GMS Magazine Podcast - RPGs, Board Games reviews, interviews, advice. Mostly Asian and Indie games.

Because the time of the year when people celebrate some sort of festivity approaches, Jim and I have decided to record a rambling episode on how to be good to each other.

Aaawwwwww……

Well… how to be good to your GM, that sacrificed, dedicated, studious, sensible, caring and wonderful human beings who spend so long looking for ways to kill the party in the most fun possible way.

Because, let’s face it, we have all been assholes to our GMs sometimes.

But now that the season of goodness and kindness approaches, it is time to change all that and we tell you exactly how to do it.

Enjoy!

And you are welcome.

 

At G*M*S Central we believe that there are too many products being sold as PDFs at the moment and that is contributing to a languishing industry with too many companies that can’t stand on their own two money feet because there aren’t enough people buying all games and supplements.

We know it is not an opinion shared by all, and we do believe everyone should have the right to publish whatever they want, but it is our opinion.

If to the amount of published material we add a website that is the central point of purchase for said games is a site with the potential to shape the way we buy and what we buy, and that there doesn’t seem to be a quality control point to start listing products on that site, we might see why we have a lot of problems in the RPG industry.

But of course, those opinions have to be substantiated and the best way to do it is to talk to the person responsible for that site… we are talking about Drivethrurpg.com and the man in question is Steve Wieck, who is, according to Jim, one of the nicest guys in the industry.

Well… let’s find out if he is right and if the amount of material on their site is actually hurting the RPG business.

Hope you enjoy the show!

At G*M*S Central we believe that there are too many products being sold as PDFs at the moment and that is contributing to a languishing industry with too many companies that can’t stand on their own two money feet because there aren’t enough people buying all games and supplements.

We know it is not an opinion shared by all, and we do believe everyone should have the right to publish whatever they want, but it is our opinion.

If to the amount of published material we add a website that is the central point of purchase for said games is a site with the potential to shape the way we buy and what we buy, and that there doesn’t seem to be a quality control point to start listing products on that site, we might see why we have a lot of problems in the RPG industry.

But of course, those opinions have to be substantiated and the best way to do it is to talk to the person responsible for that site… we are talking about Drivethrurpg.com and the man in question is Steve Wieck, who is, according to Jim, one of the nicest guys in the industry.

Well… let’s find out if he is right and if the amount of material on their site is actually hurting the RPG business.

Hope you enjoy the show!

 

I will not say it is a fact, but it is a fact that a lot of games are very repetitive. Either the theme is repetitive, the tropes are a repetition of another game.

Basically, there are too many elves out there now. And too many Cthulhus and mutants.

In this episode, Jim and I discuss the whys and why nots of that situation.

This should be interesting!

I will not say it is a fact, but it is a fact that a lot of games are very repetitive. Either the theme is repetitive, the tropes are a repetition of another game.

Basically, there are too many elves out there now. And too many Cthulhus and mutants.

In this episode, Jim and I discuss the whys and why nots of that situation.

This should be interesting!

 

What RPGs are bad for the industry? Are there any games you wish hadn’t come out?

Both in Europe and in the USA, we have had some games that have hurt the industry, and some others that are hurting the industry and the hobby as a whole.

Some games have helped contribute to the stigma of weirdness or danger that some people attached to RPGs in the 80s and 90s. For different reasons and in different countries, some RPGs have acquired a very bad reputation, let it be as enablers of Satan or as weapons of murder or simply as something losers and nerds do.

Of course some have helped create an amazing and creative hobby and subculture and those we celebrate every day.

Have we missed any games?

Let us know!

What RPGs are bad for the industry? Are there any games you wish hadn’t come out?

Both in Europe and in the USA, we have had some games that have hurt the industry, and some others that are hurting the industry and the hobby as a whole.

Some games have helped contribute to the stigma of weirdness or danger that some people attached to RPGs in the 80s and 90s. For different reasons and in different countries, some RPGs have acquired a very bad reputation, let it be as enablers of Satan or as weapons of murder or simply as something losers and nerds do.

Of course some have helped create an amazing and creative hobby and subculture and those we celebrate every day.

Have we missed any games?

Let us know!

 

Why play RPGs? Why spend hours reading books and preparing for games? Why

belong to a community that is both so hostile and welcoming at the same

time?

Believe it or not it is a question I ask myself very often.

Why bother with a hobby in which a dissenting voice is shut down instead of

welcome with healthy debate? Why am I in a hobby that still has strides to walk

in terms of inclusivity and diversity? A hobby in which some attempts at said

inclusivity and diversity are met with brutal opposition by people who refuse to

widen their perspectives?

And, you know… sometimes I wish to quit.

But I don’t.

And i am sure I am not the only human being in this position. We keep

going.

Jim and I explore the reasons why we are still here. And why we are likely to

continue for a long, long time.

Why play RPGs? Why spend hours reading books and preparing for games? Why

belong to a community that is both so hostile and welcoming at the same

time?

Believe it or not it is a question I ask myself very often.

Why bother with a hobby in which a dissenting voice is shut down instead of

welcome with healthy debate? Why am I in a hobby that still has strides to walk

in terms of inclusivity and diversity? A hobby in which some attempts at said

inclusivity and diversity are met with brutal opposition by people who refuse to

widen their perspectives?

And, you know… sometimes I wish to quit.

But I don’t.

And i am sure I am not the only human being in this position. We keep

going.

Jim and I explore the reasons why we are still here. And why we are likely to

continue for a long, long time.

The topic of cultural appropriation is a hot one in Social Justice circles.

But is it a justified outcry when someone uses someone else’s culture to create

games, costumes or anything else?

It is a matter of fact that cultures evolve both by themselves – traditions

that become canon in time or ones that die, fashion that evolves… – and by

assimilation when we see something from another culture and we adopt it. In a

world that is a lot more globalised today than it was 30 or 40 years ago mostly

thanks to the Internet, the rate at which cultures are being shared, adopted,

evolved and bastardized has also increased exponentially.

Are we ready for this?

Is there a justified concern for the phenomenon we are witnessing in which

people use other people’s cultures?

And is it justified to do it in RPGs?

Since there is not a single RPG that hasn’t borrowed from one culture or

another, to say we are free from culture appropriation would be pretty naive

thing, so it is safe to say it’s unavoidable.

So what?

Jim and I explore all those questions and give our take on this controversial

topic.

Warning… we don’t hold back and we are likely to offend some people.