how about if the people who want to have their products there for sale donate a copy of their game. Then these get raffled off to the booth participants, or distributed in some similar manner. People love free stuff...

Brainstorming people. What random ideas do you have?

Mike