Quote from: Pierce InverarityI fall into the buy-more-than-I-play pattern though I'm a mild case. I think there's absolutely nothing wrong with it. So long as you do play (or, given adversarial cricumstances, strive to at some future point), you're not dysfunctional.

This is very much true.  I just found that for my own personal satisfaction, I enjoyed gaming a lot more when I was reading books I knew and loved, had had fun with in the past, and knew I'd have fun with in the future.

The whole thing came to a head for me when the nWoD came out a couple of years ago.  I went apeshit, and bought every supplement for it for at least the first year+.  At a certain point (unsurprisingly, right around the birth of my son) I realized that I was three months 'behind' on my reading of the books.  That I'd shelled out nearly $200 on books that were just sitting there on a stack, unread.  So I just stopped.  Cold turkey.  Sold off 75% of my 'unused' games on Ebay, and really never looked back.

Now, I do buy the odd system-less supplement, or often non-RPG books which have some relationship to the hobby (currently reading "Storytelling and the Art of the Imagination" which should be a must-read for people interested in story-structure, and narrative storytelling).  But for the most part, I think my gaming budget is down to maybe $5-$10 a month, if spread out over an entire year...

As an aside...

Quote from: zomben(currently reading "Storytelling and the Art of the Imagination" which should be a must-read for people interested in story-structure, and narrative storytelling)

I'm interested in this book, but reviews I've read have made it seem a little soft-headed -- rather emotionally squishy.  I prefer something a bit more academically rigorous.  How would you describe the book's tone?  Would you still recommend it for the likes of me?

!i!

Quote from: Ian AbsentiaAs an aside...I'm interested in this book, but reviews I've read have made it seem a little soft-headed -- rather emotionally squishy.  I prefer something a bit more academically rigorous.  How would you describe the book's tone?  Would you still recommend it for the likes of me?

!i!

It is a bit 'squishy' as you say.  Very 'touchy-feely-and-let's-all-empower-our-inner-storyteller" in a lot of ways.

But it's a fun, light read.  Perfect for sitting out on the patio in the summertime with a beer.

I have to admit I own a lot more games than I play.  Viewing some of those other
forums, I was actually impressed by how many different games people were actually
playing.  My own D&D campaign is winding up after about 50 sessions and 4 years.
With an average of 5 players and me, and 6 hours per session, that is 1800 person hours of fun, not counting prep time.  We've probably spent several thousand dollars on game
snacks for that period (maybe $50 per session).  Why not spend a comparable amount on the actual game?   We only really needed every player to have a PHB, some dice, and a mini and me to have the DMG and MM.  But since it will be amortized over so much time, why not buy a few unnecessary supplements? Or books intended for other systems?  If they give an idea for an adventure, a detail for a setting,  one or two encounters, or one feat for a PC, it's still worth while.  

I'm also thinking of the next campaign I'll run, for a different group.    I haven't decided the setting or the system I'll use, if any.   I want to know what's already available  before I reinvent the wheel.  (Not that it will stop me, but I'll know why my wheel is different.)

Finally, I read these RPG discussion groups, and people rave about certain games.  I want to know what they're talking about.  So if I see a game that's a big topic of conversation, I'll buy it.  Often, once I actually read it, I wonder why it's popular.  I might try it if someone else wants to, but I'm not going to suggest it as the next four year game for my group unless I understand the appeal.  

When I was young and broke, I scanned rulebooks for ideas in gamestores without buying, I admit.  Now that I can afford to buy the books, I have a rule to buy anything that seems like it might be useful, as karmic payback.  Even so, I can't justify buying more than, say, one book a month.  Since I'll only really use one book every year or two, that's still buying much more than I'm using on a regular basis.  The limiting factor is shelf space, not money.

I think a lot of people who reguarly visit rpg sites suffer from game ADD but not so much gamers that rarely venture onto the net.

Most of the gamers I know have never heard of TheRPGSite, RPGnet, etc. They are the same guys (and girls) who buy and play mainstream games - particularly WotC stuff.

I think it's also possible that people who are regularly gaming, don't really bother with the online aspect of the hobby.

I know that when I'm running a regular game that I'm enjoying, I tend to spend less time 'talking' about gaming, and actually 'gaming'.

I´d argue that D&D stuff has the highest bought/played ratio. I´m pulling out those 3.5 hardcovers out of the shelve very often.
Very often indeed, just to play one session.

A bunch of my gaming friends and I have stumbled across what might be a solution to this: we're running one-shot games on a fortnightly basis on weekend afternoons. It's low-commitment since there's no need to go to every game, which works out well for those of us on busy or unpredictable schedules, and we get to play a very diverse range of games because they provide excellent opportunities to run things which have been sitting on our shelves unplayed for ages.

I have many games I want to play but not many I want to run.  I buy it thinking it would be awesome to play.  I've found it hard to bring new games to the table and asking people to please run them for me.