From Gaming Report
QuotePerhaps most intriguing of the game's marketing is the player development program, by which players can drive the development of the game by deciding which licenses to pursue, and earn cash dividends off the purchases of each player that they introduce to the game.
The Mentor Program allows players, retailers, and media outlets can apply for a 'Mentor' handle (or a 'Connector' handle in the case of Retailers and Media). When a new player joins the game, they must enter the handle of the Mentor who introduced them to the game, and then that Mentor receives a percentage of the player's purchases by PayPal deposit from Decipher at the end of each quarter.
Decipher is currently seeking 6000 'Founding Mentors' in the in the next 30 days to establish the game's core expansion force, and to determine other aspects of the game's development such as Organized Play, and licenses desired.
Full details are available at http://www2.decipher.com/fightklub/blog/ (http://www2.decipher.com/fightklub/blog/)
So Decipher, the once great publisher of the excellent Star Wars Card game has now relegated itself to Pyramid scheme tactics.
How sad.
Wasn't Decipher an RPG publisher too?
yeah, didn't they do Star Trek and Lord of the Rings?
That's pretty sad but, end of the day, must make them money. They've still got a couple of weeks to decide it was a bad idea (but it's entirely possible there are 6000 suckers out there)
Quote from: Pelorusyeah, didn't they do Star Trek and Lord of the Rings?
That's pretty sad but, end of the day, must make them money. They've still got a couple of weeks to decide it was a bad idea (but it's entirely possible there are 6000 suckers out there)
Actually, after checking out everything...as long as it's a good game it'll do well like this.
Are they still trying to sell CCG's?
What the fuck for?
No one plays them anymore.
Quote from: JongWKWasn't Decipher an RPG publisher too?
technically yes, realistically nowhere even close.
Quote from: signoftheserpentAre they still trying to sell CCG's?
What the fuck for?
No one plays them anymore.
Actually, M:tG is still going strong (as usual), Vampire is still around (with an international tournament scene), World of Warcraft is on it's 3rd expansion, and Everquest II's virtual CCG is more popular than EQII right now.
Do I dare mention Yu-Gi-Oh or Pokemon?
Just 'cause nobody wants to play with you sign doesn't mean nobodies playing them ;)
I don't play ccg's anymore since I came to my senses :D they are a huge con.
Really MtG is the only game that still sells. Those others have a few fans here and there but aren't really doing big business. Any company trying to break into the ccg market now would be well advised to try something else. No new ccg will survive now, I absolutely guarantee.
Well, on the viability of CCG, it should be a telling sign that one of the biggest 'gaming chains' locally doesn't even really sell RPG's (they have about as much as Barnes and Noble, or another chain bookseller, with ironically less selection) but sells cards... Magic, WoW (also going strong) Yu gi Oh and so forth. I think the (female) co-owner? Manager? whatever is a Magic celebrity of sorts (had a card made off her), and unlike the RPG stores, they have a store in the mall.
Card games are still Big Business. The hottest seller of the last year in the local game store was WoW cards.
CCGs sell better than RPGs. Period.
the comparison is not relevant.
The only CCGs selling locally are Magic:The Gathering and World of Warcraft.
Eveything else as far as CCGs goes is stagnant - heck, we had to put discount prices on the Yu-gi-oh cards.
- Ed C.
what is this new game Decipher are trying to sell?
Obviously, they forgot the First Rule of Fight Klub.
Thornhammer! You live!
Given the number of stores having Events, Pokemon is still going strong.
I have a retailer friend. His store sells comic books, sci-fi fantasy books (limited), RPGS, CCGs, and a few board games. He has determined that most of his customers have XX amount of money they are going to spend on "hobby stuff" and "fun" every week. Some weeks comics are flat, but the new gaming stuff moves the sales. Some weeks it is the other way around. When a super hero movie comes out, nobody comes in or if they do, they spend about 30 dollars less (price of tickets and such). The XX seems to be a regular input for the store, per regular customer.
(He won't tell me what The XX factor in dollars is, so don't ask)
His, he calls them Junior Customers, follow the same basic patern with a smaller cash flow. He also says his Junior Customers outnumber his regular customers two and a half to one.
His reason for why CCGs sell better than other gaming material is the relatively small "entry cost". The cost of a deck and a booster or two is much less than anything of note for an RPG or board game. This puts it more "in reach" for the kid gamers (whom most of them are targetted for anyways).
He is thinking about branching out into hand held electronic games, just to catch all his Junior Customers money.
And an aside, which I don't want to hijack the thread for, but upon thinking about this.... should the RPG community think about putting together cheaper entry point games with moderate (but lower than standard) production values?
Interesting. I looked at a business model for a CCG where players could sign up as subscribers and submit new card ideas which would be peer reviewed and the best ones would be added to the next release.
I think it works once you have established a game that people want to play, so it would work for Vampire say and certainly for Magic.
The idea came to me though some homebrew card games we were playing and my game group's love of creating new cards. Most gamers are aspiring designers and this is more true of CCGs that of anything else.
$4:99 a month subscription gets you membership and in on beta testing etc as well as other benefits and you can submit cards. Because the submission process is peered reviewed only the best cards come to you to actually have to look at. Players get a design note and you get new cards designed by people who pay for the privilege.
Of course CCGs died so what ya gonna do :-)