Star Trek RPG Status

[First of Two]

The B5 sourcebooks have their problems... the occasional sloppy paragraph, and there's some mistakes with the graphics (In the Minbari book, two planet graphics are not only identical, but side-by-side. In the Earth Alliance book, a "mostly land" planet is depicted with a surface that's 79% water, stuff like that), but the books themselves are exhaustive... if the Dec. Klingon and Mirror books are anything like the B5 species sourcebooks, I'll leap onto the bandwagon to make more Trek species books.

[jened]

http://www.gamingreport.com/article.php?sid=12175

The question of the status of the RPG division did come up. At this time there is no official word on the status. No firm comment on if the RPG lines will return in print and continue, or if they will end and no longer be supported. They did say they are looking hard at this part of their business to make a determination in the next few months on the direction it is to take.



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Dan Sivils Reports: Some of the GR staff here at the show attended a Decipher meeting for Retailers this afternoon which was very informative. Decipher has big plans for all of their TCG games. There are several promotions for retailers and players alike to buy more and play more. The more you play the more you get free stuff. This is to be the case for both players and retailers who hold events alike. Decipher is revamping their premiere store program to a

"platinum" program. To be a platinum store all of the Decipher game lines must be in the store and supported. Ability to be a platinum store is going to go through an approval process in addition to secret shoppers stopping by to make sure all the Decipher lines are carried. If a store doesn't qualify for platinum they can still get retailer promotional material but they will have to pay for the cost of the goods. There are plans to completely revamp the product champion system. Instead of 1 champion for each type of game there is going to be one champion for each store. Each platinum store will have a Decipher product champion in their store pushing Decipher games and play events.

Decipher also hinted at two new games. The first was described as a new TCG which will utilize the mechanics of the old Star Wars card game when Decipher still had the license. They would not say if it was a licensed property or not but as approvals were still pending it sounded like a licensed property to me. There is also an original property in the works for unveiling at Gen Con. A TCG, the game will be based on material developed by Decipher instead of most of their products which are based on licensed properties.

The question of the status of the RPG division did come up. At this time there is no official word on the status. No firm comment on if the RPG lines will return in print and continue, or if they will end and no longer be supported. They did say they are looking hard at this part of their business to make a determination in the next few months on the direction it is to take.

As with all of the seminars and announcements we are covering this seminar was recorded as high quality MP3. As soon as we get a better connection we will up load this and all of the other MP3s so our readers can listen to the announcements for themselves.

[Balok]

This is the first hint from Decipher that the status might well be "terminated". In addition, this seems to imply that no statement will be forthcoming at the end of March (as was originally planned); instead, it suggests that they have months more planning to do.

Of course, we don't know what the speaker *really* knows about it, or whether the quote was accurate or contained all the details. However, if we assume the speaker knows the status, and the quote is accurate, then this has to be the kiss of death.

YMMV.

[Capt Daniel Hunter]

It does seem rather downbeat doesn't it.

[D.S.McBride]

Decipher has - in a backhanded, half-assed sort of way - fulfilled their promise to "update" their Trek products page by the end of the month. To wit: Most of the books promised for the last half of '03 - Glass Darkly, Blood and Honor, Peacekeepers, and, of course, the Limited Edition - have been completely deleted from the list, with only Worlds still addressed, and that with the deathless "TBA" given as the delivery date.

I'd say, given the behavior pattern established thus far, that the current chances of Glass Darkly, Blood and Honor and Peacekeepers - let alone the Next Generation sourcebook and that Seekers thing - actually reaching the stores is somewhere between slim to none. I'd give Worlds a roughly fifty-fifty chance; they were probably close enough to actual publication last summer that they can ship this one out with a minimum of fuss and bother.

I could rant on with a bucket or so of acid about how Decipher has royally dropped the ball on their whole slew of RPG promises and potential - both in general and with regard to Star Trek in particular - but I think I'm going to wait until the official annoucement comes through sometime later this year that further publication is "not in their best corporate interests."

[First of Two]

Question a real investigative reporter would have asked:

"Given your numerous problems with getting your RPG products to the consumer, do you really thing that this is the appropriate time to be taking on even more responsibilities?"

Decipher is reminding me of a kid in my Boy Scout troop named Vince. Vince always kept volunteering for whatever job came up, but he'd take on so many jobs that he couldn't do any of them well. Eventually, he burnt out.

I'm probably misinterpreting what's going on. But I still feel that way anyway.

[Don Mappin]

Originally posted by First of Two
Question a real investigative reporter would have asked:

You're confusing the Gaming Report staff with real reporters, not to mention investigative reporters. Gaming Report's writing is atrocious!

[AslanC]

You know, despite the fact we all bemoaned the chance that there would be a d20 Trek when LUG closed (and as much as I love the CODA system) if WotC had this license we would be up to our armpits in books by now.

[Capt Daniel Hunter]

Much as I hate to admit it, that's a fair point.

[Caretaker]

Aslan, you're right. To think I used to think that Decipher could do no wrong (or very little wrong).

It would really stink if Decipher's Blood and Honor got the axe, too - maybe a curse that the Klingon book will never see print in full.

[7 of 11]

Remember when FOX cancelled a show called Family Guy? With reruns and with over 1 million DVD season box sets sold they are bringing back the series to FOX or the Cartoon Network. Did the outcry of the fans bring it back? No. What about the budget to produce the series? Nope. Was it the sales of the product? *Ding Ding* If the books aren't selling then they aren't going to make more books. I encouraged my players to buy the PG and they loved it so much (the read and info) they bought the SOM too! Does anyone know how many books have been sold of each of different kinds? If we can help them with selling books they have then maybe they will be encouraged to push the new ones out. There is still hope but what are we going to do to help? Talk is cheap they say. My 2 latiums worth on it I for one will give it a go until they put the tombstone up and it says "Here lies CODA, we loved him/her yet we hardly knew him/her."

7 of 11
A

[D.S.McBride]

Originally posted by AslanC
You know, despite the fact we all bemoaned the chance that there would be a d20 Trek when LUG closed (and as much as I love the CODA system) if WotC had this license we would be up to our armpits in books by now.

You read my mind. I was thinking about this exact subject during a lull earlier today; although my group and I felt that Coda was an inappropriate system for the Trek genre - and feel doubly so about d20 - Wizards would have given us at least something to work with over the last three years. Much of a pain in the butt as doing Coda/Icon conversions can be, better that than having to make up things wholesale on a busy schedule. Jeez Louise!

[InfinityDoctor]

Originally posted by AslanC
You know, despite the fact we all bemoaned the chance that there would be a d20 Trek when LUG closed (and as much as I love the CODA system) if WotC had this license we would be up to our armpits in books by now.

You mean like we're up to our armpits in Star Wars D20 Books??

Star Wars is probably the biggest Sci Fi licence alongside Star Trek, and WOTC are only producing three books for the game this year! Hardly a deluge, and they didnt exactly overload us with material last year either.

Although, admittedly, that is three more than none...lol...

[AslanC]

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x...le/rpgproducts

Not to be snarky, but I do count 20 products in the line that are listed as "Currently Available".

A damn site better than Decipher has done IMHO.

[Don Mappin]

Originally posted by AslanC
Not to be snarky, but I do count 20 products in the line that are listed as "Currently Available".

That's not quite accurate. Fifteen is more like it.

Ultimate Alien Anthology is a reprint of Alien Anthology
The Adventure Game is the RPG "lite"
The Revised Core Rulebook replaces the original Core Rulebook
Character sheets? I wouldn't count that as a substansive product
Same with the Living Force Campaign Guide.

Still, your point is taken.